Environment
The Tension Between Humans and Nature
When Is “Recyclable” Not Really Recyclable? When the Plastics Industry Gets to Define What the Word Means.
Companies whose futures depend on plastic production are trying to persuade the federal government to allow them to put the label “recyclable” on plastic shopping bags and other items virtually guaranteed to end up in landfills and incinerators.
As Millions of Acres Burn, Firefighters Say the U.S. Forest Service Has Left Them With Critical Shortages
The agency recently said that it had reached 101% of its firefighter hiring goal for 2024, but those on the front lines say the agency is understating how badly depleted their ranks are, especially for experienced firefighters.
After Nike Leaders Promised Climate Action, Their Corporate Jets Kept Flying — and Polluting
Nike has staked a claim as a corporate leader on sustainability. Yet company disclosures show that its jets emitted almost 20% more carbon dioxide last year than in 2015. It’s one small factor in Nike’s failure to slash emissions as promised.
Washington State Solar Project Paused Amid Concern About Native Cultural Sites
The decision comes after an investigation by High Country News and ProPublica found that a land survey funded by the developer omitted more than a dozen sites of archaeological or cultural significance.
Local Reporting Network
Featured Reporters
Impact of Our Reporting
Biden EPA Rejects Plastics Industry’s Fuzzy Math That Misleads Customers About Recycled Content
The plastics industry uses a controversial accounting method to inflate the recycled content it advertises in products. A new EPA policy won’t allow it for any products it endorses as a “Safer Choice.”
The Federal Government Just Acknowledged the Harm Its Dams Have Caused Tribes. Here’s What It Left Out.
The Biden administration said officials historically gave “little, if any, consideration” to impacts on tribal fishing.
Local Reporting Network
EPA Proposes Ban on Pesticide Widely Used on Fruits and Vegetables
The ban on acephate comes a week after a ProPublica investigation highlighted the EPA’s controversial finding that the bug killer doesn’t harm the developing brains of children.
Series
Series: Selling a Mirage: The Deception Behind Plastic Recycling
Series: Unplugged: Will Taxpayers Foot the Oil Industry’s Cleanup Bill?
Series: Waiting for Water: Tribes’ Fight for a Promised Resource
Series: Roots of an Outbreak: How the Next Pandemic Could Start
Series: Disaster After Disaster: Growing Storms, Faltering Aid
Series: Broken Promises: Salmon Disappear From the Pacific Northwest
Series: Sacrifice Zones: Mapping Cancer-Causing Industrial Air Pollution
Series: Black Snow: Big Sugar’s Burning Problem
Series: Sunken Costs: Coal Ash in Georgia
Series: California Burning: The Climate Crisis is Setting the State on Fire
Series: The Great Climate Migration: A Warming Planet and a Shifting Population
Series: Paradise Lost: Hawaii’s Disappearing Beaches
Series: Pollution Profiteers: Inside California’s Toxic Hauling Industry
Series: The Cutting: Investigating Industrial Logging in Oregon
Series: Polluter’s Paradise: Environmental Impact in Louisiana
Series: The New Power Brokers: West Virginia’s Natural Gas Industry
Series: Bombs in Our Backyard: Investigating One of America’s Greatest Polluters
Series: Killing the Colorado: The Water Crisis in the West
Series: Losing Ground: Southeast Louisiana is Disappearing, Quickly
Series: After the Flood: The Challenge of Rebuilding as the Climate Changes
Series: Injection Wells: The Hidden Risks of Pumping Waste Underground
Series: Nuclear Safety: After Fukushima
Series: Gulf Oil Spill: Investigating the Impact of the BP Spill
