Feds Unveil New Rural Atlas

March 2, 2011–USDA's atlas provides data, at the county level, on scores of agricultural, demographic, and economic topics. Or on the national map, pick any given category and get an initial feel for national patterns, then click on individual counties for more detail. All data can be downloaded so you can work with it any way you want, and maps can be downloaded for your use. 

Meetings Set for Getting Public Feedback on Solar Sites

February 2, 2011–The federal government has released its draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for identifying and evaluating the best areas on public lands for building utility-scale solar plants. A 90-day public comment period ends March 17, 2011, preceded by 14 meetings in 6 Western states and Washington, D.C.

BLM To Disclose Names and Addresses of Grazing Rights Owners

January 19, 2011–Permittees and lessees of public lands are a key part of covering issues that involve grazing, hunting, public lands access, utility corridors, and related topics. The public comment period on BLM's proposal to identify these people closes Feb. 7, 2011.

High Court Mulls Public's Right To Know of Threats to Its Safety

December 15, 2010–In the case of Milner v. Navy, a Puget Sound resident and activist sought information that would identify the locations and potential blast ranges of explosive ordnance stored at Washington’s Naval Magazine Indian Island.

EPA Asks for Comment on School Siting Guidelines

November 24, 2010–This guidance would provide insights and reduce threats when competing forces — such as land availability, cost, timing, vehicle and utility access, zoning, and developer cooperation — drive decision makers to build a school at a site that may pose a toxic threat to the children and staff.

EPA Releases Reports on Toxics at Selected Schools

November 24, 2010–Following a December 2008 USA Today report on outdoor air pollution at hundreds of schools, EPA began a monitoring process. Final reports for 21 (of the small number of schools selected) have now been released; the results are mixed.

Interest in High-Speed Rail Is Widespread

November 24, 2010–The Department of Transportation awarded $2.4 billion for 54 projects in 23 states. The winners were selected from 132 applicants in 32 states, who had asked for a total of $8.8 billion for planning, construction, equipment purchases, and other closely related efforts.

Create Custom Environmental Maps with National Atlas

November 10, 2010–Dial up just one layer of data, or add layer after layer (from scores of topics) to create your own concoction of interlinked factors. The zoom function allows you to narrow or enlarge your geographic coverage as you see fit.

Disease-Tracking Tool May Help Both People and Wildlife

November 10, 2010–This growing database may help you identify emerging problems and patterns, and supplement what government and university personnel can track.

EPA Gives Public an Environmental Justice Mapping Tool: EJView

November 3, 2010–This new tool allows any user online to create custom study areas based on a wide range of variables: address, ZIP code, county, city, township, facility, watershed, or geographic coordinates. Other environmental data can then be mapped onto that study area.