People & Population

"3M to Pay New Jersey Up to $450 Million for Drinking-Water Contamination"

"3M is set to pay New Jersey up to $450 million over the next quarter-century to settle claims it contaminated the state with harmful “forever chemicals,” or PFAS, affecting drinking water."

Source: NYTimes, 05/14/2025

"Amazon Catholics Hope The New Pope Will Protect The Rain Forest"

"The bishop sat quietly near the front row, hands folded, listening as Indigenous leaders and church workers spoke about the threats to Peru’s northern forests, a part of the Amazon rain forest. It was 2016, a year after Laudato Si, Pope Francis’ encyclical on the environment."

Source: AP, 05/13/2025

"First US Trial Over PFAS Injuries to Focus on Kidney Cancer"

"The first bellwether personal injury trial in a nationwide proceeding over damages from PFAS in specialized firefighting foam will focus on kidney cancer, the court managing the multidistrict case litigation ordered Friday."

Source: Bloomberg Environment, 05/12/2025

‘Misplaced Trust’ Aims Big, But Finds Details Make the Difference

A project of vast scope was needed to tell the untold story of stolen lands originally promised to Indigenous nations. But for Tristan Ahtone, it was the pursuit of "smaller" stories arising out of the detailed data that was the Grist team’s proudest result. Explore the high points — plus three key lessons — of this Pulliam Prize-winning project, in Ahtone’s Inside Story Q&A.

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Environmental Justice Grants Disappear. Environmental Injustice Does Not

Decades of effort to tackle the often-intractable problems of environmental injustice, supported in recent years by billions in funding, are now facing the knife under the Trump administration. The latest TipSheet provides a thumbnail history of government initiatives and why it matters, then offers a dozen story ideas and reporting resources to tell the story in your community.

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Smoke From Climate-Fueled Wildfires Added To 1000s Of US Deaths Over 15 Years

"Wildfires driven by climate change contribute to as many as thousands of annual deaths and billions of dollars in economic costs from wildfire smoke in the United States, according to a new study."

Source: AP, 05/09/2025

US Will Stop Tracking Costs Of Extreme Weather Fueled By Climate Change

"The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will no longer track the cost of climate change-fueled weather disasters, including floods, heat waves, wildfires and more. It is the latest example of changes to the agency and the Trump administration limiting federal government resources on climate change."

Source: AP, 05/09/2025

USFS and NPS Worker Cuts Leave Wildland Firefighting Crews Short-Staffed

"Trump administration funding cuts and a loss of federal workers who help support wildland firefighting continues to make planning for the upcoming wildfire season a challenge, according to forest and fire officials in Washington state and Oregon."

Source: AP, 05/09/2025

Asbestos Clinic Forced To Close In Montana Town Where Thousands Sickened

"BILLINGS, Mont. — An asbestos screening clinic in a small Montana town where thousands have been sickened by toxic dust from a nearby mine has been abruptly shuttered by authorities following a court order to seize the clinic’s assets to pay off a judgment to the railroad BNSF."

Source: AP, 05/09/2025

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