EJToday: Top Headlines

Published on SEJ (https://www.sej.org)

EJToday is a daily weekday digest of top environment/energy news and information of interest to environmental journalists, independently curated by Editor Joseph A. Davis [1]. Sign up below to receive in your inbox. For queries, email EJToday@SEJ.org [2]. For more info, read an EJToday FAQ [3]. Plus, follow EJToday on social media at @EJTodayNews [4], and flag stories of note by including the @EJTodayNews handle on your posts. And tell us how to make EJToday even better by taking this brief survey [5].

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Trump Admin To Lift Logging Limits In National Forests [9]

"The Trump administration plans to remove restrictions on logging across more than 40 million acres of national forest, the Agriculture Department said."

Biodiversity [10]
Economy & Business [11]
Environmental Politics [12]
Forests [13]
Laws & Regulations [14]
Natural Resources [15]
Pollution [16]
Wildlife [17]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [19]
Alaska and Hawaii [20]
Source: E&E News [21], 08/19/2026
- Read more about Trump Admin To Lift Logging Limits In National Forests [9]
Judge Rejects Alaska Land Swap To Allow Road Through Izembek Refuge [22]

"A federal judge in Alaska this week struck down the Trump administration’s decision to green-light a land exchange that had paved the way for a 10.5-mile road to be blazed through the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge."

Biodiversity [10]
Environmental Health [23]
Forests [13]
Laws & Regulations [14]
People & Population [24]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [19]
Alaska and Hawaii [20]
Source: E&E News [25], 08/19/2026
- Read more about Judge Rejects Alaska Land Swap To Allow Road Through Izembek Refuge [22]
Walz Throws Up New Roadblock To Mining Near Boundary Waters [26]

"Democratic Gov. Tim Walz moved Tuesday to block mining near the pristine Boundary Waters in northern Minnesota, dealing a blow to Republican efforts that have sought to push forward a copper and nickel project in the region."

Biodiversity [10]
Environmental Politics [12]
Forests [13]
Laws & Regulations [14]
Natural Resources [15]
Wildlife [17]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [19]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [27]
Source: E&E News [28], 08/19/2026
- Read more about Walz Throws Up New Roadblock To Mining Near Boundary Waters [26]
Minneapolis Faces Tough Choices On Lead Pipe Removal [29]

"The city is prioritizing historically disenfranchised neighborhoods, daycare and childcare facilities, and streets due for utility work."

Chemicals [30]
Environmental Health [23]
Environmental Justice [31]
Environmental Politics [12]
Government [32]
Laws & Regulations [14]
People & Population [24]
Pollution [16]
Technology [33]
Water & Oceans [34]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [19]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [27]
Source: MinnPost [35], 08/19/2026
- Read more about Minneapolis Faces Tough Choices On Lead Pipe Removal [29]
The Gulf Oil Shock Is Pushing E.V. Sales to New Heights. See Where. [36]

"This year, one in four cars sold worldwide will be electric. War in Iran is speeding the shift."

Climate Change [37]
Economy & Business [11]
Energy & Fuel [38]
Environmental Health [23]
Military [39]
People & Population [24]
Pollution [16]
Technology [33]
Transportation [40]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [19]
International [41]
Source: NYTimes [42], 08/19/2026
- Read more about The Gulf Oil Shock Is Pushing E.V. Sales to New Heights. See Where. [36]
Enviros Sue to Halt First Sale of Seabed-Mining Rights by Trump [43]

"A coalition of environmentalists and community advocates sued the federal government Tuesday in an effort to halt the first-ever commercial sale of deep sea mining leases in American waters."

Biodiversity [10]
Chemicals [30]
Environmental Politics [12]
Environmental Studies [44]
Fish & Fisheries [45]
Laws & Regulations [14]
Natural Resources [15]
Pollution [16]
Water & Oceans [34]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [19]
International [41]
Source: New York Times [46], 08/19/2026
- Read more about Enviros Sue to Halt First Sale of Seabed-Mining Rights by Trump [43]
Canada Bets Big on Hydro and Wind Power [47]

"Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said the country will build the largest clean energy investment in North America’s history—a package of hydropower, onshore wind and transmission projects aimed at meeting electricity needs while also exporting power to Massachusetts and New York."

Climate Change [37]
Energy & Fuel [38]
Environmental Politics [12]
Government [32]
Infrastructure [48]
Planning & Growth [49]
Pollution [16]
Technology [33]
Water & Oceans [34]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [19]
Canada [50]
Source: Inside Climate News [51], 08/19/2026
- Read more about Canada Bets Big on Hydro and Wind Power [47]
NOAA’s New Priorities Put Profits Ahead of Marine Protections [52]

"The agency directed the nation’s regional fisheries councils to scrap certain marine protected areas, remove species from conservation lists and expand commercial fishing operations."

Biodiversity [10]
Fish & Fisheries [45]
Government [32]
Laws & Regulations [14]
Natural Resources [15]
Water & Oceans [34]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [19]
International [41]
Source: Inside Climate News [53], 08/19/2026
- Read more about NOAA’s New Priorities Put Profits Ahead of Marine Protections [52]
Maine Tries To Get Homeowners To Test And Treat Private Wells For Arsenic [54]

"Low-income homeowners are least likely to test and treat their well water for arsenic, and a state program to help them has treated fewer homes than expected."

Chemicals [30]
Consumer [55]
Environmental Health [23]
Environmental Justice [31]
Government [32]
People & Population [24]
Pollution [16]
Water & Oceans [34]
Public [18]
Northeast (CT MA ME NH NJ NY RI VT) [56]
Source: Maine Monitor [57], 08/19/2026
- Read more about Maine Tries To Get Homeowners To Test And Treat Private Wells For Arsenic [54]
Sharks Take the Temperature [58]

"How marine animals are helping fill gaps in climate forecasting"

Biodiversity [10]
Climate Change [37]
Environmental Studies [44]
Science [59]
Water & Oceans [34]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [19]
International [41]
Source: Sierra [60], 08/19/2026
- Read more about Sharks Take the Temperature [58]
The EPA’s Data On Cancer Risk From Air Pollution Has Gone Dark [61]

"For decades, communities have relied on the agency's cancer risk estimates to hold polluters accountable. This year, it's missing."

Air [62]
Chemicals [30]
Consumer [55]
Environmental Health [23]
Environmental Politics [12]
Journalism & Media [63]
Laws & Regulations [14]
People & Population [24]
Pollution [16]
Science [59]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [19]
Source: Grist [64], 08/18/2026
- Read more about The EPA’s Data On Cancer Risk From Air Pollution Has Gone Dark [61]
Trump Admin Halts Border Work In Big Bend National Park As Outrage Grows [65]

"The Trump administration has paused all border barrier construction work at Big Bend National Park, after a flurry of videos showing bulldozers marring the protected landscape drove a furious backlash."

Activism [66]
Biodiversity [10]
Environmental Politics [12]
Government [32]
Natural Resources [15]
People & Population [24]
Water & Oceans [34]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [19]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [67]
Source: Public Domain [68], 08/18/2026
- Read more about Trump Admin Halts Border Work In Big Bend National Park As Outrage Grows [65]
Trump Admin Fights Republican Effort To Lower Flood Insurance Costs [69]

"The Trump administration is defending a flood policy imposed by the Biden administration and supported by environmental groups against efforts by Republican-led states to overturn it in court."

Biodiversity [10]
Climate Change [37]
Disasters [70]
Environmental Health [23]
Infrastructure [48]
Natural Resources [15]
People & Population [24]
Water & Oceans [34]
Wildlife [17]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [19]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [67]
Source: E&E News [71], 08/18/2026
- Read more about Trump Admin Fights Republican Effort To Lower Flood Insurance Costs [69]
Wildfire Scorched 900 Buildings. A State Calls The Fire Risk ‘Moderate.’ [72]

"Washington state will impose a fire-resistant building code in high-risk areas. Wildfire-prone areas are being excluded, some say."

Agriculture [73]
Climate Change [37]
Disasters [70]
Laws & Regulations [14]
People & Population [24]
Planning & Growth [49]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [19]
Northwest (OR WA) [74]
Source: E&E News [75], 08/18/2026
- Read more about Wildfire Scorched 900 Buildings. A State Calls The Fire Risk ‘Moderate.’ [72]
As Temperatures Get Hotter, Pesticides Are More Dangerous to Farmworkers [76]

"Research shows heat amplifies the dangers of pesticides for farmworkers, and that the problem is poised to grow as the global climate warms."

Laws & Regulations [14]
People & Population [24]
Pollution [16]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [19]
Source: Inside Climate News [77], 08/18/2026
- Read more about As Temperatures Get Hotter, Pesticides Are More Dangerous to Farmworkers [76]

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Source URL:https://www.sej.org/headlines/list/%2A/48/target%3D%27_blank%27

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