Publication Items

Small-Market Reporter Unmasks Race Gap in Pollution Response [1]

When two towns — one an affluent suburb and the other a poor rural community — faced similar air pollution crises, lopsided government action made clear there was an underlying race and class divide. Reporter Sharon Lerner shares the story behind her award-winning reporting that tells the “Tale of Two Toxic Cities,” in our latest Inside Story Q&A.

SEJ Publication Types:
Inside Story [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [3]
Air [4]
Chemicals [5]
Environmental Health [6]
Environmental Politics [7]
Government [8]
Health [9]
Journalism & Media [10]
People & Population [11]
Pollution [12]
Region:
National (U.S.) [13]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [14]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [15]
Visibility:
Public [16]
- Read more about Small-Market Reporter Unmasks Race Gap in Pollution Response [1]
Altered Office Environments Will Likely Greet Workers Returning From Quarantine [17]

The indoor air in offices was already a potential health risk even before COVID-19. But now amid the pandemic coronavirus, not to mention other ever-present biological threats, indoor environmental hazards make it more likely than ever that offices will look and function differently in coming days. TipSheet takes a look and offers more than a dozen story ideas and resources.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [18]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [4]
Disasters [19]
Economy & Business [20]
Health [9]
Journalism & Media [10]
People & Population [11]
Region:
National (U.S.) [13]
International [21]
Visibility:
Public [16]
- Read more about Altered Office Environments Will Likely Greet Workers Returning From Quarantine [17]
Coronavirus Should Sharpen Focus on Another Deadly Respiratory Illness — Legionnaires’ Disease [22]

Amid the coronavirus pandemic, there’s another respiratory disease to worry about. Legionnaires’, which attacks the lungs, is already the deadliest waterborne illness in the United States. And the dangerous bacteria may now be breeding in the plumbing systems of buildings shut down during the outbreak. Contributor Brett Walton asks: Is the nation prepared for a safe reopening?

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [23]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [4]
Health [9]
Journalism & Media [10]
Water & Oceans [24]
Region:
National (U.S.) [13]
International [21]
Visibility:
Public [16]
- Read more about Coronavirus Should Sharpen Focus on Another Deadly Respiratory Illness — Legionnaires’ Disease [22]
Disaster Preparedness Key Amid Pandemic [25]

Unheeded warnings are the hallmark of many disasters. And with coronavirus still hobbling the nation, communities and journalists must now watch for all the ways COVID-19 could make even the most familiar hazards far worse. Prepare with this extensive Backgrounder, which touches on issues around evacuations and emergency readiness when facing storms, fires, toxic releases and more.

SEJ Publication Types:
Backgrounders [26]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [4]
Chemicals [5]
Disasters [19]
Environmental Health [6]
Government [8]
Health [9]
Journalism & Media [10]
Laws & Regulations [27]
People & Population [11]
Planning & Growth [28]
Policy [29]
Region:
National (U.S.) [13]
California [30]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [14]
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV) [31]
Visibility:
Public [16]
- Read more about Disaster Preparedness Key Amid Pandemic [25]
While No One Was Watching — Changing Enviro Regs Under Trump [32]

Regulations that sprang from cornerstone environmental laws in place for decades are now under attack by the Trump administration, per legal experts in a recent webinar co-sponsored by the Society of Environmental Journalists and Columbia University’s Earth Institute. Get key takeaways and resources from the event from SEJ’s Dale Willman. Plus, watch the full webinar video.

SEJ Publication Types:
SEJ News [33]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [3]
Air [4]
Chemicals [5]
Climate Change [34]
Energy & Fuel [35]
Environmental Health [6]
Environmental Politics [7]
Government [8]
Health [9]
Laws & Regulations [27]
Natural Resources [36]
Policy [29]
Pollution [12]
Science [37]
Transportation [38]
Waste [39]
Water & Oceans [24]
Region:
National (U.S.) [13]
Visibility:
Public [16]
- Read more about While No One Was Watching — Changing Enviro Regs Under Trump [32]
“Choked: Life and Breath in the Age of Air Pollution” [40]

To better grasp how COVID-19 is linked to the persistent problem of polluted air, our latest BookShelf review recommends going back to a prescient text, “Choked: Life and Breath in the Age of Air Pollution.” While the volume predates the pandemic, it makes painfully clear why, during this crisis, healthy air matters more than ever.

SEJ Publication Types:
BookShelf [41]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [4]
Disasters [19]
Health [9]
Laws & Regulations [27]
People & Population [11]
Pollution [12]
Science [37]
Region:
National (U.S.) [13]
International [21]
Asia [42]
Europe [43]
Visibility:
Public [16]
- Read more about “Choked: Life and Breath in the Age of Air Pollution” [40]
Ignoring COVID-19 Link, EPA Leaves Lax Soot Standard in Place [44]

As researchers are finding that soot and other forms of fine particulates in the air may actually make people more vulnerable to the coronavirus, the EPA decided earlier this month against tightening related standards under the Clean Air Act. The latest TipSheet explains why the decision matters, provides deeper context and offers story ideas and resources.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [18]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [4]
Disasters [19]
Environmental Health [6]
Environmental Politics [7]
Environmental Studies [45]
Government [8]
Health [9]
Journalism & Media [10]
Laws & Regulations [27]
People & Population [11]
Policy [29]
Pollution [12]
Science [37]
Transportation [38]
Region:
National (U.S.) [13]
Visibility:
Public [16]
- Read more about Ignoring COVID-19 Link, EPA Leaves Lax Soot Standard in Place [44]
When the Crisis Was Immense, SEJ Award-Winner Went Narrow [46]

How do you gain perspective on a widespread public health disaster? Award-winning reporter Apoorva Mandavilli shares valuable lessons on using a small lens to cover a big story — no, not COVID-19, but the deadly 1984 gas leak in Bhopal, India. And as she explains in this Inside Story Q&A, this decades-old story never really went away in the first place.

SEJ Publication Types:
Inside Story [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [3]
Air [4]
Chemicals [5]
Disasters [19]
Environmental Health [6]
Government [8]
Health [9]
Journalism & Media [10]
People & Population [11]
Pollution [12]
Water & Oceans [24]
Region:
International [21]
Asia [42]
Visibility:
Public [16]
- Read more about When the Crisis Was Immense, SEJ Award-Winner Went Narrow [46]
Pacific Northwest Rides Adaptation Wave [47]

The final entry in our multi-week “Covering Your Climate: The Emerald Corridor [48]” special report explores how the Pacific Northwest is adapting to climate change, whether it’s new approaches to working the land, changing critical infrastructure or rethinking our mindset. Read this last tipsheet, plus check out our earlier reports on climate mitigation [49] and on climate impacts [50], plus our stage-setting backgrounder [51] and a reporter’s resource toolkit [52].

SEJ Publication Types:
Special Reports [53]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [3]
Agriculture [54]
Air [4]
Biodiversity [55]
Climate Change [34]
Consumer [56]
Economy & Business [20]
Energy & Fuel [35]
Environmental Health [6]
Environmental Politics [7]
Environmental Studies [45]
Fish & Fisheries [57]
Food [58]
Forests [59]
Government [8]
Health [9]
Journalism & Media [10]
Natural Resources [36]
People & Population [11]
Planning & Growth [28]
Policy [29]
Science [37]
Technology [60]
Transportation [38]
Water & Oceans [24]
Wildlife [61]
Region:
National (U.S.) [13]
Northwest (OR WA) [62]
International [21]
Canada [63]
Visibility:
Public [16]
- Read more about Pacific Northwest Rides Adaptation Wave [47]
Massive COVID-19 Aid Bill Nears Passage with Key Environment, Energy Elements [64]

An historic multi-trillion-dollar COVID-19 aid bill is approaching passage in the U.S. Congress, and while details are currently sketchy, it appears to include some key environment and energy asks related to oil reserves, emergency transit funding, cuts in airline carbon emissions, clean energy tax credits, and relief for oil, gas and coal industries. Read on, find out more about the many environment and energy reporting angles to the COVID-19 outbreak [65] and stay tuned to SEJournal online for further developments.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [18]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [4]
Climate Change [34]
Consumer [56]
Disasters [19]
Economy & Business [20]
Energy & Fuel [35]
Environmental Politics [7]
Government [8]
Health [9]
Laws & Regulations [27]
Policy [29]
Pollution [12]
Region:
National (U.S.) [13]
Visibility:
Public [16]
- Read more about Massive COVID-19 Aid Bill Nears Passage with Key Environment, Energy Elements [64]

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