Publication Items

Find the Greenhouse Gas Emissions of a Plant Near You [1]

Environmental journalists may find a story by asking about the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of a nearby coal-burning power plant or major chemical refinery. A new online EPA database gives information about the largest GHG emitters, makes the query easier and the answers more accurate.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Pollution [3]
Energy & Fuel [4]
Chemicals [5]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about Find the Greenhouse Gas Emissions of a Plant Near You [1]
Farm Bill Conferees May Decree Blackout on Farm Pollution Info [7]

You may smell that stench from a feedlot near your home, but the farm lobby and some of your elected representatives in Congress don't think you have any right to know who is creating it. This year's Farm Bill could include the most sweeping censorship ever of public information on agricultural pollution and the identities of the corporations that profit from it.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Pollution [3]
Agriculture [8]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about Farm Bill Conferees May Decree Blackout on Farm Pollution Info [7]
ECHO 2.0 Database Gives Environmental Gumshoes a Better Clue [9]

Got scofflaw polluters in your audience area? Are they owned by political fat cats? Is EPA cutting them more slack than they deserve? Such questions are easier to answer thanks to a recent upgrade of the Environmental Protection Agency's ECHO database, a key tool for environmental investigative reporters.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Technology [10]
Pollution [3]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about ECHO 2.0 Database Gives Environmental Gumshoes a Better Clue [9]
"The Last Atoll: Exploring Hawai’i’s Endangered Ecosystems" [11]

SEJ Publication Types:
BookShelf [12]
Topics on the Beat:
Natural Resources [13]
Planning & Growth [14]
Pollution [3]
Wildlife [15]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about "The Last Atoll: Exploring Hawai’i’s Endangered Ecosystems" [11]
EPA Settles Court Bid To Keep Luminant Pollution Data "Confidential" (Cough, Cough) [16]

A U.S. district judge on October 2, 2013, brushed aside claims by EPA and the Luminant Corp. that information related to pollution from the company's coal-burning power plants was "confidential business information" — which seems to be a growing excuse for withholding public-interest information.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Pollution [3]
Energy & Fuel [4]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about EPA Settles Court Bid To Keep Luminant Pollution Data "Confidential" (Cough, Cough) [16]
Pennsylvania Gas Industry Keeps Secret Database on Pre-Drill Quality of Wells [17]

The fracking industry loves to argue there's no proof its gas-extraction methods cause pollution. But it works hard in Pennsylvania to keep secret any evidence that might prove the question — one way or the other. Existence of its database was reported by Marie Cusick of WITF in Harrisburg, via NPR's StateImpact Pennsylvania.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Water & Oceans [18]
Pollution [3]
Energy & Fuel [4]
Economy & Business [19]
Chemicals [5]
Region:
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV) [20]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about Pennsylvania Gas Industry Keeps Secret Database on Pre-Drill Quality of Wells [17]
"Toms River: A Story of Science and Salvation" [21]

SEJ Publication Types:
BookShelf [12]
Topics on the Beat:
Chemicals [5]
Health [22]
Pollution [3]
Region:
Northeast (CT MA ME NH NJ NY RI VT) [23]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about "Toms River: A Story of Science and Salvation" [21]
EPA Pilot-Tests New Data Mapping Tool on Community Exposures [24]

The Community-Focused Exposure and Risk Screening Tool (C-FERST), available currently to some agencies, communities, and researchers, could be helpful in tracking environmental justice stories: the impact of specific pollutant exposures on particular geographic and demographic communities.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Technology [10]
Pollution [3]
People & Population [25]
Government [26]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about EPA Pilot-Tests New Data Mapping Tool on Community Exposures [24]
Are We Ready for the Next Superstorm? [27]

Francesca Lyman asks "What does Hurricane Sandy tell us about coping with human health and consequences of climate change?"

SEJ Publication Types:
Backgrounders [28]
Topics on the Beat:
Chemicals [5]
Climate Change [29]
Disasters [30]
Environmental Health [31]
Health [22]
People & Population [25]
Planning & Growth [14]
Pollution [3]
Region:
Northeast (CT MA ME NH NJ NY RI VT) [23]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about Are We Ready for the Next Superstorm? [27]
TRI National Analysis Dangles Leads for Investigative Stories [32]

EPA had already released preliminary TRI data for the latest available year (2011), but its National Analysis makes for easier reporting as data is collated by state. It also offers analyses by industry sector and of toxics handling by collating the parent companies of each facility nationwide.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Technology [10]
Pollution [3]
Government [26]
Chemicals [5]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about TRI National Analysis Dangles Leads for Investigative Stories [32]

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