Publication Items

Databases Can Help Environmental Reporting [1]

Data journalism is in again. Some new databases, including EPA's on beaches and USGS' on dam removals, can help environmental reporters find and investigate local stories.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Technology [3]
Water & Oceans [4]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about Databases Can Help Environmental Reporting [1]
Finding Pipelines Near You with Databases [6]

For environmental reporters, pipelines are a frequent source of major news stories. Enterprising journalists may want to find nearby pipelines before they leak or blow up. The National Pipeline Mapping System is a basic tool that can help.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Disasters [7]
Energy & Fuel [8]
Technology [3]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about Finding Pipelines Near You with Databases [6]
Data Journalism Tools and Tips from MIT [9]

The availability of government data has soared over the last decade — offering a huge opportunity for watchdog journalists to find stories that advance the public interest. The environmental beat is the Saudi Arabia of data (yes, that means vast, rich, accessible, and untapped reserves).
SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Journalism & Media [10]
Technology [3]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about Data Journalism Tools and Tips from MIT [9]
EPA Releases Latest Toxics Release Inventory — a Key Tool for Journos [11]

The database, which covers a list of some 689 toxic chemicals, includes self-reported information about dangerous chemicals handled and released at industrial facilities during 2014, the latest year for which data is available. Companies reported the 2014 totals in mid-2015.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Chemicals [12]
Government [13]
Technology [3]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about EPA Releases Latest Toxics Release Inventory — a Key Tool for Journos [11]
Colorado River Portal Offers Data Tool for Environmental Journalists [14]

Water may be for fighting over, but water data is worth cheering about. A new Interior Department data portal may help journalists cover the ever-critical issue of water shortage and surplus in the Colorado River basin and nationwide.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Technology [3]
Water & Oceans [4]
Region:
Mountain West (CO ID MT NV UT WY) [15]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about Colorado River Portal Offers Data Tool for Environmental Journalists [14]
Congressional Think Tank Reports Leaked Again [16]

Although you, as a taxpayer, pay for reports by the Congressional Research Service, Congress does not allow you to read them. Fortunately, somebody leaked these reports of interest to environmental journalists.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Energy & Fuel [8]
Fish & Fisheries [17]
Food [18]
Natural Resources [19]
Technology [3]
Transportation [20]
Water & Oceans [4]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about Congressional Think Tank Reports Leaked Again [16]
National Atlas Is a Trove for Environmental Journalism Projects [21]

Because it is digital, the Atlas can be overlaid with many kinds of information: data on abandoned mines, coalfields, butterflies, aquifers, or invasive plants — to mention only a few examples. And because scale is variable, you can zoom in or out to customize it to your story and audience.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Technology [3]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about National Atlas Is a Trove for Environmental Journalism Projects [21]
Feds Open Unclassified Spy Satellite Data on Arctic to Public [22]

The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, which runs satellites collecting geodata both classified and unclassified, has put up a new Web page with Arctic information. It just went up, and it's as little geeky, but it shows promise for longer-term utility.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Technology [3]
Region:
Antarctica & Arctic [23]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about Feds Open Unclassified Spy Satellite Data on Arctic to Public [22]
FOIA'd E-Mails Open Window on GMO Lobbying by Academics [24]

Investigative reporting in the environmental area depends on the Freedom of Information Act. The latest exposé on GMO lobbying in the New York Times by double-Pulitzer-winner Eric Lipton is a good example.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [25]
Economy & Business [26]
Food [18]
Technology [3]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about FOIA'd E-Mails Open Window on GMO Lobbying by Academics [24]
CAMEO Still Making Appearance as First Responders Face Hazmats [27]

CAMEO is a free and publicly available suite of applications useful to reporters. Developed by the U.S. EPA and NOAA, it includes information about the hazards of various chemicals, as well as map overlays that may show how close a spill site is to the nearest facility of interest, such as a nursery school or retirement home.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Disasters [7]
Technology [3]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about CAMEO Still Making Appearance as First Responders Face Hazmats [27]

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