Publication Items

Feds Open Unclassified Spy Satellite Data on Arctic to Public [1]

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 [4]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about Feds Open Unclassified Spy Satellite Data on Arctic to Public [1]
FOIA'd E-Mails Open Window on GMO Lobbying by Academics [6]

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 [7]
Economy & Business [8]
Food [9]
Technology [3]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about FOIA'd E-Mails Open Window on GMO Lobbying by Academics [6]
CAMEO Still Making Appearance as First Responders Face Hazmats [10]

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 [11]
Technology [3]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about CAMEO Still Making Appearance as First Responders Face Hazmats [10]
Digital Tools — Free and Easy for EJ Educators, Students [12]

SEJ Publication Types:
EJ Academy [13]
Topics on the Beat:
Journalism & Media [14]
Technology [3]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about Digital Tools — Free and Easy for EJ Educators, Students [12]
Need to Know? Eight Reports from the Congressional Research Service [15]

Congress does not release reports done by the Congressional Research Service to the public, even though taxpayers fund them. Thanks to the Federation of American Scientists' Government Secrecy Project, you can read them anyway.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Disasters [11]
Economy & Business [8]
Energy & Fuel [16]
Natural Resources [17]
Nuclear Power & Radiation [18]
Science [19]
Technology [3]
Region:
Antarctica & Arctic [4]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about Need to Know? Eight Reports from the Congressional Research Service [15]
Climate Explorer Brings Data to Life [20]

Climate Central science writer John Upton explains how to use the visualization tool that brings to virtual life the climate- and weather-related data generated by the 13 federal agencies that collaborate to form the U.S. Global Change Research Program.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [21]
Topics on the Beat:
Journalism & Media [14]
Technology [3]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about Climate Explorer Brings Data to Life [20]
"Aluminum Dreams: The Making of Light Modernity" [22]

SEJ Publication Types:
BookShelf [23]
Topics on the Beat:
Consumer [24]
Environmental Health [25]
Natural Resources [17]
People & Population [26]
Technology [3]
Water & Oceans [27]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about "Aluminum Dreams: The Making of Light Modernity" [22]
Monsanto Brings Agriculture Geodata to the Public [28]

If you report on agriculture-related environmental issues, you may find useful a new geodata tool available free to the public online. Monsanto has bought The Climate Corporation (for $930 million), which compiles weather, soil, and crop data down to the field level.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [7]
Technology [3]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about Monsanto Brings Agriculture Geodata to the Public [28]
Weather Service Offers Better Ways To Track Storm Intensity [29]

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [21]
Topics on the Beat:
Disasters [11]
Science [19]
Technology [3]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about Weather Service Offers Better Ways To Track Storm Intensity [29]
Toxics: Find Kids at Risk in Your Congressional District [30]

The Center for Effective Government has compiled an interactive mapping database of some of the most dangerous chemical facilities in the U.S., showing their proximity to schools. The group also mapped which Congressional districts contain the most schoolkids at risk.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Chemicals [31]
Disasters [11]
People & Population [26]
Technology [3]
Visibility:
Public [5]
- Read more about Toxics: Find Kids at Risk in Your Congressional District [30]

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