Publication Items

‘The Green Years’ — When the Environment Eclipsed Politics [1]

There was a moment within living memory when Democrats and Republicans came together — in a time of extraordinary political turmoil — to pass landmark legislation to clean U.S. waters, limit toxic substances and pesticides, and empower the government to protect the environment. BookShelf’s Nano Riley reviews a new book that explores that time, and which speculates on why things have changed.

SEJ Publication Types:
BookShelf [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [3]
Chemicals [4]
Environmental Politics [5]
Government [6]
Laws & Regulations [7]
Natural Resources [8]
Policy [9]
Pollution [10]
Water & Oceans [11]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about ‘The Green Years’ — When the Environment Eclipsed Politics [1]
EPA Moves To Eliminate Asbestos Risk to Human Health, But Its Legacy Remains [14]

A new ban is to be imposed on the last kind of asbestos still imported into the United States for use in commerce. But as the Issue Backgrounder explains, the regulatory back-and-forth over the substance by recent administrations won’t alleviate the biggest U.S. problem, which is the long history of its use in a wide range of building materials and other uses raising ongoing occupational risks.

SEJ Publication Types:
Backgrounders [15]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [16]
Consumer [17]
Environmental Politics [5]
Government [6]
Health [18]
Infrastructure [19]
Journalism & Media [20]
Laws & Regulations [7]
Policy [9]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about EPA Moves To Eliminate Asbestos Risk to Human Health, But Its Legacy Remains [14]
Grantee Wades Into Surprising Blue-Green Algae Problem [21]

A chance encounter with a social media post from a retired government official led environmental journalist Sharon Oosthoek on a virtual, pandemic-era journey deep into the waters of Lake Superior to chase down an algal bloom. In her contribution to FEJ StoryLog, Oosthoek shares how she leveraged the tip into a grant that allowed her and her TV channel partner to produce a multi-part text, video, engagement and teaching project.

SEJ Publication Types:
FEJ StoryLog [22]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [23]
Environmental Health [24]
Fish & Fisheries [25]
Journalism & Media [20]
Natural Resources [8]
Pollution [10]
Water & Oceans [11]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [26]
International [27]
Canada [28]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Grantee Wades Into Surprising Blue-Green Algae Problem [21]
Newly Released Greenhouse Gas Inventory Offers Local Reporting Opportunities [29]

Updated data on U.S. emissions offers environmental journalists an opportunity to chase down local climate change news, whether from a range of sectors and industries, or from 8,000 major facilities, with tools that allow a county-by-county view. The latest Reporter’s Toolbox takes a look at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s annual release of the Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [30]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [23]
Government [6]
Journalism & Media [20]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Newly Released Greenhouse Gas Inventory Offers Local Reporting Opportunities [29]
Houston and Other Disasters at #SEJ2022 [31]

If it often feels like the world of environmental journalism is all dour worry over our collective futures, resident humorist David Helvarg is here to remind you that our present is just as scary — if for different, and funnier, reasons. In his latest lampoon of the Society of Environmental Journalists’ annual conference [32], Helvarg shares his trademark jests from Houston. Plus, (straighter) reportage from the gathering at the conference coverage page [33].

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [34]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [23]
Environmental Health [24]
Environmental Politics [5]
Journalism & Media [20]
People & Population [35]
Pollution [10]
Water & Oceans [11]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [36]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Houston and Other Disasters at #SEJ2022 [31]
Don’t Overlook Lead Paint Toxicity Stories in Your Area [37]

Lead poisoning of U.S. drinking water has been a big headline-grabber in recent years, but there’s an even bigger environmental justice crisis — toxic lead exposure from paint. The latest TipSheet reports that this overlooked school and housing issue is getting new attention, but solving it will be difficult and expensive. Get context, reporting resources and ideas to tackle the story in your community.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [38]
Topics on the Beat:
Chemicals [4]
Consumer [17]
Environmental Justice [39]
Government [6]
Health [18]
Infrastructure [19]
Journalism & Media [20]
Laws & Regulations [7]
People & Population [35]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [26]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Don’t Overlook Lead Paint Toxicity Stories in Your Area [37]
Battlefront Emerges Over Disclosure of Financial Climate Risks [40]

The Biden administration’s “whole-of-government” attack on climate change has increasingly focused on the financial arena, with the most recent move a vote by the Securities and Exchange Commission to draft rules requiring publicly traded corporations to disclose climate risks. Industry and GOP opponents are preparing for the fight over the complex regulations, and WatchDog Opinion argues environmental journalists have a big stake.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog [41]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [3]
Climate Change [23]
Economy & Business [42]
Environmental Politics [5]
Government [6]
Journalism & Media [20]
Laws & Regulations [7]
Policy [9]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Battlefront Emerges Over Disclosure of Financial Climate Risks [40]
‘ECHO Notify’ Offers Automatic Pollution Alarms [43]

Environmental journalists trying to track potential problem polluters have a valuable new tool — a notification service that creates weekly alerts on the enforcement or compliance status of facilities and companies across a range of environmental laws and customizable categories. Track geography, type of emissions, industrial category and more. The latest Reporter’s Toolbox has more on the recently launched ECHO Notify service.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [30]
Topics on the Beat:
Government [6]
Journalism & Media [20]
Laws & Regulations [7]
Pollution [10]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about ‘ECHO Notify’ Offers Automatic Pollution Alarms [43]
A Castoff Bumper Leads to a Literary ‘Autobiography’ of Plastic [44]

Environmental writer Allison Cobb, in “Plastic: An Autobiography,” tells the story of the ubiquitous material through a series of interwoven narratives that range from her own experiences with it (including a discarded plastic car bumper), to the corporate origins of its spread and the way it’s now dangerously carpeting nature and damaging human communities. Contributor Nano Riley has a review in our new BookShelf.

SEJ Publication Types:
BookShelf [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Consumer [17]
Environmental Health [24]
Environmental Justice [39]
Health [18]
Pollution [10]
Waste [45]
Water & Oceans [11]
Wildlife [46]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Alaska and Hawaii [47]
International [27]
Canada [28]
Mexico [48]
Africa [49]
Antarctica & Arctic [50]
Asia [51]
Australia & Oceania [52]
Central America & the Caribbean [53]
Europe [54]
Middle East [55]
South America [56]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about A Castoff Bumper Leads to a Literary ‘Autobiography’ of Plastic [44]
How — And Why —To Avoid Jargon When Covering Climate [57]

Climate change reporting is sometimes peppered with jargon that confounds rather than clearly communicates. Audiences may miss not just one story’s message, but lose interest in the broader topic. Contributor Rebecca Hersher, a science reporter for National Public Radio, writes how the public’s connection with climate information increases when both journalists and scientists strive to replace elite terminology with simple and accurate language.

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [34]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [23]
Consumer [17]
Environmental Studies [58]
Journalism & Media [20]
Science [59]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
International [27]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about How — And Why —To Avoid Jargon When Covering Climate [57]

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