Publication Items

“Billionaire Wilderness: The Ultra-Wealthy and the Remaking of the American West” [1]

It’s a site of stunning natural beauty. It’s also the place with America’s worst income inequality. A new book details how Wyoming’s Teton County elite have, perhaps unwittingly, used their extreme wealth to remake the region through conservation easements and donations to environmental causes, but remain blind to the needs of the area’s poorer residents. The latest BookShelf review explains.

SEJ Publication Types:
BookShelf [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [3]
Economy & Business [4]
Environmental Politics [5]
Natural Resources [6]
People & Population [7]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
California [9]
Mountain West (CO ID MT NV UT WY) [10]
Northwest (OR WA) [11]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about “Billionaire Wilderness: The Ultra-Wealthy and the Remaking of the American West” [1]
Coronavirus Silence, Secrecy Harms Public Health [13]

Mishandling of vital information by the U.S. government worsened the COVID-19 pandemic, argues the latest WatchDog. The no-holds-barred opinion piece, which notes that coronavirus is as much an environmental story as a public health one, points the finger at the White House and the “Silent CDC,” sifts the wreckage of the testing program and speculates about the dearth of data as the nation reopens.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog [14]
Topics on the Beat:
Disasters [15]
Environmental Politics [5]
Government [16]
Health [17]
Journalism & Media [18]
People & Population [7]
Policy [19]
Science [20]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about Coronavirus Silence, Secrecy Harms Public Health [13]
Coronavirus Should Sharpen Focus on Another Deadly Respiratory Illness — Legionnaires’ Disease [21]

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 [22]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [23]
Health [17]
Journalism & Media [18]
Water & Oceans [24]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
International [25]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about Coronavirus Should Sharpen Focus on Another Deadly Respiratory Illness — Legionnaires’ Disease [21]
Pandemic Pushes Bikes Into New Popularity. Will It Last? [26]

Commuters seeking social distancing want them. City dwellers drawn to nearly car-free streets want them too. But the boom in bikes long pre-dates the COVID-19 outbreak, and their eco-friendly reputation offers environment reporters numerous smart local story angles, per the latest TipSheet. Get context, plus numerous story ideas and resources.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [27]
Topics on the Beat:
Consumer [28]
Health [17]
Journalism & Media [18]
People & Population [7]
Planning & Growth [29]
Pollution [30]
Transportation [31]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
International [25]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about Pandemic Pushes Bikes Into New Popularity. Will It Last? [26]
Using Data Sources To Track Climate-Driven Mayhem at Superfund Sites [32]

Hazardous waste and floodwaters don’t typically mix well together. So when a Michigan dam recently burst, and flooded not just the local community, but also threatened a nearby Superfund site, it prompted Reporter’s Toolbox to look at how environmental journalists could track similar threats in their areas, especially as climate change raises the risks of similar disasters.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [33]
Topics on the Beat:
Chemicals [34]
Climate Change [35]
Disasters [15]
Government [16]
Health [17]
Journalism & Media [18]
Laws & Regulations [36]
Pollution [30]
Waste [37]
Water & Oceans [24]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [38]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [39]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [40]
International [25]
Europe [41]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about Using Data Sources To Track Climate-Driven Mayhem at Superfund Sites [32]
How Explanatory Reporting Can Define a Challenged Landscape [42]

To cover the wide range of challenges affecting his Mountain State, a small market beat reporter won plaudits first by becoming a close student of the issues and then boiling them down to the basics for his audience. Inside Story’s Q&A explores the resulting award-winning journalism on topics like water law and public lands, groundwater pollution and protected species.

SEJ Publication Types:
Inside Story [43]
Topics on the Beat:
Environmental Studies [44]
Journalism & Media [18]
Laws & Regulations [36]
Natural Resources [6]
Pollution [30]
Water & Oceans [24]
Wildlife [45]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Mountain West (CO ID MT NV UT WY) [10]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about How Explanatory Reporting Can Define a Challenged Landscape [42]
Disaster Preparedness Key Amid Pandemic [46]

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 [47]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [23]
Chemicals [34]
Disasters [15]
Environmental Health [48]
Government [16]
Health [17]
Journalism & Media [18]
Laws & Regulations [36]
People & Population [7]
Planning & Growth [29]
Policy [19]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
California [9]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [38]
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV) [49]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about Disaster Preparedness Key Amid Pandemic [46]
While No One Was Watching — Changing Enviro Regs Under Trump [50]

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 [51]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [3]
Air [23]
Chemicals [34]
Climate Change [35]
Energy & Fuel [52]
Environmental Health [48]
Environmental Politics [5]
Government [16]
Health [17]
Laws & Regulations [36]
Natural Resources [6]
Policy [19]
Pollution [30]
Science [20]
Transportation [31]
Waste [37]
Water & Oceans [24]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about While No One Was Watching — Changing Enviro Regs Under Trump [50]
Parks Post-Coronavirus Reopening a Political Football? [53]

As the United States restarts fitfully following the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, one source of controversy — and of numerous local or regional environmental stories — is what to do at the nation’s park system. The latest TipSheet explains why public access to these national treasures is so contentious, then provides numerous story ideas and reporting resources.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [27]
Topics on the Beat:
Disasters [15]
Environmental Politics [5]
Government [16]
Health [17]
Journalism & Media [18]
Laws & Regulations [36]
Natural Resources [6]
People & Population [7]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about Parks Post-Coronavirus Reopening a Political Football? [53]
"Endangered Species Records Ruling Would Undermine FOIA, Feds Say" [54]

"The Trump administration is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to allow the government to keep certain endangered species records out of the public eye."

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog Alert [55]
Topics on the Beat:
Environmental Politics [5]
Journalism & Media [18]
Laws & Regulations [36]
Wildlife [45]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about "Endangered Species Records Ruling Would Undermine FOIA, Feds Say" [54]

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