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"Potomac Wastewater Spill Appears To Be Largest In US History" [1]

"A wastewater spill into the Potomac River that began last month now appears to be one of the largest in American history."

Consumer [2]
Disasters [3]
Environmental Health [4]
Infrastructure [5]
Pollution [6]
Waste [7]
Water & Oceans [8]
Public [9]
National (U.S.) [10]
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV) [11]
Source: The Hill [12], 02/13/2026
  • Read more about "Potomac Wastewater Spill Appears To Be Largest In US History" [1]

"Conservation Groups File Appeal Challenging Colorado CAFO Water Permits" [13]

"Colorado officials are failing to require legally mandated water quality monitoring near concentrated animal feeding operations, allowing for widespread water contamination with animal waste, conservation groups allege in a new legal challenge to the state."

Agriculture [14]
Environmental Health [4]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Pollution [6]
Waste [7]
Water & Oceans [8]
Public [9]
Mountain West (CO ID MT NV UT WY) [16]
Source: The New Lede [17], 02/12/2026
  • Read more about "Conservation Groups File Appeal Challenging Colorado CAFO Water Permits" [13]

TVA Says It Now Doesn’t Want To Close Two Coal-Fired Plants [18]

"The nation’s largest public utility says it now would prefer to keep operating two coal-fired power plants it had planned to shutter, changing course before a meeting of its board, which has a majority of members picked by the coal-friendly Trump administration."

Air [19]
Climate Change [20]
Energy & Fuel [21]
Infrastructure [5]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Pollution [6]
Technology [22]
Waste [7]
Public [9]
National (U.S.) [10]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [23]
Source: AP [24], 02/11/2026
  • Read more about TVA Says It Now Doesn’t Want To Close Two Coal-Fired Plants [18]

Illegal Cannabis Farms Poison California’s Forests. Who’s Cleaning Them Up? [25]

"Even after legalization, illicit cannabis grows continue to pollute California’s public lands. And the contamination, new research shows, lingers."

Forests [26]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Pollution [6]
Waste [7]
Water & Oceans [8]
Public [9]
California [27]
Source: CalMatters [28], 02/11/2026
  • Read more about Illegal Cannabis Farms Poison California’s Forests. Who’s Cleaning Them Up? [25]

"Forever Stained" [29]

"How a SC riverkeeper’s detective work reveals a deeper tale about the carpet industry's PFAS legacy"

Chemicals [30]
Consumer [2]
Economy & Business [31]
Environmental Health [4]
Environmental Politics [32]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Pollution [6]
Waste [7]
Water & Oceans [8]
Public [9]
National (U.S.) [10]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [23]
Source: Charleston Post and Courier [33], 02/03/2026
  • Read more about "Forever Stained" [29]

Trump Energy Dept. Exempts New Nuclear Reactors From Environmental Review [34]

"The Trump Administration has created an exclusion for new experimental reactors being built at sites around the U.S. from a major environmental law. The law would have required them to disclose how their construction and operation might harm the environment, and it also typically required a written, public assessment of the possible consequences of a nuclear accident."

Disasters [3]
Energy & Fuel [21]
Environmental Health [4]
Environmental Politics [32]
Health [35]
Infrastructure [5]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Nuclear Power & Radiation [36]
People & Population [37]
Pollution [6]
Technology [22]
Waste [7]
Public [9]
National (U.S.) [10]
Source: NPR [38], 02/03/2026
  • Read more about Trump Energy Dept. Exempts New Nuclear Reactors From Environmental Review [34]

Superfund Under Trump 2.0 — Quick … and Dirty? [39]

Every U.S. state has at least one Superfund site, the worst kind of toxic waste dump. And millions live near them. The latest TipSheet has a look at the state of the decades-old Superfund cleanup program under the Trump administration, and how environmental journalists can turn that into local stories, with a dozen story ideas and reporting resources.

SEJ Publication Types: 
TipSheet [40]
Topics on the Beat: 
Chemicals [30]
Environmental Politics [32]
Government [41]
Journalism & Media [42]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Pollution [6]
Waste [7]
Region: 
National (U.S.) [10]
Northeast (CT MA ME NH NJ NY RI VT) [43]
Visibility: 
Public [9]
  • Read more about Superfund Under Trump 2.0 — Quick … and Dirty? [39]

"Massive Sewage Spill Flowing Into Potomac River Upstream From Washington" [44]

"A massive pipe that moves millions of gallons of sewage has ruptured and sent wastewater flowing into the Potomac River northwest of Washington, D.C., polluting it ahead of a major winter storm that has repair crews scrambling."

Disasters [3]
Environmental Health [4]
Infrastructure [5]
People & Population [37]
Pollution [6]
Waste [7]
Water & Oceans [8]
Public [9]
National (U.S.) [10]
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV) [11]
Source: AP [45], 01/26/2026
  • Read more about "Massive Sewage Spill Flowing Into Potomac River Upstream From Washington" [44]

Coal Communities Protest House Cutting Abandoned Mine Lands Clean Up Funds [46]

"The House passed a bill last week that would “repurpose” $500 million meant for cleaning up environmental and safety hazards caused by decades of coal mining."

Biodiversity [47]
Energy & Fuel [21]
Environmental Justice [48]
Environmental Politics [32]
Forests [26]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Natural Resources [49]
People & Population [37]
Pollution [6]
Waste [7]
Water & Oceans [8]
Public [9]
National (U.S.) [10]
Source: Inside Climate News [50], 01/14/2026
  • Read more about Coal Communities Protest House Cutting Abandoned Mine Lands Clean Up Funds [46]

"Detroiters Grapple With Unknowns As Lead, Arsenic Found At Demo Sites" [51]

"Arsenic and lead are among the contaminants found at dozens of Detroit neighborhood demolition sites, according to the first round of test results released by the city late last month amid state and local investigations — at least one criminal — into potentially toxic dirt used as backfill across hundreds of vacant lots."

Chemicals [30]
Environmental Health [4]
Environmental Justice [48]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Pollution [6]
Waste [7]
Public [9]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [52]
Source: Detroit Free Press [53], 01/14/2026
  • Read more about "Detroiters Grapple With Unknowns As Lead, Arsenic Found At Demo Sites" [51]

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Source URL:https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/waste

Links
[1] https://www.sej.org/headlines/potomac-wastewater-spill-appears-be-largest-us-history [2] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/consumer [3] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/disaster [4] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/environmental-health [5] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/infrastructure [6] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/pollution [7] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/waste [8] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/water [9] https://www.sej.org/taxonomy/term/81 [10] https://www.sej.org/category/region/national [11] https://www.sej.org/category/region/national/mid-atlantic [12] https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/5736277-dc-water-sewage-overflow/ [13] https://www.sej.org/headlines/conservation-groups-file-appeal-challenging-colorado-cafo-water-permits [14] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/agriculture [15] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/laws [16] https://www.sej.org/category/region/national/mountain-west [17] https://www.thenewlede.org/2026/02/colorado-cafo-permits/ [18] https://www.sej.org/headlines/tva-says-it-now-doesn-t-want-close-two-coal-fired-plants [19] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/air [20] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/climate-change [21] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/energy [22] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/technology [23] https://www.sej.org/category/region/national/southeast [24] https://apnews.com/article/tennessee-valley-authority-coal-plants-7a3bae83090e802a6036c1dcc37fa0a1 [25] https://www.sej.org/headlines/illegal-cannabis-farms-poison-california-s-forests-who-s-cleaning-them [26] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/forests [27] https://www.sej.org/category/region/national/california [28] https://calmatters.org/environment/water/2026/02/marijuana-cannabis-california-public-land/ [29] https://www.sej.org/headlines/forever-stained [30] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/chemicals/toxics [31] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/business [32] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/environmental-politics [33] https://www.postandcourier.com/news/special_reports/saluda-river-sc-pfas-carpet-forever-chemicals/article_c228c494-5547-40aa-9beb-18e4aae21452.html [34] https://www.sej.org/headlines/trump-energy-dept-exempts-new-nuclear-reactors-environmental-review [35] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/health [36] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/nuclear-power/radiation [37] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/people-population [38] https://www.npr.org/2026/02/02/nx-s1-5696525/trump-nuclear-safety-regulations-environmental-review [39] https://www.sej.org/publications/tipsheet/superfund-under-trump-20-quick-and-dirty [40] https://www.sej.org/category/sej-publication/tipsheet [41] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/government [42] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/journalism/media [43] https://www.sej.org/category/region/national/northeast [44] https://www.sej.org/headlines/massive-sewage-spill-flowing-potomac-river-upstream-washington [45] https://apnews.com/article/sewage-spill-potomac-river-rupture-c3b5280c943f43ce84b461de44a42337 [46] https://www.sej.org/headlines/coal-communities-protest-house-cutting-abandoned-mine-lands-clean-funds [47] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/biodiversity-1 [48] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/environmental-justice [49] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/land [50] https://insideclimatenews.org/news/13012026/congress-bill-would-reduce-money-to-clean-abandoned-coal-mine-lands/ [51] https://www.sej.org/headlines/detroiters-grapple-unknowns-lead-arsenic-found-demo-sites [52] https://www.sej.org/category/region/national/great-lakes [53] https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/detroit/2026/01/12/toxic-dirt-lead-arsenic-found-at-detroit-demolition-sites/88045134007/ [54] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/waste?page=1 [55] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/waste?page=2 [56] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/waste?page=3 [57] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/waste?page=4 [58] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/waste?page=5 [59] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/waste?page=6 [60] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/waste?page=7 [61] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/waste?page=8 [62] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/waste?page=101