Data, Reports & Resources

NRDC is a leader and trusted source in environmental policy and research. 

From reports to issue briefs, we ensure accountability through peer review led by our Science Office, which provides data and scientific analysis that help shape and guide NRDC’s policies and positions. We also offer a range of other resources, such as 101 guides and consumer-focused scorecards to increase access to knowledge about how everyone can be a catalyst for change. 

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A view of the cross-section of a cut water pipe

Getting the Lead Out: Removing Lead Pipes Would Yield Hundreds of Billions of Dollars in Health Benefits

Issue BriefUnited StatesErik D. Olson
Removing lead service lines could save the United States an estimated $786 billion from avoided health impacts over the next 35 years.
Bits of plastic waste float underwater

The Worst of the Worst: High-Priority Plastic Materials, Chemical Additives, and Products to Phase Out

Fact SheetUnited States, InternationalDr. Veena Singla
Two workers installing a battery in a vehicle in an assembly plant

Building Batteries Better: Doing the Best With Less

ReportUnited StatesJordan Brinn
Reducing the amount of mining needed through improvements in battery technology, second-life applications for vehicle batteries, and better recycling is key to reducing harms caused from battery supply chains.

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Flint Water Crisis: Everything You Need to Know

GuideFlintMelissa Denchak
After officials repeatedly dismissed claims that Flint’s water was making people sick, residents took action. Here’s how the lead contamination crisis unfolded—and what we can learn from it.

Jackson Water Crisis

Fact SheetMississippi, JacksonSarah Tallman, Kimberly Leefatt
The drinking water system in Jackson, Mississippi, has suffered from serious safety and reliability problems for decades. Despite recent attention from federal officials, including a lawsuit filed against the city of Jackson in late 2022, the water system’s problems have…

Water Affordability Business Case Downloadable Tool

OverviewUnited StatesLarry Levine, Ed Osann
To help provide safe and affordable water and sanitation to everyone in their communities, this tool allows utilities to assess the business case for implementing a discount program for low-income customers.

Appliance Standards Multi-Product Agreement Letter to DOE (PDF)

Letters
A joint letter from appliance manufacturers and efficiency advocates to DOE recommending new energy and water efficiency standards for household products, including clothes washers, clothes dryers, dishwashers, cooking products, refrigerators, freezers, and miscellaneous refrigeration products.

Energy Efficiency: The Clean Facts

GuideUnited StatesLora Shinn

Here’s what you need to know about energy efficiency and how you can help save the environment—and money—at the same time.

Letter to EPA supporting strong Lead and Copper Rule (PDF)

Letters
In this letter, 79 organizations (including NRDC) urge the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) not to weaken an upcoming Safe Drinking Water Act rule based on water utilities’ exaggerated and misplaced concerns about costs. The letter urges EPA to ensure...

Energy-Burdened Communities Tool

MapLos Angeles, Phoenix, Houston, New Orleans, Birmingham, Atlanta, Memphis, Cincinnati, Louisville, St. Louis, Kansas City (Kansas), Chicago, Milwaukee, Flint, Buffalo, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Richmond (Virginia), Greensboro

Energy burden has disproportionately impacted low-income communities of color for decades. NRDC is actively working to bring justice to these communities through this mapping tool.

Causes and Effects of Lead in Water

GuideUnited States, Flint, Michigan, IllinoisKeith Mulvihill

How this harmful neurotoxin got into our taps and what it’ll take to get it out.