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. 

Skip carousel items
A plastic cup among a pile of wet leaves and branches on the ground

Single-Use Plastics 101

GuideUnited StatesCourtney Lindwall
Here’s everything you need to know about the most ubiquitous (and avoidable) kind of plastic waste: the kind made to be tossed in mere minutes.
A pipe sits atop dirt next to a building

Will Funds for Water Infrastructure Flow Fairly?

ReportUnited StatesBecky Hammer, Erik D. Olson
These report cards grade all 50 states on water funding equity.
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.

Viewing 1 - 20 of 161

Active filters:

Remove all filters

Filter Results

Losing Ground: Flood Data Visualization Tool

MapUnited States
The federal government’s efforts to reduce repeated flooding are not keeping pace with current risk—let alone the increasing risk posed by sea level rise, increased severe weather, and other climate change impacts.

Climate Change and Health: Extreme Heat

MapUnited StatesDr. Kim Knowlton
Climate change threatens our health by warming the planet, exposing us to a range of heat-related illnesses. About two-thirds of Americans—nearly 210 million—live in areas with a greater-than-expected number of dangerous extreme heat days, new NRDC analysis finds.

Climate Change and Health: Air Quality

MapUnited StatesDr. Kim Knowlton
Climate change threatens the air you breathe by fueling smog and ragweed pollen. About 4 in 10 Americans—nearly 127 million—live in areas with both unhealthy smog and ragweed, a new NRDC analysis finds. To avoid making asthma and allergies even…

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.

Millions Served by Water Systems Detecting Lead

MapUnited StatesKristi Pullen Fedinick
An analysis by NRDC of the most recent EPA data shows that between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2020, 186 million people in the United States—a staggering 56 percent of the U.S. population—drank water from drinking water systems detecting…

Testimony of Mae Wu on Bottled Water, September 10, 2008 (PDF)

Testimony
NRDC Attorney Mae Wu testifies before a Senate subcommittee that the bottled water that millions of Americans drink each day is allowed to contain more toxic chemicals than tap water. Wu calls for testing bottled water and labels that would...

Testimony of Kate Sinding on Natural Gas Drilling in the Marcellus Shale (PDF)

Testimony
Testimony of Kate Sinding, Deputy Director of the Urban East Program, Natural Resources Defense Council, before the Department of Environmental Conservation on November 10, 2009. This testimony addresses the draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (dSGEIS) governing natural gas drilling...