News & Commentary

Farm-to-Glass Supports Organic Farming

November 16, 2023 Expert BlogWashington, D.C., Ohio, Illinois, Maryland, New York, Michigan, Maine, CaliforniaAllison Johnson

Cheers! NRDC and our partners toasted a good cause on Capitol Hill: growing organic!

Washington State Acts on Snake River Restoration

August 30, 2023 Expert BlogUnited States, WashingtonGiulia C.S. Good Stefani

If the federal government proposes a pathway to comprehensive Snake River restoration, we will all benefit from the important planning and progress underway in Washington State.

Dispatch from South America: MUFPP and C40 Conferences

November 15, 2022 Expert BlogBrazil, Argentina, Chicago, Cincinnati, Washington, D.C.Yvette Cabrera, Madeline Keating

Food Waste Reduction in Chicago’s Climate Action Plan

June 3, 2022 Expert BlogChicagoMadeline Keating

The plan identifies co-benefits and strategies that are intended to not only drive down carbon emissions but also create a more just and equitable city, where all Chicagoan’s can thrive.

Saving Salmon—from One Generation of Fisherwomen to the Next

March 1, 2022 DispatchOregon, Washington, WestNicole Greenfield

Keyen Singer, a member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, carries on a maternal legacy of conserving salmon and preserving culture. Their efforts could soon pay off.

Senator and WA Governor Join Forces to Tackle Snake Dams

November 1, 2021 Expert BlogWashington, WestGiulia C.S. Good Stefani

U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and Washington Governor Jay Inslee answered advocates’ calls to energize the decades-long push to save our iconic salmon from extinction.

Orcas Lose a Grandmother, Matriarch L47

October 15, 2021 Expert BlogWashington, OregonGiulia C.S. Good Stefani

This Saturday is Orca Recovery Day and people are coming together for some healing—and to demand action.

Pristine Prairie, Home to Endangered Bee, May Be Destroyed

October 14, 2021 Expert BlogIllinoisLucas Rhoads

An airport expansion threatens to wipe out a population of the once-common, now endangered, rusty patched bumble bee. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's failure to protect the bee's habitat is partly to blame.

Celebrating Year One of the Food Matters Regional Initiative

August 30, 2021 Expert BlogChicago, Cincinnati, Detroit, Madison, Ohio, Baltimore, Jersey City, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, North Carolina, Memphis, OrlandoMadeline Keating, Darby Hoover

A year after the launch of the Food Matters Regional Initiative, we are pleased to report considerable progress and accomplishments from the 15 regional initiative participants.

Washington State Adds Emergency Rules to Protect Workers from Heat and Wildfire Smoke

August 13, 2021 DispatchWashingtonLora Shinn

But many advocates point out that to fully address our new climate reality, we also need national solutions.

Sockeye Salmon Dying, Temperature Rises on Snake River Dams

July 28, 2021 Expert BlogWashington, OregonGiulia C.S. Good Stefani

Columbia River Basin sockeye salmon are migrating upriver from the ocean, but new underwater videos show that this summer the fish have large chunks of flesh missing and bulbous growths across their bodies. The fish are rotting to death in…

Quieting Puget Sound for Endangered Southern Resident Orcas

April 27, 2021 Expert BlogWashingtonRegan Nelson

Quiet Sound, an innovative new program to reduce vessel noise in Puget Sound, receives crucial state funding.

Chicago, a “Sweet Home” for an Endangered Bee?

March 29, 2021 Expert BlogChicago, IllinoisDaniel Raichel

The rusty patched bumblebee's appearance in Chicago underscores how one patch of native habitat can be meaningful, but what’s most needed is a network of interconnected habitat so that the bee’s populations can recover and once again thrive.

Stressed by Heat, Farmworkers Deserve Federal Protections

March 26, 2021 Expert BlogCalifornia, Washington, MinnesotaTeniope Adewumi-Gunn

Unprotected from many basic workplace rights and in the face of a growing climate crisis that threatens their well-being, farmworkers deserve federal safeguards from extreme heat and its dangerous effects.

"We Are the Same as the Salmon": A Story of Suffering and Perseverance

December 17, 2020 DispatchWyoming, Idaho, Oregon, WashingtonNicole Greenfield

Thirty years ago, the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes led the effort to save Snake River sockeye salmon from extinction. Today, they’re still fighting for the fish’s survival—along with their own.

Mussels Help Keep Watch on Pollution in Puget Sound

August 20, 2020 DispatchWashingtonStarre Vartan

The humble bivalves, which concentrate everything from heavy metals to cancer drugs in their tissues, provide an ideal way for scientists to monitor nearshore water health.

The Big Muddy River’s Long, Turbulent Relationship with Coal

August 14, 2020 DispatchIllinoisSusan Cosier

As a proposal threatens to dump mining waste into a Mississippi River tributary, an Illinois community reassesses its coal industry ties.

Farmers and Salmon Advocates Agree: It’s Time to Talk about the Snake River Dams

January 2, 2020 DispatchWashington, OregonJodi Helmer

What used to be an idea touted mainly by salmon fishers and environmentalists is bringing around some farmers who’ve long depended on barge shipping to get their crops to market.

After a Century of Being Dammed Up, Illinois Rivers Get to Go With the Flow

July 24, 2019 DispatchIllinoisSusan Cosier

Dam removals are setting rapids and fish populations free and keeping swimmers and boaters safer.

Midwest Floods May Lead Illinois to New Solutions

July 18, 2019 Expert BlogUnited States, IllinoisRob Moore

The Midwest floods of 2019 have caused hardship and loss but, Illinois has not seen much in the way of damages. Part of the reason is because Illinois has strong floodplain management regulations, something Governor Pritzker is expected to keep…