News & Commentary

"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.

Indiana Dunes Finally Gets Its Due, but Conservationists Are Clamoring for More

November 7, 2019 DispatchIndianaSusan Cosier

After a century of advocacy, the Hoosier State has a national park, and its immense popularity is making a case for more protected lakeshore.

America’s Dairyland May Have a PFAS Problem

October 11, 2019 DispatchMidwest, Wisconsin, MaineSusan Cosier

The toxic chemicals have been showing up in milk around the country, prompting midwestern farmers to take a closer look at their land.

The Ohio River Defines the Borders of Five States—But Its Pollution Doesn’t Stop at State Lines

August 21, 2019 DispatchPennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, IllinoisSusan Cosier

In a move that could open the door to industrial waste and interstate squabbles, the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission is making its water quality standards voluntary.

Could the Climate Crisis Spell the End for Maine Lobster?

August 19, 2019 DispatchMaineNicole Greenfield

The state’s thriving lobster industry owes a lot to smart fishery conservation measures implemented over the past three decades. But given the Gulf of Maine’s rapid warming, how far can these interventions go?

This Mayor Puts the “Conserve” Back in Conservative

August 2, 2019 DispatchIndianaJeff Turrentine

Indianan Jim Brainard has been making the post-partisan case for building sustainable, resilient cities for more than 20 years.

After Children Began Getting Sick by the Dozens, Parents Took a Hard Look at Their Town’s Toxic Legacy

May 30, 2019 DispatchIndiana, Massachusetts, North CarolinaSusan Cosier

The carcinogen TCE has been lurking in the ground beneath Franklin, Indiana, for decades. Now families are demanding answers.

From Egyptian Tombs to Toxic Corn, There’s More to Environmental Art Than What You See

March 5, 2019 PerspectivesMainePatrick Rogers

A sweeping exhibition of 2,000 years of artworks at Bowdoin College in Maine challenges viewers to reconsider the relationship between art and nature.

A Coal-to-Diesel Refinery Is the Last Straw for These Hoosiers

February 13, 2019 DispatchIndianaSusan Cosier

The air in southwestern Indiana is bad enough without the emissions from yet another proposed polluter.

Will Calling Out Indiana’s Super-Polluting Power Plants Lead to a Cleanup?

January 8, 2018 DispatchIndianaSusan Cosier

A recent study found that the state is home to four of the country’s most polluting power plants. But elected officials won’t even show up to hear their constituents’ concerns about it.

This Leader of the (Legal) Resistance Has Never Felt More Ready

December 7, 2017 NRDC in ActionWashington, D.C., Flint, Michigan, MaineJeff Turrentine

NRDC Chief Counsel Mitch Bernard takes on big polluters, climate deniers, and their powerful allies—including those who sit in the West Wing.

In East Chicago, Knowing Your Soil Is Toxic Is Only Half the Battle

May 23, 2017 DispatchIndianaSusan Cosier

Because it can take years before the government does anything about it.

Before Flint, Before East Chicago, There Was Smeltertown

November 29, 2016 DispatchFlint, Indiana, Texas, NewarkLauren Villagran

After a 1970s CDC study showed that the mostly Mexican-American population of this Texas town had dangerously high blood lead levels, its buildings were demolished and its residents were booted.

The Great Thicket National Wildlife Refuge Is Available for Delivery! (Some Assembly Required)

November 8, 2016 DispatchEast, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maine, New YorkClara Chaisson

To protect a massive swath of crucial habitat in New England, locals will use their own shrubland to fill in the blanks.

President Obama’s National Monument To-Dos Before He Leaves Office

July 27, 2016 ExplainerUnited States, Utah, Nevada, Oregon, Maine, Arizona, CaliforniaClara Chaisson

From undersea coral canyons to deep northern woods, these seven places deserve to be part of the president’s legacy.

Who Pays for Mine Cleanup After Big Coal Goes Bankrupt?

June 22, 2016 DispatchIllinois, Indiana, Kentucky, TennesseeSusan Cosier

Peabody Energy’s recent filing could change how the country funds mining messes.

Yellowstone's Grizzlies Aren't Out of the Woods Yet

March 14, 2016 NRDC in ActionWyoming, Montana, IdahoJeff Turrentine

The park's threatened bears are on the road to recovery. But without continued federal protection, they'll be back on the path to extinction.

Why NRDC Helped Develop LEED Ratings for Neighborhoods

February 25, 2016 NRDC in ActionSan Francisco, Nashville, Indianapolis, California, Tennessee, Indiana, MarylandRebecca Dalzell

Why settle for a green building when you can have an entire green neighborhood?

A Dirty Battle in Chicago's Backyards

August 13, 2015 NRDC in ActionChicago, Illinois, IndianaNicole Greenfield

Residents of the Windy City are fighting the tar sands industry from spreading its toxic petcoke around town.

Rogue Elephant

October 17, 2014 DispatchIndiana

What happened when the Republican mayor of Carmel, Indiana, bucked his party and embraced sustainability? He got reelected—four times.