News & Commentary

Kotzebue Calling

August 31, 2015 DispatchAlaska, ArcticBruce Barcott

President Obama’s trip to the Arctic will reveal some cold, hard truths about the fossil-fuel industry’s impact on Alaskans.

Not-So-Vacant Lots

August 28, 2015 DispatchNew Orleans, LouisianaAlisa Opar

From birds to trees to rats, post-Katrina New Orleans is a study in “disaster ecology.”

Northward Ho!

August 27, 2015 Latest NewsArctic, AlaskaAlisa Opar

Obama is headed to the Arctic. Here are five things the president should put on his must-do-in-Alaska list.

Who Should Pay to Restore the Louisiana Coastline?

August 26, 2015 DispatchLouisianaBrian Palmer

The oil and gas industry says, “not it.”

Ocean Defender

August 26, 2015 NRDC in ActionLouisiana, Massachusetts, United StatesAdam Spangler

On daytime TV, in film, and on Capitol Hill, scientist Lisa Suatoni opens people's eyes to the plight of the seas.

Smoke Gets in Your Eyes (from Distant Flames)

August 7, 2015 ExplainerUnited States, Colorado, Alaska, CaliforniaAlisa Opar

Wildfires may be harming the health of people who live hundreds or thousands of miles from the flames.

Don't Call it a Comeback

July 20, 2015 Latest NewsArcticAndrea Thompson

New satellite data show Arctic sea ice has rebounded—but that doesn't mean it's recovering. (Sorry, polar bears.)

Dead Bear Walking

July 17, 2015 Latest NewsArcticBrian Palmer

Will “walking hibernation” help polars bears survive climate change?

Bringing the Noise

July 13, 2015 Latest NewsArcticAlisa Opar

How will Shell’s Arctic drilling affect marine mammals in the Chukchi Sea?

Gone Fishing

April 10, 2015 PerspectivesLouisianaSarah Craig, Rocky Kistner

Come to the best sportfishing resort in the bayou (if only the trout would start biting again).

Empty Nests

April 9, 2015 PerspectivesLouisianaSarah Craig, Rocky Kistner

A Louisiana oysterman wants to pass on his trade to his grandkids—if only there were any oysters left to catch.

A Recurring Nightmare

April 7, 2015 PerspectivesLouisianaSarah Craig, Rocky Kistner

After a decade of catastrophes—Katrina, BP—this family is saying good-bye to a beloved bayou home.

Mutated Truths

April 7, 2015 PerspectivesLouisianaSarah Craig, Rocky Kistner

Five years after the BP disaster, the oil company says everything is back to normal. This shrimper begs to differ.

Wild Idea

April 3, 2015 Latest NewsArcticClara Chaisson

The president is asking Congress to designate crucial Arctic habitat as wilderness.

Out of Control from the Moment of the Blowout

March 27, 2015 PerspectivesLouisianaBrian Palmer

Former offshore drilling regulator Liz Birnbaum talks about what went wrong in the Gulf (and why drilling the Atlantic is a bad idea).

Shell Game

February 19, 2015 Latest NewsArcticBrian Palmer

The Department of the Interior says there’s a 75 percent chance of a major oil spill in the Arctic—and it’s willing to take that chance.

Pebble Mine 2014 Year in Review: “And Then There Were Lawyers…”

January 5, 2015 Expert BlogAlaskaJoel Reynolds

Can't Touch This

December 16, 2014 Latest NewsAlaska

President Obama just protected the world’s largest sockeye salmon fishery from oil and gas drilling.

Save the Ringed Seal, Save the Planet?

December 11, 2014 Latest NewsArcticJason Bittel

The government proposes the biggest critical-habitat designation ever to protect ringed seals from Big Oil and climate change.

A Sickening Swill

December 5, 2014 DispatchIowaSusan Cosier

Iowans don't want runoff from factory farms coming out of their faucets. So it’s about time the government does something about it.