News & Commentary

Taxpayers Still on Hook for Oil and Gas Clean-up, Despite New Rule

September 25, 2023 Expert BlogTexas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, AlaskaRebecca Ramirez

BOEM's proposed rule falls short in requiring oil and gas companies to demonstrate they are financially able to fully remove and clean up platforms & pipelines.

DOE Shrugs as U.S. Natural Gas Exports Surge

August 11, 2023 Expert BlogLouisiana, Texas, Florida, Alaska, New Jersey, PennsylvaniaGillian Giannetti, Morgan Johnson

A decade-long expansion of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminals has transformed American energy policy, altered the domestic and international gas market, and raised serious questions for climate health and communities. Yet when the U.S. government weighs these critical…

Did Pebble Mine Shareholders “Blink” in Securities Fraud Suit?

June 16, 2023 Expert BlogAlaska, United StatesJoel Reynolds

Pebble Mine owner agrees to settle shareholder claims that company failed to disclose secret plan for exponential expansion of widely opposed Bristol Bay mine.

Idaho Approves Statewide Wolf Reduction Plan

May 24, 2023 Expert BlogIdaho, United StatesDr. Jennifer Sherry

Idaho advances sweeping wolf reduction plan that is out of synch with modern science, the views of the public, and the complex reality of the environment.

President Biden Celebrates Pebble Veto: “The Mine Will Not Be Built.”

May 15, 2023 Expert BlogAlaskaJoel Reynolds

In the Rose Garden celebration of conservation achievements, President Joe Biden elevated the Pebble Mine veto—calling the Bristol Bay fishery “a marvel,” citing scientific consensus of unacceptable risk from large-scale mining, and thanking Alaska Natives and the broad-based coalition for…

Public Land Grab: Senate Bill Gifts Miners Pass to Pollute

April 28, 2023 Expert BlogWest, Nevada, Idaho, United StatesJosh Axelrod

Senators Catherine Cortez-Masto (D-NV) and Jim Risch (R-ID) have introduced legislation that makes it easier for mining companies and others to acquire rights to federal land and to be able to use them as dumping grounds and worse. The legislation…

Goodbye Verner, Fearless Fighter Against the Pebble Mine

April 19, 2023 Expert BlogUnited States, AlaskaJoel Reynolds

Bristol Bay tribal and environmental leader Verner Wilson III personified the next generation of committed opposition in decades-long battle against destructive Bristol Bay mining scheme.  

Why the Willow Project Is a Bad Idea

March 30, 2023 Latest NewsAlaskaJeff Turrentine

The oil drilling proposal would be disastrous for Alaska and the planet (not to mention President Biden’s climate legacy). 

On International Day of Forests, the Global North Must Show Leadership

March 21, 2023 Expert BlogInternational, Canada, United States, AlaskaElly Pepper, Carolyn Ramírez

On International Day of Forests, the Global North must show leadership on forest protection and acknowledge its own role in forest loss.

Alaska’s Tongass National Forest Gets the Protections It Deserves

February 17, 2023 NRDC in ActionAlaskaCourtney Lindwall

After a decades-long fight, the newly reinstated Roadless Rule will safeguard these wildlands from road construction and logging.

Cover Crops for Every Climate

February 17, 2023 Expert BlogWest, Midwest, East, Maine, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Idaho, New Mexico, TexasLara Bryant, Dr. Daniel Rath

Cover crops are adaptable, valuable, and effective enough that farmers can benefit from them in every region of the United States—even cold or dry areas.

New Program Will Help Ensure Reliable Electricity in the West

February 16, 2023 Expert BlogCanada, Arizona, California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, WestKelsie Gomanie

The Western Resource Adequacy Program (WRAP) is designed to provide benefits for customers, utilities, and the environment.

Crushing Alaska’s Pebble Mine

February 13, 2023 NRDC in ActionAlaskaNicole Greenfield, Jeff Turrentine

The EPA’s decision to veto the project is fantastic news—but the fight to save Bristol Bay isn’t over yet.

White House Poised to Carbon-Bomb Its Own Climate Progress

February 8, 2023 Expert BlogAlaskaAnn Alexander

The Willow oil drilling project—the largest single drilling project proposed on federal land—will cause roughly 280 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions over the course its lifetime.

New Ads Thank EPA for Vetoing Pebble Mine

February 1, 2023 Expert BlogAlaskaTaryn Kiekow Heimer

Full page ads running in Washington, D.C., Seattle and Alaska thank EPA for stopping the Pebble Mine and restricting future mining of the Pebble deposit in Alaska’s Bristol Bay.

EPA Blocks Pebble Mine with Rare Veto. What Happens Next?

January 31, 2023 Expert BlogAlaskaJoel Reynolds

Following EPA’s grant of Bristol Bay Tribes’ petitions for veto of destructive mining scheme in Bristol Bay headwaters, underfunded Canadian project owner hopes to overturn or circumvent lengthy agency review.

Epic Victory for Bristol Bay: EPA Kills Pebble Mine

January 31, 2023 Expert BlogAlaskaTaryn Kiekow Heimer

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency just blocked a massive gold and copper mine in Alaska.

The Race to Organize Energy Markets in the Western U.S. Is On

January 13, 2023 Expert BlogArizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, WyomingKelsie Gomanie

A western regional transmission organization would spur the development of clean electricity sources and lower costs for consumers.

Earth to EPA: “End the Threat,” Protect Bristol Bay Now

January 12, 2023 Expert BlogAlaskaTaryn Kiekow Heimer

Broad-based coalition calls on EPA to finalize its recommended Clean Water Act veto of the Pebble Mine.

Pebble Mine 2022 Year in Review: “Goodnight Soon!”

January 5, 2023 Expert BlogAlaskaJoel Reynolds

The end of embattled Bristol Bay mining scheme is in sight, as EPA recommends veto long sought by Bristol Bay Native Tribes—and funding is secured for land conservation agreement that blocks proposed access to mine site.