News & Commentary

American Cities Climate Challenge PACE Roundtable in NYC

June 5, 2019 Expert BlogGeorgia, Atlanta, Ohio, Columbus, Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, Texas, San AntonioPhilip Smith

Riding a strong tailwind from recent climate and sustainability legislative successes, earlier this month, the Bloomberg American Cities Climate Challenge brought its PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy) Financing Cohort to New York for an intensive, dialogue-driven Roundtable with the four…

The Student Activist Fighting Pittsburgh’s Dirty Industry

May 23, 2019 DispatchPittsburghCourtney Lindwall

Anaïs Peterson is busy organizing, educating, and ushering in a new era of environmentalism in the Steel City.

Inside the Fight for Clean Water in Newark

May 21, 2019 DispatchNewark, New JerseyCourtney Lindwall

Denials and delays from city officials have failed to keep residents safe from high levels of lead in their drinking water. These community organizers are busy picking up the slack.

Pennsylvania's Gas Power Problem, Part 1: The Build-Out

May 10, 2019 Expert BlogUnited States, PennsylvaniaMark Szybist

For most of the last decade, the biggest energy story in Pennsylvania has been fracking—the use of hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling to extract shale gas—and the dramatic increase in gas production that fracking has driven.

Newark’s Lead Crisis Continues: Even Higher Levels in 2019

April 30, 2019 Expert BlogNewarkErik D. Olson

The first few months of 2019 have brought disturbing news for Newark residents—skyrocketing levels of lead in drinking water. Since the start of the year, more than 10 percent of Newark’s reported drinking water samples have exceeded 66.9 parts per…

Industry Surrounds Newark’s Ironbound Neighborhood—But These Residents Won’t Let It Define Them

April 1, 2019 DispatchNewark, New JerseyCaroline Craig

The tireless efforts of locals are reshaping one of New Jersey’s most polluted areas.

Salt of the Earth, Courtesy of the Sun

January 30, 2019 NRDC in ActionGujarat, India

By powering their pumps with solar energy instead of diesel, Indian salt farmers are investing in their own brighter futures.

Laurie Goodrich Tracks Raptors by the Thousands From a Lookout in the Appalachians

November 13, 2018 DispatchPennsylvaniaKeith Mulvihill

This wildlife biologist has seen some surprising trends while counting birds of prey on Pennsylvania’s Hawk Mountain over the past 30 years.

This Exhibit Examines Nature and Environmental Justice in Three Centuries of American Art

October 30, 2018 PerspectivesUnited States, New JerseyPatrick Rogers

Princeton is displaying iconic paintings, photography, and furniture in a new light (and it’s not always flattering).

These New Jerseyans Want to Bring “Bomb Trains” to a Halt

July 23, 2018 DispatchNew JerseyNicole Greenfield

Trains carrying combustible crude oil barrel on rickety rails through the Garden State, threatening the safety of millions of people—and their drinking water—every single day.

Locations of High Lead Levels in Newark’s Water Identified

May 23, 2018 Expert BlogNewarkSara Imperiale, Claire Woods

The State has estimated that there are approximately 22,100 homes in Newark with lead service lines.

Why Women Rule NRDC’s Science Center

March 27, 2018 NRDC in ActionSan Francisco, Washington, D.C., New York City, Ahmedabad, India, United StatesJenny Shalant

And why female leaders tend to be more attuned to issues of environmental equity.

The Connection Between Mass Incarceration and Environmental Justice

January 19, 2018 ExplainerUnited States, Pennsylvania, KentuckyNicole Greenfield

The country’s prison industry has little regard for where its facilities are located—even if that means building on noxiously polluted ground.

For the Delaware River Basin, a Partial Fracking Ban Is a Partial Victory

January 11, 2018 DispatchDelaware, New York, Pennsylvania

Proposed regulations would still allow wastewater to be disposed of in the watershed, with risks to both drinking water and the environment.

In Philadelphia, Climate Change Can Take Your Breath Away

July 11, 2017 DispatchPhiladelphiaClara Chaisson

But plans to cut local carbon pollution might help this asthma capital shake its wheezy reputation.

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.

Reducing the Nuclear Threat

May 18, 2016 NRDC in ActionPennsylvaniaMelissa Denchak

Since the 1970s, NRDC has been fighting to protect the earth—and its citizens—from the serious risks that come with nuclear power.

Going Deep to Save Our Ocean Treasures

April 27, 2016 NRDC in ActionNew York, New JerseyLora Shinn

How NRDC helped form an unlikely alliance to help protect 38,000 square miles of unique habitat in the Atlantic.

The Long Road to Safer School Buses

March 15, 2016 NRDC in ActionWashington, California, New Jersey, TexasAmanda MacMillan

A landmark NRDC study showed that standard-issue diesel-spewing school buses could put kids at risk of cancer—and drove a national effort to clean the vehicles up.

Greening the Playing Fields

March 14, 2016 NRDC in ActionPhiladelphia, Seattle, San Francisco, Portland (Oregon), BostonAmanda MacMillan

How the sports industry became one of the planet's most powerful allies.