News & Commentary

New York Is Exposing the Fashion Industry for What It Is: a Climate Nightmare

February 13, 2023 DispatchNew York City, InternationalNicole Greenfield

The state’s Fashion Act seeks to set a new trend of holding big brands accountable for their exploitation of workers and the environment.

Public Lands Are Not Neutral. We Must Grapple with Their Racist Roots.

February 2, 2023 PerspectivesUnited StatesCarolyn Ramírez

Green spaces should feel like everyone’s backyard.

A Prosecutor Comes Home

January 12, 2023 NRDC in ActionUnited StatesJeff Turrentine

NRDC’s new chief program officer, Drew Caputo, has roots in the organization that go back decades, but his focus is squarely on the future.

Colorado River Basin Tribes Address a Historic Drought—and Their Water Rights—Head-On

November 14, 2022 DispatchColorado, Arizona, New MexicoTim Vanderpool

Their growing inclusion in the region’s water management will likely prove priceless.

Missing for a Century, the California Condor Flies Over Yurok Ancestral Lands Again

November 9, 2022 DispatchCalifornia, WestBecca Cudmore

The Yurok Tribe is helping to restore a sacred and endangered scavenger that is vital to Indigenous cultures and Pacific Coast ecosystems alike.

A 22-Year Court Battle Ends with Justice for the Penobscot River

October 11, 2022 NRDC in ActionMaineNicole Greenfield

After more than a half century of toxic mercury contamination, Maine’s longest river is finally getting cleaned up—a major win for the public interest over corporate polluters.

In the Melting Arctic, a Reckoning to Save Indigenous Culture, Narwhals, and a Silent Sea

September 22, 2022 DispatchArcticBill Donahue

As a mining company seeks to ship millions of tons more of iron ore through caribou and narwhal habitat, good science requires the input of the Inuit.

Canada’s Boreal Forest: Why It’s So Important

July 1, 2022 ExplainerCanada

Protecting the boreal is not only about saving trees and wildlife, says NRDC’s Jennifer Skene. It’s also about the people who’ve been living on the land for millennia and the urgent fight against climate change.

Mount Vernon: Where Environmental Injustice Became a Sewage Nightmare

June 27, 2022 NRDC in ActionNew YorkNicole Greenfield

For decades, residents of this majority-Black suburb of New York City have been dealing with a noxious infrastructure crisis with little recourse. Finally, they’re getting some relief.

Can Anything Be Done to Stop Overfishing?

June 24, 2022 ExplainerInternational

It’s a complex problem, but a combination of smart fisheries management and consumer vigilance can encourage more sustainable practices.

Saving Big Mammals Fights Extinction and Climate Change

June 23, 2022 ExplainerInternationalJason Bittel

By bringing back just 20 large mammalian species to landscapes across the globe, scientists say we can make huge dents in the biodiversity and climate crises. Here’s how.

The Lyme Epidemic Is Worse Than Ever

June 1, 2022 ExplainerUnited StatesClara Chaisson

Prevention is the best medicine for Lyme disease—but we’ve got our work cut out for us as climate change gives ticks a warm welcome.

Atlantic Oil Drilling Is a Terrible Idea

May 17, 2022 ExplainerUnited States

While past leasing proposals have included the Atlantic among other large swaths of the U.S. coastline, today the vast majority of Americans agree that opening up more areas for leasing spells disaster for our climate and our economy.

Why Forest Carbon Offsets Aren’t a Substitute for Slashing Emissions

May 16, 2022 ExplainerInternational, United StatesRobynne Boyd

Companies need to both protect forests and cut carbon emissions in order to fight climate change (and look good doing it).

A World Without Bees? Here’s What Happens If Bees Go Extinct

May 2, 2022 Latest NewsUnited StatesBrian Palmer

Assessing our chances of survival without the prodigious pollinator.

Bitcoin Mining Is Bad for the Climate—and Local Communities Too

April 27, 2022 DispatchNew YorkNicole Greenfield

Upstate New York’s defunct power plants have become a hot spot for cryptocurrency operations, and Finger Lakes residents say they’re just another blight.

Lithium Mining Is Leaving Chile’s Indigenous Communities High and Dry (Literally)

April 26, 2022 DispatchChileNicole Greenfield

As the metal fuels the clean tech boom, companies race to mine the Atacama Region. At stake: fragile ecosystems, scarce water resources, and ancient ways of life.

America’s Gray Wolves Get Another Chance at Real Recovery

April 21, 2022 NRDC in ActionShelia Hu

After getting last year’s unlawful delisting rule reversed, NRDC is setting the stage for stronger wolf conservation.

Gibbstown LNG Terminal: A Catastrophe Waiting to Happen

April 13, 2022 DispatchGibbstown, New Jersey, PennsylvaniaNicole Greenfield

Imagine hundreds of trucks and train cars filled with highly explosive fuel coming through your community every day. These Pennsylvanians and New Jerseyans are fighting to extinguish the project—for good.

No, Burning Wood Fuels Is Not Climate-Friendly

March 28, 2022 DispatchUnited States, International, United KingdomJodi Helmer

As Europe and the United States look to cut their carbon emissions, the biomass industry wants us to pretend that logging forests in the American South could help.