News & Commentary

Meet the activists and NRDC staff propelling change, read our expert analysis, and learn about the latest challenges and solutions to advancing a healthier, more sustainable, and equitable world.

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A blurry image of a line of people wading through floodwaters from Tropical Storm Harvey in Beaumont Place, Houston, Texas, 2017

1.5 Degrees of Global Warming—Are We There Yet?

November 2, 2026 ExplainerUnited States, InternationalMolly Bergen

Here’s where the world stands in its fight against climate change. The end goal remains the same.

Jane Martin with the nebulizer and medications she uses at her home in Gloster, Mississippi, on September 20, 2025.

A Small Town in Mississippi Battles the International Biomass Industry

November 2, 2026 DispatchMississippi, United KingdomClara Chaisson

When the Drax wood pellet plant came to Gloster, reports of lung disease soon followed.

A woman prepares homemade spaghetti in a kitchen using bamboo tongs.

Is Bamboo Always Sustainable?

October 26, 2026 ExplainerUnited StatesShelia Hu

This versatile plant is popping up in more and more consumer products, but when it comes to eco-friendly shopping, the details matter.

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Read about activists tackling climate justice and other environmental causes in their communities and beyond.

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Discover intersectional viewpoints from activists and artists on the environmental issues of the moment.

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America’s Failing Drinking Water System

October 5, 2023 ExplainerUnited States, Buffalo, Houston, Puerto Rico, California, FlintNicole Greenfield

First, Flint, Michigan; then, Jackson, Mississippi. Communities around the country wonder if their water quality problems will lead to the next national crisis.

Addressing Benton Harbor’s Lead Water Crisis Took a Village—and Years

August 9, 2022 DispatchBenton HarborKyler Sumter

As in Flint, Michigan, severe lead contamination in Benton Harbor illustrates the obstacles environmental justice communities face, and why the fight for stronger federal protections continues.

From Memphis to the White House, This Advocate Is Confronting Redlining and Environmental Injustice

October 25, 2021 DispatchMemphis, FlintShelia Hu

LaTricea Adams, who founded Black Millennials for Flint, is now pushing the Biden administration to remediate the impacts of our country’s historically racist policies.

An Ally in the Fight for Safe, Affordable Drinking Water for All

November 30, 2020 NRDC in ActionDetroit, Illinois, Flint, Chicago, MichiganNicole Greenfield

Detroit native Jeremy Orr combines his personal experience and community organizing roots with his legal expertise to help communities of color in Michigan and Illinois dismantle environmental racism.

The Fight for Equitable Access to Water and Electricity Has Never Been More Urgent

June 3, 2020 NRDC in ActionDetroit, Michigan, United StatesCourtney Lindwall

In the midst of a pandemic, NRDC advocates are stepping up their work to prevent the risk of mass utility shutoffs, now and for the long-term.

Fighting the Tide of Watered Down Justice

December 4, 2019 NRDC in ActionFlint, Michigan, Newark, New JerseyNicole Greenfield

Nearly three years after winning a $97 million legal settlement that required the city of Flint to replace its lead water service lines, NRDC is still on the ground holding officials accountable, and using similar tactics as we demand clean…

What Can We Do to Fix the Drinking Water Problem in America?

October 7, 2019 ExplainerUnited States, Flint, Newark, Michigan, New Jersey

Seth Siegel, author of the new book “Troubled Water: What’s Wrong with What We Drink,” says we must change people’s mind-sets and get to the root of the issue to ensure safe drinking water for everyone.

Another Huge Drinking Water Fail Surfaces in Michigan

August 24, 2018 DispatchMichiganSteve Friess

For years the state has ignored its foamy rivers and water supplies contaminated with chemicals called PFASs.

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.

An Uphill Battle, and Persistence, in Flint

July 11, 2017 NRDC in ActionFlint, MichiganNicole Greenfield

These four NRDC lawyers would finish each other’s thoughts—at any odd hour of the day or night—in their quest to help victims of the city’s lead crisis.

Flint Drinking Water Settlement FAQ

March 28, 2017 ExplainerFlintNRDC

The residents of Flint, Michigan, will finally get their lead pipes replaced and have access to safe drinking water. Here's what you need to know.

Words of Flint’s Anguish Flow Like Water Through These Pipes

March 14, 2017 PerspectivesFlintClara Chaisson

High-school students share their experiences of the city’s water crisis in this powerful art installation.

Is Water a Human Right?

March 3, 2016 ExplainerUnited States, Flint, New York, Jackson, Michigan, Mississippi, InternationalBrian Palmer

A look at what U.S. and international laws have to say about our right to clean drinking water.

EJ: Getting Us (All of Us) to Environmentalism 4.0

March 2, 2016 ExplainerUnited States, Flint, Michigan, ChicagoBrian Palmer

“Environmental justice” isn’t only about what is put in whose backyard—it’s the future of the environmental movement.

Lead by the Numbers

February 18, 2016 ExplainerFlint, Michigan, United StatesNicole Greenfield

This Harper’s-inspired index on lead puts the Flint Water Crisis into new perspective.

Skinflints

February 17, 2016 Latest NewsFlintJeff Turrentine

The crisis in Flint reveals the dangerous downside of treating public safety as just another line item.

Go Easy on the Salt

February 11, 2016 ExplainerFlint, Michigan, United StatesBrian Palmer

But it’s still worth asking why Flint River water is so corrosive in the first place. What made the water so efficient at stripping lead from service pipes?