News & Commentary

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?

Drinking In the Heavy Metal

February 8, 2016 DispatchFlint, MichiganSusan Cosier

Thanks to the Flint water crisis, the city’s kids could experience terrible, long-lasting consequences from lead exposure.

Watered Down

January 26, 2016 Latest NewsFlintBrian Palmer

Flint made many mistakes, but its haphazard lead monitoring system was the worst of them.

How California Will Weather Drought

January 5, 2016 ExplainerCalifornia, United States, West

Researchers outline four key actions the Golden State must take to ensure there's enough water to go around.

The Dirty Fight Over Canadian Tar Sands Oil

December 31, 2015 NRDC in ActionCanada, United StatesMelissa Denchak

For more than a decade, we've fought to keep this filthy fossil fuel from being dredged up and piped through the United States.

Unleaded, Please

October 9, 2015 Latest NewsFlintSusan Cosier

Toxic tap water is just not acceptable in 2015 (in Flint, Michigan, or anywhere else).

Hotter = Drier

August 19, 2015 Latest NewsCaliforniaBrian Palmer

A new study shows how climate change is making the California drought worse.

Hot Water

August 18, 2015 ExplainerWest, United StatesBrian Palmer

Uranium mining threatens aquifers that could provide the drought-stricken West with emergency water supplies.

10 Threats from the Canadian Tar Sands Industry

August 13, 2015 ExplainerCanadaNicole Greenfield

At every turn, the Tar Sands Invasion would put people and the environment in harm's way.

Up (and Down) a Creek

August 11, 2015 Latest NewsColoradoClara Chaisson

Here’s what you need to know about the EPA spilling three million gallons of wastewater into a Colorado river.

The Algae That (Almost) Ate Toledo

July 27, 2015 DispatchToledo, OhioBarry Yeoman

Summertime in Toledo: Lakeside barbecues, Mud Hens double-headers, and toxic algae blooms.

Innovation Has Not Run Dry!

July 8, 2015 Latest NewsCaliforniaAlisa Opar

As summer heat compounds four years of drought, Californians are coping with water shortages in some wacky and smart (and desperate) ways.

Climate Change Vs. the Blob

April 14, 2015 Latest NewsCaliforniaBrian Palmer

A new study says a stubborn blob of warm ocean water is exacerbating the California drought.

Off the Rails

February 17, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesBrian Palmer

Oil trains keep jumping the tracks, setting towns ablaze, and contaminating water supplies. Here’s why.

More Than a Drop in the Bucket

January 28, 2015 ExplainerUnited StatesJason Bittel

Making sure the Clean Water Act covers small streams and headwaters would protect the drinking water of millions of Americans.

Coal Miner's Slaughter

January 6, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesBrian Palmer

Living in a coal town is hazardous to your health.