News & Commentary

Why Redistricting Could Lead to More Pollution, Sickness, and Death

July 9, 2026 ExplainerUnited States, Louisiana, Texas, Virginia, North Carolina, TennesseeJeffrey Michaels

The new wave of racial gerrymandering ushered in by Louisiana v. Callais threatens the ongoing struggle for environmental justice.

Rural America Is Already on Board with Clean Energy

January 16, 2025 ExplainerOhio, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, IowaShelia Hu

Gutting it wouldn’t just jeopardize our climate goals but also the growing workforce in the heartland and beyond. 

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.

The South’s Clean Energy Disruption

August 17, 2021 DispatchFlorida, Texas, MemphisRobynne Boyd

The region’s heritage of fossil fuels falters as clean energy rises in its place.

Communities to Coal Plants: Clean Up Your Mess Before You Go!

July 29, 2021 DispatchTennesseeAustyn Gaffney

Distrust in the TVA runs deep in eastern Tennessee, and as the utility shutters two power plants—Bull Run and Kingston—local activists fear it will close up shop without safely containing its leaky pits of toxic sludge and ash.

A Hopeful Vision for the Future of Columbus and Some of Its Most Historic Neighborhoods

October 21, 2020 DispatchColumbusNicole Greenfield

Elijah Carter, a 31-year-old retail professional who recently bought and made energy-efficient upgrades to his first home, discusses the importance of energy efficiency education in cities like his native Columbus, Ohio.

Food Systems Analyst

July 14, 2020 NRDC in ActionBaltimore, Nashville, Denver, Maryland, Tennessee, ColoradoJeff Turrentine

Andrea Spacht Collins is working to minimize food waste by changing the way we think about what we eat—and what we don’t eat, where it comes from, and where it ends up.

Toledo’s Blooming Algae Crisis

April 2, 2020 DispatchToledoJodi Helmer

A toxic algae outbreak that left Toledo without drinking water for several days in 2014 served as a wakeup call for responsible farming in the region. Efforts have been made to prevent algae blooms in Lake Erie, but a changing…

How Cincinnati Is Punching Above Its Weight in the Climate Fight

October 24, 2019 DispatchCincinnatiSarah Stankorb

For years this midsize city has been a leader in cutting carbon pollution. Now it’s raising its game with solar, energy efficiency, and electric cars.

The Ohio River Defines the Borders of Five States—But Its Pollution Doesn’t Stop at State Lines

August 21, 2019 DispatchPennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, IllinoisSusan Cosier

In a move that could open the door to industrial waste and interstate squabbles, the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission is making its water quality standards voluntary.

Columbus Makes Its Historically Disadvantaged Neighborhoods a Key to Its Climate Future

July 9, 2019 DispatchColumbus, OhioSarah Stankorb

Self-driving shuttles and energy audits are helping to keep this Ohio boomtown booming (without the carbon bust).

What Can Green Groups, Labor Unions, Veterans, and a Coal Mining Exec All Get Behind? Solar Power in Appalachian Ohio.

May 14, 2019 NRDC in ActionOhioCourtney Lindwall

Dan Sawmiller, NRDC’s Ohio energy policy director, forms unexpected alliances to build out renewables in the Buckeye State.

Ohio Gains Ground on a Hidden Hazard: More Than a Century’s Worth of Abandoned Oil and Gas Wells

March 26, 2019 DispatchOhioAustyn Gaffney

Forgotten, derelict, and often leaky, these so-called orphan wells could number in the thousands.

Hundreds of Workers Who Cleaned Up the Country’s Worst Coal Ash Spill Are Now Sick and Dying

December 17, 2018 DispatchTennesseeAustyn Gaffney

Ten years after the disaster at a Tennessee power plant, the cleanup crew is seeking justice. At the same time, the Trump administration is weakening protections for this toxic pollution.

Ohio Communities Are Becoming a Dumping Ground for the Fracking Industry

December 3, 2018 DispatchOhioAustyn Gaffney

Earthquakes, spills, and groundwater contamination—wastewater wells come with many risks and few rewards for Trumbull County residents.

The Forecast for Jobs in Appalachian Ohio Looks Sunny and Bright

July 25, 2018 DispatchOhioAustyn Gaffney

A 400-megawatt solar farm could make this region a hub for clean power and big companies looking to cut carbon.

The South Is Warming Up to Solar

May 11, 2018 DispatchGeorgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, MississippiRobynne Boyd

In the past five years, solar capacity in the South has increased nearly thirtyfold.

When a Study Singled Out Memphis’s Unfairly High Power Bills, Grassroots Groups Took Action

March 19, 2018 DispatchMemphis, TennesseeRobynne Boyd

Residents of the southern city spend twice as much as the average American on power. Why? It’s complicated.

Following Spills, Ohio Wants to Reroute the Rover Pipeline but Lacks the Muscle

February 26, 2018 DispatchOhioSusan Cosier

High-profile disasters on the controversial pipeline prompted the feds to temporarily halt construction, but the state demands a more permanent solution.

Can the Great Lakes Become Fishable, Drinkable, and Swimmable Again?

January 29, 2018 DispatchMidwest, Canada, Ohio, IllinoisSusan Cosier

A joint United States–Canada report maps out the way to clean up the world’s largest freshwater ecosystem