As coal mines continue to close, there’s a use for the greenhouse gas that continues seeping from operations.
Pollution
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The health hazards of California’s neighborhood drilling
Much of the state’s oil extraction takes place in residential areas, often in Spanish-speaking communities, but there’s a lack of research detailing its impact.
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What the narwhal can tell us about the climate crisis
An analysis of the species’ 10-foot-long tusk shows an accumulation of mercury and a change in diet as sea ice retreats.
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Study finds wildfire caused massive bird die-off
Research using crowdsourced data found a correlation with the birds’ deaths, nearby fires and toxic air.
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California tackles microplastics in drinking water
Despite no standard method for testing, the state looks to help consumers with the threat of the ubiquitous contaminants.
Posted inApril 1, 2021: Holding Fast
Energy companies have left Colorado with billions of dollars in oil and gas cleanup
As the state tries to reform its relationship to drilling, an expensive task awaits.
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Put unemployed miners and drillers back to work in restoration
There’s economic development in reclaiming coal mines and plugging idled wells.
Posted inMarch 1, 2021: The Rough Road Ahead
Nevada lithium mine kicks off a new era of Western extraction
The hastily approved project went forward without comment from the Fort McDermitt Paiute Shoshone Tribe.
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New Mexico eyed for major nuclear waste storage facility
Critics say virtual meetings bypassed rural communities and raise concerns about the company behind the proposal.
Posted inJanuary 1, 2021: No Place Like Home
Drowning the derelicts: Yesterday’s boats are today’s problems
States and municipalities from Alaska to California struggle to dispose of old vessels without federal support.
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New Mexico is on track to have the weakest methane emissions regulations in the nation
Laguna Pueblo Gov. Wilfred Herrera, Jr., urges the state to strengthen its proposed air quality rules.
Posted inDecember 1, 2020: A Community Divided
In California, 1 million people lack access to clean water
Why one community has struggled with arsenic in its water for so long, despite the state’s Human Right to Water law.
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Are wildfires contaminating your drinking water?
Manufactured substances known as volatile organic compounds pollute water around the U.S., and they’re heightened in the aftermath of fires.
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Should you recycle your disposable mask?
How masks are manufactured is important for the environment, too.
Posted inDecember 1, 2020: A Community Divided
How conservation groups confront distrust from communities of color
In order to attract a broader constituency, organizations must first address a history of missteps and exclusion.
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Colorado’s wildfires require a drastic and collective fix
Climate change should be seen as a number one priority.
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Will the extraction industry’s economic turmoil blight Colorado?
Questions about gas well maintenance, clean up and public safety rise amid bankruptcies in the sector.
Posted inNovember 1, 2020: When the Smoke Clears
Once a boom town, now a ghost town. Always a hometown.
Over generations, the Soto family has lived through cycles of mining booms and the broken promises that come with them.
Posted inOctober 1, 2020: Democracy's Frayed Western Front
When home is next to an oil refinery
All I knew about Wilmington, California, was poverty, so I long hid my connection to it.
Posted inOctober 1, 2020: Democracy's Frayed Western Front
In a small Montana town, there’s a thing with feathers. Hope? Not so much.
Maxim Loskutoff’s debut novel explores the fraught history of the Bitterroot Valley.