The surging racial justice movement has reenergized aspirations to correct the environmental injustices that blemish countless underprivileged U.S. communities. The new TipSheet, another part of our 2021 Guide, scans the landscape of trouble spots, from urban to rural, industrial zones to Superfund sites. Plus, story ideas and reporting resources.
It’s been a half-century since the first Earth Day in 1970 and a new book from an old hand catalogues the advances and the setbacks in the decades since. BookShelf contributor Francesca Lyman reviews “You Can’t Fool Mother Nature: The Once and Future Triumph of Environmentalism,” and explores how a long view from a veteran environmentalist informs the field of environmental reporting.
"A U.S.-funded project using satellites to track and publish water levels at Chinese dams on the Mekong river was announced on Monday, adding to the superpowers’ rivalry in Southeast Asia."
"Plans for a new half-billion-dollar liquefied natural gas export terminal on the Delaware River in South Jersey were greenlighted by the Delaware River Basin Commission on Wednesday. But opponents say they will challenge the LNG project in federal court, and they’ve gained the support of Hollywood stars like Leonardo DeCaprio and Mark Ruffalo, along with climate leaders like Bill McKibben."
"One of the transition team's top candidates to lead either NOAA or NASA doesn't want the job, and another contender for NOAA chief is married to President-elect Joe Biden's chief of staff. But there are more — a lot more — people out there competing for a range of climate science positions at NASA, NOAA and elsewhere, sources said."
"California Gov. Gavin Newsom tapped a veteran regulator Wednesday as the next chair of the powerful Air Resources Board, which implements the state’s ambitious climate change goals. Liane Randolph, 55, will begin the job in January."
"News that President-elect Joe Biden has picked former Obama administration Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to run the agency anew has drawn disappointment from some who felt he was too aligned with major agriculture corporations during his previous stint."
"Today, an unusually broad coalition of environmental groups, numbering more than 550, called on the incoming Biden-Harris administration to address plastic pollution alongside fossil fuels, releasing an eight-point platform that largely focuses on ways the next administration could act without a Democratic majority in the Senate."
"Though GOP Sens. Perdue and Loeffler have avoided the subject in campaigning for the Jan. 5 runoff elections, climate impacts are undeniable."
"Many of the U.S. states with bold commitments to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions are on track to miss their targets, according to an analysis published on Tuesday by green group Environmental Defense Fund."
Advertisement 
