The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "toxic waste" ...
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Pacific Steel Recycling Pollution
KGTV 10News revealed toxic waste piles behind the gates of a San Diego County recycling yard- Pacific Steel Inc.
Tags: Pollution
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Bad for America. Good for East Africa
The story traces a toxic chemical from its origin in the U.S. to the end users, mostly farmers in East Africa. It examines the chemical's side effects on the environment and wildlife in East Africa.
Tags: East Africa; environment; toxic; chemical; waste; farmers
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"Superfund Project"
This project was reported by a group of interns at The Oklahoman who wanted to investigate the effects of toxic areas on Oklahoman residents. They revealed that the government had been trying to "stimulate activity to clean up the sites" by just transferring wastes from one place to another. It was also found that "little had been done" on several federal Superfund projects, and many were "underfunded."
Tags: FOI; EPA; database; Tar Creek; Environmental Protection Agency; toxic waste; lead; cadmium; Picher; G&J's Gorilla Cage; National Priorities List
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"130 Million Tons of Waste"
When coal is burned for electricity, it produces a byproduct called coal ash. "Every year, 130 million tons" of the ash is produced. It's "one of the largest waste-streams in the U.S.," and currently, there is little to no federal oversight. This report focuses on two major coal ash spills have occurred in the U.S. One of the spills caused "two communities to lose access to clean drinking water."
Tags: Coal ash; burning coal; toxic waste; Chesapeake; Kingston; EPA; Coal and Utilities
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"Amazon Crude"
More than 15 years ago, Ecuadorean residents sued Texaco for contaminating the Amazon Rain Forest with crude oil. The "oil waste pits" built by Texaco, now owned by Chevron, continue to leak toxins into the "region's waterways." According to an agreement between the company and the Ecuadorean government, Chevron is to cleanup 40 percent of the mess; however, the company "admitted" there is no record of all the contaminated sites.
Tags: Ecuador; Chevron; Texaco; Amazon; oil spill; toxic waste; rainforest; environmental; Petroecuador
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Toxic Waters
With the aid of more than 500 Freedom of Information requests, reporter Charles Duhigg uncovered major problems with the nation's Clean Water Act. He found that out of the many "chemical plants" and "large manufacturers" who broke water pollution laws over the past several years, few were punished or even fined. He also found that millions of U.S. residents "have been exposed" to water that could be damaging to their health.
Tags: Clean Water Act; Safe Drinking Water Act; E.P.A.; toxic waste; atrazine; pollution
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Toxic Legacy: The Story of Boat Harbor
An inlet from the sea in Nova Scotia is the site of an environmental catastrophe wrought by a Scott Paper Company mill. To attract the mill, officials approved using Boat Harbor as a toxic waste treatment pond. The investigation details the actions governmental bodies took in conjunction with Scott Paper that produced the health hazard that Boat Harbor creates for nearby residents today.
Tags: Nova Scotia; Boat Harbor; Scott Paper; mill; toxic; waste; water; residents; lagoon; environment; health; hazard; public;
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A Few Good Men, A Lot of Bad Water
Over the last few decades, hundreds of thousands of marines have trained at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. In 1980, during routine testing, their water was found to have high levels of a number of chemicals but primarily perchloroethylene, a dry cleaning agent, and trichloroethylene, a degreasing solvent.
Tags: contamination; dumping chemicals; pollution; waste; wells; Camp Lejeune; Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry
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Red River Dumping
Millions of gallons of toxic waster were secretly being dumped into a northern Louisiana waterway. The September story started with an anonymous tip and led to the discovery of thousands of pages of online documents revealing U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality concerns about the presence of dangerous toxins in waste water stored by CCS Midstream Services, LLC, hidden caches of toxic waste, falsified records and a hidden pipe leading into Red River.
Tags: toxins; public health; environmental violations; protected waters; toxic waste; pollution; dumping chemicals;
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A River Lost?
This investigation explored the many ways in which a Seattle Superfund site, the Duwamish River, was being neglected by the government. The reporters found that plans to clean up the pollution fell short, that local governments did not follow EPA orders regarding the river, and locals who fish in the river are eating unsafe levels of contaminated fish.
Tags: environment; pollution; chemicals; toxic waste; EPA; federal government; local government; Boeing