Environment
Major cleanup planned in New Orleans
Randy Lee Loftis of The Dallas Morning News reviewed government test results to show that the Army Corps of Engineers is planning one of the biggest environmental clean ups ever attempted in New Orleans. According to the report, part of an extensive look at the rebuilding of New Orleans, the clean up would involve scraping…
Read MoreDecades of dumping of weapons pose threat
John M.R. Bull of the Daily Press examined Army records to show that the previously classified weapons-dumping program was far more extensive than ever suspected and that chemical weapons that the Army dumped at sea decades ago are ending up on shore in the United States. The Army now admits that it secretly dumped 64…
Read MorePrice of gold too high for the environment
Lowell Bergman, Jane Perlez, Kirk Johnson with other contributing reporters of the FRONTLINE/World and The New York Times examined the growing conflict between the local people and the Yanacocha Mine in Peru along with tours of gold mines in the American West, Latin America, Africa and Europe to provide a rare look inside an insular…
Read MoreFord leaves behind toxic legacy in N.J.
"Toxic Legacy" is a five-part series by reporters at The Record exploring the environmental and health impacts of paint sludge and other industrial waste dumped a generation ago in watersheds and other environmentally sensitive areas by the Ford Motor Co. For 25 years, ending in 1980, the automaker operated a massive assembly plant in Bergen…
Read MoreS.C. port authority operates like a business
Michael R. Shea of The Beaufort (S.C.) Gazette delved into the South Carolina State Ports Authority, the state agency that manages “the fourth-largest waterborne shipping network in the country through marine terminals in Charleston, Georgetown and Port Royal, South Carolina.” The stories show that political contributions, political appointments and no-bid contracts blur the line between…
Read MoreDevelopers take advantage of agricultural breaks
Samuel P. Nitze and Beth Reinhard of The Miami Herald used local property data to show that “under a 1959 state law intended to preserve agriculture, developers reap huge property tax breaks by herding cows or raising crops in the most unlikely settings. Some pay less in annual property taxes than the average homeowner on…
Read MoreChlorine plant is top mercury polluter
Ken Ward Jr. of the Charleston Gazette used EPA data and records to show that a chlorine-producing plant in Natrium is West Virginia’s single-largest air polluter, emitting more than 1,200 pounds of mercury into the air every year. Although much of the focus on mercury pollution centers on coal plants, chlorine producers are responsible for…
Read MoreBlast site had history of problems
Dina Cappiello of the Houston Chronicle used state records to show that “the portion of the Texas City refinery that burst into flames July 28 was the site of repeated malfunctions that could have been prevented if BP correctly and more frequently performed maintenance on the unit.” The incidents included the installation of an incorrect…
Read MoreWater supplies threatened by gasoline contaminates
Ron Hurtibise of the Daytona Beach News-Journal reports on Florida’s efforts to clean up gasoline leaks in Volusia and Flagler counties, finding that “In 20 years, the state has spent $2.3 billion on cleanup strategies that often haven’t worked. Old, steel gas station tanks, easily corroded in porous sandy soils, faithfully serviced generations of Florida…
Read MoreBill could make wetlands easier to destroy
Craig Pittman and Matthew Waite of the St. Petersburg Times used a social network analysis program analysis and documents to show that “a developers’ lobbyist helped write a state bill that would make it easier to get a permit to destroy wetlands of 10 acres or smaller. When it passed, the builders persuaded 15 members…
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