Disasters

Clearing the Smoke — Collaboration Exposes Impacts of Wildfire Pollution-Reporting Rules

Climate change is fueling the frequency and severity of wildfires, but a little-known Clean Air Act rule lets environmental agencies downplay the impacts of wildfire smoke. A collaborative investigation into this loophole connected dots that even the experts didn’t know about. Journalists Dillon Bergin and Molly Peterson explain their reporting process and offer advice for following your own local leads.

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"As Leaders Fly To Davos, How Do Private Jets Fuel Climate Change?"

"From popstar Taylor Swift's jetsetting on tour to billionaire Elon Musk's fleet of planes, the use of private jets by the rich and famous has drawn increasing criticism as concern grows over air travel's role in global warming."

Source: Thomson Reuters Fdn., 01/12/2024

"Thousands of U.S. Homes Have Flooded Over And Over Again. Here’s Where."

"Figures show that the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), which covers millions of homeowners across the nation, now has on its books at least 44,000 structures where damage has been covered again and again by taxpayers, in some cases with cumulative payouts that exceed a property’s worth."

Source: Washington Post, 01/11/2024

"U.S. Billion-Dollar Weather Disasters Set An All-Time Record In 2023"

"Led by a record-costly swarm of severe weather episodes, the contiguous United States suffered 28 billion-dollar weather disasters in 2023,  the highest number in inflation-adjusted data going back to 1980, according to NOAA. The former record was 22, set in 2020."

Source: Yale Climate Connections, 01/10/2024

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