Even as the number of coal-fired power plants declines in the United States, the dangerous coal ash byproducts they generate are found in dumps in every state, threatening to leach toxins into drinking water supplies. The latest TipSheet examines why the problem won’t seem to go away, and offers 10 top story ideas and resources for reporting on coal ash in your locale.
"The U.S. Department of Energy is considering terminating 300 additional clean energy projects worth over $15 billion, according to a leaked list reviewed by The Times."
"An El Segundo refinery fire has renewed questions about who is investigating the state’s oil industry after serious accidents. With the U.S. Chemical Safety Board defunded, California has yet to fill the gap."
"Staff shortages, turnover, and new priorities at the Department of Justice are stretching legal staff handling environmental issues and causing unusual delays—even before the government shutdown."
"Most politicians rarely discuss electricity costs. But in New Jersey, they have been featured prominently in campaign ads and stump speeches in the run-up to November’s election for governor."
"Last year, state epidemiologists studied an industrialized region east of Houston. They reported finding high rates of cancer, but refused to release key geographic details—a decision some experts say is irresponsible."
"Agency scientists found that PFNA could cause developmental, liver and reproductive harms. Their final report was ready in mid-April, according to an internal document reviewed by ProPublica, but the Trump administration has yet to release it."
"Citing a Public Domain exposé, House Democrats ask Interior’s watchdog to investigate potential ethics violations by acting BOEM director Matt Giacona"
"The chair of stalled UN plastics treaty talks, Luis Vayas Valdivieso, is preparing to step down, after accounts of behind-the-scenes pressure from the United Nations Environment Programme (Unep)." "In August, global talks at the UN headquarters in Geneva to agree on a treaty to deal with accelerating plastic pollution collapsed after three years of negotiations. There is currently no deal and the future of the agreement is unclear."
"The White House is offering “concierge, white glove service” to oil, coal and other fossil fuel companies that are seeking to gain fast approval for their projects, according to an energy official, while simultaneously slowing down or blocking solar and wind projects."
