Publication Items

Does New Interior Draft Put Fracking Data Under Industry Thumb?

A leaked draft of the replacement rule suggested Interior would leave handling of fracking data to the industry-run "FracFocus" project, which has come under criticism by environmental and watchdog groups for being hard to use and incomplete.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet
Topics on the Beat:
Laws & Regulations
Government
Energy & Fuel
Chemicals
Visibility:
Public
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Natural Resources Extraction Transparency Initiative — a Ray of Hope or a Fog of PR?

The United States, whose Minerals Management Service simply neglected to collect in-kind offshore oil royalties under President Bush, has yet to prove itself a paragon. Yet now a new Interior Department committee is poised to lecture other countries on how to do it right.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet
Topics on the Beat:
Natural Resources
Government
Visibility:
Public
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TRI National Analysis Dangles Leads for Investigative Stories

EPA had already released preliminary TRI data for the latest available year (2011), but its National Analysis makes for easier reporting as data is collated by state. It also offers analyses by industry sector and of toxics handling by collating the parent companies of each facility nationwide.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet
Topics on the Beat:
Technology
Pollution
Government
Chemicals
Visibility:
Public
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Sunshine Week, March 10-16, Shines Flashlight on Dark Corners of Government

Sunshine Week is a great opportunity for journalists to do the most important part of the job: spotlighting the very news that government officials are uncomfortable about disclosing. The website includes examples of good freedom-of-information stories, permission-free cartoons, logos and icons, and many all-purpose story ideas.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet
Topics on the Beat:
Journalism & Media
Government
Visibility:
Public
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Group Sues California over Enforcement of Fracking Disclosure

The Arizona-based Center for Biological Diversity filed suit in Alameda County Superior Court charging that the California Department of Conservation's Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources was not following the state's own law.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet
Topics on the Beat:
Energy & Fuel
Chemicals
Laws & Regulations
Region:
California
Visibility:
Public
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Climate Assessment Revives Memories of White House Science Suppression

The release this month of the draft National Climate Assessment garnered many headlines. But little notice went to the fact that it was released at all. Earlier versions of this assessment of climate change's impacts on the U.S. were suppressed — and even "unpublished". But a few voices did take note of the Assessment's release.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet
Topics on the Beat:
Government
Climate Change
Science
Visibility:
Public
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Children's Health Report Released after Reporter Exposes OMB Blockade

Sunlight cures many ills. A month after watchdog Sheila Kaplan exposed a White House blackout of an EPA report on children's environmental health, the Obama administration uncorked it. Of course, the timing may have had something to do with the election as well; EPA announced its publication January 25, just a few days after the inauguration.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet
Topics on the Beat:
Health
Government
Environmental Politics
Environmental Health
Visibility:
Public
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Analysis: Obama’s Second Term — Enviro Breakthrough or Train Wreck?

Peter Dykstra's analysis helps environmental journalists sort through the convergence of money, politics, ideology and nature.
SEJ Publication Types:
Features
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change
Economy & Business
Energy & Fuel
Environmental Politics
Visibility:
Public
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SEJournal Winter 2012-13, Vol. 22 No. 4

In this issue: Superstorm Sandy's hidden warning; analysis of pivotal enviro issues to watch; new frontiers in visual journalism; keeping up on chemical databases; members helping members: SEJ's mentoring program; media on the move; and book reviews.

SEJ Publication Types:
SEJournal Online
Topics on the Beat:
Disasters
Environmental Politics
Journalism & Media
Technology
Visibility:
Public
- Read more about SEJournal Winter 2012-13, Vol. 22 No. 4
EPA Allows Drinking Water Reports Online — But Can Consumers Hack It?

EPA bowed to industry, ruling in a January 3, 2013 memo that local drinking water utilities no longer have to notify their customers of contamination in writing. "The memo fails to set clear standards for electronic notification and delivery and makes it likely that segments of the public will have less access to these reports," the Center for Effective Government wrote in response to the EPA memo.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet
Topics on the Beat:
Water & Oceans
Pollution
Government
Consumer
Visibility:
Public
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