Great Plains (IA KS ND NE MO SD)

Closure of Civilian Conservation Centers Ignites Controversy

A decades-old environmental jobs program that provided work for thousands of disadvantaged young people across more than a dozen states has been hit with one of the largest federal downsizings in a decade. Find out how the closing of some Civilian Conservation Centers may be a story near you, from the latest TipSheet.

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SEJ in Press Freedom Case, Chem Secrecy Bill Fails and More

SEJ joined with several dozen other journalism groups to support the right to film police activity in a public place, and bills to block information of importance to environmental reporters failed in Louisiana, California and Iowa, but a Colorado paper was blocked from covering a wild horse roundup. All that in this month’s WatchDog Tipsheet.

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Is Your Favorite River Endangered? Check the List.

The latest release of the annual endangered rivers list provides boatloads of environmental reporting angles, including climate change-related threats like flooding and drought. This week’s TipSheet has the backstory and the new top-10 list, plus 10 suggested starting points for stories and a half-dozen key reporting resources.

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May 17, 2019

DEADLINE: Science Essentials for Political Reporters

SciLine invites applications by May 17 for an all-expenses-paid workshop, Aug 4-6, 2019, designed to arm journalists — including those without deep backgrounds in science — with the knowledge and context they need to incorporate research-based evidence and data into their 2020 campaign coverage. Key topics include energy and climate; agriculture, water and the environment; and immigration and trade.

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Resiliency Checklist — Is Your Community Ready for the Next Big Flood?

With flood-ravaged Midwestern states in the news, it’s time to ask whether your own community is ready for the “big one.” This week’s TipSheet offers a 10-point Resiliency Checklist to focus your reporting. Track the vulnerability of infrastructure like drinking water and sewage plants, roads, bridges and levees, the adequacy of flood insurance and much more.

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EPA Says Missouri’s Plan To Regulate Coal Ash Disposal Is Too Weak

"The Environmental Protection Agency notified Missouri environmental regulators this month that the state’s plan for overseeing the disposal of toxic waste from coal-fired power plants is not strong enough to protect human health and the environment."

Source: St. Louis Public Radio, 03/25/2019

"Flooding Impairs Drinking Water Treatment For Kansas City, Missouri"

"Record flooding along the Missouri River has impaired treatment of drinking supplies in Kansas City, raising health risks for infants, the elderly and others with compromised immune systems, the municipal water service warned on Saturday."

Source: Reuters, 03/25/2019
February 22, 2019

DEADLINE: IJNR's Lower Mississippi River Institute

The Institute for Journalism & Natural Resources invites journalists on an expenses-paid learning expedition down the Lower Mississippi to get a first-hand look at some of the stories along its shores, April 24-May 1, 2019, visiting small river towns to large global ports as we travel from St. Louis to New Orleans. Apply by Feb 22.

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Iowa ‘Ag-Gag’ Law Banning Undercover Farm Probes Ruled Unconstitutional

"A federal judge on Wednesday struck down an Iowa law that made it illegal to get a job at a livestock farm to conduct an animal cruelty undercover investigation, finding the law violated the constitutional right to free speech."

Source: AP, 01/11/2019

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