"In February, the United States Department of Agriculture announced two proposed changes to federal rules governing the rate of production in meat processing plants — a move advocates say would endanger workers, public health, and the environment."
"The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has in recent weeks proposed a process for approving microreactors and finalized one for reactors with nontraditional designs."
"In a video announcing his Congressional bid in Montana last month, longtime conservative radio host Aaron Flint bemoaned the prospect of “public lands being fenced off.”"
"The U.S. Justice Department filed a lawsuit on Monday to block Minnesota from moving forward with a long-running lawsuit seeking to hold Exxon Mobil and other oil industry participants responsible for harms caused by climate change."
"The Trump administration has directed national recreation areas, seashores, wildlife refuges and other public lands to immediately lift dozens of restrictions on hunting and trapping, internal Interior Department documents show."
"Soil at a public golf course in Washington where the Trump administration dumped debris from the demolition of the White House East Wing has tested positive for lead, chromium and other toxic metals, according to data released by the National Park Service."
"Paraquat has been linked to Parkinson’s disease and just a sip is fatal, but tens of thousands of pounds of it are being released in the Mississippi Basin."
"North America’s grid watchdog is slated to issue its highest level of warning Monday about threats to the power system from large data centers, underscoring the challenges facing utilities and grid operators grappling with a surge in electricity demand."
Emissions of the global warming gas methane are widely tracked through satellite sensors, despite some unexpected bumps in the data-gathering effort. But a big challenge is how to interpret and use the resulting insights in your coverage. The latest Reporter’s Toolbox points out several important methane datasets and offers useful insights into how to turn them into stories.
Is the United States in the midst of a “nuclear renaissance”? This two-part Issue Backgrounder explores that question, beginning in Part 1 with a look at the government’s part in developing nuclear power, including through subsidies, as well as why the new reactors built earlier in the 2000s didn’t really make the case for the industry’s rebirth.
