Justice - Inside Climate News

In the ‘Armpit of the Universe,’ a Window Into the Persistent Inequities of Environmental Policy

By Kiley Bense, Victoria St. Martin — Mon, 18 Mar 2024 09:00:00 +0000

Researchers found that the effectiveness of the Clean Air Act is often a function of race and socio-economic factors. In Clairton, Pennsylvania, residents say they see that firsthand.

By Kiley Bense, Victoria St. Martin

Germaine Gooden-Patterson has lived in Clairton, Pennsylvania, for more than 15 years, but it wasn’t until she began a job as a community health worker in 2019 that she understood how much air pollution was affecting her neighbors’ lives—and her own.

Rewilding Japan With Clearings in the Forest and Crowdfunding Campaigns

Photos and story by James Whitlow Delano — Sun, 17 Mar 2024 09:00:00 +0000

Preserving the nation’s biodiversity requires opening up meadows in its vast cedar plantations. Conservationists are making headway, but progress depends on reconnecting youth with nature.

Photos and story by James Whitlow Delano

“Atta!” shouts Seiichi Dejima, of the Nature Conservation Society of Japan (NCSJ), as he raises binoculars to his eyes. He’s spotted one of a breeding pair of endangered Japanese golden eagles on a perch, high above, in the 10,000 hectare (25,000 acre) Akaya Forest in Japan’s Gunma Prefecture.

A Gas Tanker Crashed in Birmingham and Spilled 2,100 Gallons Into Nearby Village Creek. Who Is Responsible?

By Lee Hedgepeth — Sat, 16 Mar 2024 09:10:00 +0000

Officials say they’ve worked to contain the gas spill and document a resulting fish kill. A local riverkeeper says more could be done.

By Lee Hedgepeth

BIRMINGHAM, Ala.—As Kacey Brantley entered her neighborhood earlier this month, she thought the car in front of her was having some kind of mechanical issue. A pungent smell, like gas and burnt plastic, filled her lungs.

A ‘Gassy’ Alabama Coal Mine Was Expanding Under a Family’s Home. After an Explosion, Two Were Left Critically Injured

By Lee Hedgepeth, James Bruggers — Sat, 16 Mar 2024 00:29:01 +0000

Oak Grove Mine has a long history of safety violations. In 2006, federal officials evacuated its workers because of dangerous levels of methane, a flammable gas.

By Lee Hedgepeth, James Bruggers

ADGER, Ala.—He’d said he thought his home would explode. He was right.

As Conflict Rages On, Israel and Gaza’s Environmental Fates May Be Intertwined

By Kiley Price — Fri, 15 Mar 2024 18:32:20 +0000

Sewage from Gaza is inundating the Mediterranean Sea, and may soon flow into Israel, reports say.

By Kiley Price

The Israel-Hamas war has claimed the lives of more than 30,000 people. Like all armed conflicts, it has also come with an environmental toll.

Louisiana’s Toxic Air Is Linked to Low-Weight and Pre-Term Births

Jessica Kutz, The 19th — Thu, 14 Mar 2024 16:30:00 +0000

Residents have long suspected that the state's petrochemical plants and facilities were impacting birth outcomes. Now, a new study shows a correlation.

Jessica Kutz, The 19th

Originally published by The 19th.

California Votes to Consider Health and Environment in Future Energy Planning

By Emma Foehringer Merchant — Thu, 14 Mar 2024 08:30:00 +0000

State regulators approved a plan to determine how to weigh “non-energy benefits” in decisions about energy resources, as the state pursues 100 percent zero-carbon electricity by 2045.

By Emma Foehringer Merchant

The California Energy Commission voted unanimously on Wednesday to begin a process to incorporate the value of “non-energy benefits,” such as health impacts and job creation, in future decisions about the state’s energy mix.

Una inundación catastrófica en la costa central de California profundizó la crisis de los ya marginados trabajadores agrícolas indígenas

By Liza Gross — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 17:31:03 +0000

Un desastre natural tras otro, y leyes injustas de trabajo y de inmigración, dejan a los trabajadores agrícolas indocumentados sin protecciones.

By Liza Gross

Read this article in English.

Alabamians Want Public Officials to Mitigate Landslide Risk as Climate Change Makes Extreme Precipitation More Frequent

By Lee Hedgepeth — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 09:05:00 +0000

In Birmingham, residents want two properties shielded from development and turned into parkland. Councilors decided to protect one parcel years ago. The vote never stuck.

By Lee Hedgepeth

BIRMINGHAM, Ala.— Gary Bostany said it was like lava flowing down from above.

Can Carbon Offsets Save a Fragile Band of Belize’s Tropical Rainforest?

By Nicholas Kusnetz — Sun, 10 Mar 2024 09:10:00 +0000

Conservationists are racing to save what’s left of the largest tropical forest in Central America, as commercial farming and population growth threaten to cleave it in two.

By Nicholas Kusnetz

GALLON JUG, Belize — Deep in a jungle in northern Belize, Elma Kay stood at the base of a rare, ancient mahogany tree, perhaps the only one for miles around. On the trunk above her head were healed gashes where loggers had erected a platform decades ago in an aborted attempt to fell the giant hardwood, prized for its richly hued lumber.