TipSheet

The auto market is getting supercharged by California’s recent decision to require all-electric vehicle sales in a little over a decade. The latest TipSheet looks at how this big national trend will affect climate change by cutting CO2 emissions, how California came to have such an outsized impact on the U.S. market and how local environmental reporters can plug in for stories around their communities.

Disasters driven by climate change can leave a lot of people needing help or being displaced long term. But a key safety net and a central federal aid agency often accomplish little to help climate refugees, reports the latest TipSheet. Get the backstory, plus the outlook, along with questions and resources for stories in your community in the wake of climate disasters.

Despite how it looks on annual summer “shark attack”-style TV programming, the danger sharks represent to humans is dwarfed by the danger we represent to sharks. The latest TipSheet explores how mass media can distort the reality behind sharks and miss the point of their ecological value — and sheer wonder. Get ideas to better report the real story behind sharks. 

Reporters needn’t always go far and wide to find environment angles. A case in point is your local farmers market, which can yield a variety of food-related stories, ranging from food justice and urban agriculture to pesticides and organics. That and a few tasty samples on the side. TipSheet takes a stroll through the aisles for the backstory, plus reporting resources and story ideas.

Closure plans for more than 160 coal ash facilities crisscrossing the United States are under renewed scrutiny by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, according to a newly leaked list. The latest TipSheet credits that leak with offering local environmental reporters story leads on potential drinking water pollution in their communities. Get the details, plus story ideas and reporting resources.

New rules on soot may soon be on the way and will likely stir up the long-standing controversy over air pollution from particulate matter. The latest TipSheet has the backstory on the pending regulations, reviews human health impacts and offers a range of story ideas and reporting resources for environmental journalists to tell the story on a local and regional basis.

Millions of Americans rely on their own onsite wastewater treatment, commonly known as septic systems. And many of those systems are connected to private wells. But unless they are properly sited, designed, built and maintained, they can contaminate drinking water, bringing dangerous waterborne illnesses. The latest TipSheet explains how to turn this often ignored issue into a local story.

To better understand troubled bird populations and the many forces undermining them, grab some binoculars and a notebook, and catch up with your local birders, including the burgeoning number of minority birders. That’s the advice from the latest TipSheet, which offers reporting resources and numerous story ideas, including the impacts of climate change, habitat loss, water access and the “insect apocalypse.” 

An annual list of endangered rivers is out, but with it the journalism just begins, since there are numerous troubled river systems, most likely including one near you. The latest TipSheet details how the endangered river list can serve as a template for local reporting and provides story ideas, questions to ask and resources to tap for your coverage.

Lead poisoning of U.S. drinking water has been a big headline-grabber in recent years, but there’s an even bigger environmental justice crisis — toxic lead exposure from paint. The latest TipSheet reports that this overlooked school and housing issue is getting new attention, but solving it will be difficult and expensive. Get context, reporting resources and ideas to tackle the story in your community.