Good news environmental
Credit: Cliff Morris

Our top 5 good news stories of 2022

There is hope.

As we look back on the past year, let's remember progress, solutions and optimism on the environmental front.


Here are five stories from our newsroom over the past year that give us hope for the future.

1. Can "Blue Zones" be a solution to environmental injustice?

Environmental justice

Reporter Ashley James explores a novel idea from one Virginia community to address environmental racism.

2. Jennifer Roberts on nature as medicine

environmental justice

Are you listening to our Agents of Change in Environmental Justice podcast? If not, you're missing out. In one of our favorite episodes this year, Dr. Jennifer D. Roberts joined to discuss nature as medicine for our physical and mental health.

See all past episodes here and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

3. Colorado is the first state to ban PFAS in oil and gas extraction

PFAS in fracking

This was a big deal. Reporter Kristina Marusic explores how Colorado became the first state to ban the use of PFAS in the extraction of oil and gas.

This story wasn't a one-off: states and companies are taking the lead on PFAS as the federal government drags its feet. Two other examples:

4. Solar power at Pennsylvania schools doubled during the pandemic

renewable energy at schools

Pennsylvania remains synonymous with oil and gas — but, as Kristina Marusic found, there's a solar movement going on at schools.

5. Replacing environmental despair with hope and action

environmental justice

Cielo Sharkus, a senior fellow with the Agents of Change in Environmental Justice program, lays out a roadmap to remaining positive and action-oriented on environmental issues.

Have a good news story tip? We want to hear about it, write us at feedback@ehn.org.

richard revesz pollution climate
Photo by Xan Griffin on Unsplash

Richard Revesz and his agency are remaking the pollution fight

Richard Revesz is changing the way the government calculates the cost and benefits of regulation, with far-reaching implications for climate change.
Senator Whitehouse & climate change

Senator Whitehouse puts climate change on budget committee’s agenda

For more than a decade, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse gave daily warnings about the mounting threat of climate change. Now he has a powerful new perch.

How Ron DeSantis shaped Florida’s environment

Ron DeSantis won his primary and the governorship, in part by riding the tide of environmentalism in Florida. But four years later and after officially launching a presidential bid, environmentalists and others offer praise and disappointment — sometimes simultaneously.

Planet-friendly farming takes root in drought-hit Tunisia

Permaculture, as an alternative to industrial agriculture, aims to work in harmony with the environment, keep soil structures intact, and do without artificial inputs such as chemical fertilisers or pesticides.

global warming climate flooding
Image by WikiImages from Pixabay

Global warming fueled both the ongoing floods and the drought that preceded them in Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region

In a part of the country famous for its agriculture and cultural identity, climate-driven swings between extreme precipitation and deep drought threaten historic architecture, ancient art and beloved foods.

Leaner snowpack and earlier melt has Western water out of whack, study shows

A new study out of the University of Colorado Boulder shows that less snow is falling and snow is melting earlier in the Mountain West, a trend that has big implications for agricultural, wildfire risk and water supplies.
Thom Krystofiak climate opinion warren buffet
Photo by Maxim Hopman on Unsplash

Thom Krystofiak: Warren Buffett misses the point on climate change

Isn’t there a point where a corporation and its investors have amassed so much wealth that they should be able to recognize there are other goals besides money that desperately need to be pursued?

alberta voting election climate
Photo by Kym MacKinnon on Unsplash

Alberta’s party leaders are ignoring the climate crisis while the region burns

On the zigzagging campaign trail of the province’s general election, neither party leader has confronted the realities of climate change and how it will likely dramatically reshape life in the Canadian prairies.

From our Newsroom
halliburton fracking

How the “Halliburton Loophole” lets fracking companies pollute water with no oversight

Fracking companies used 282 million pounds of hazardous chemicals that should have been regulated by the Safe Drinking Water Act from 2014 to 2021.

President Joe Biden climate change

Op-ed: Biden’s Arctic drilling go-ahead illustrates the limits of democratic problem solving

President Biden continues to deploy conventional tactics against the highly unconventional threat of climate change.

oil and gas wells pollution

What happens if the largest owner of oil and gas wells in the US goes bankrupt?

Diversified Energy’s liabilities exceed its assets, according to a new report, sparking concerns about whether taxpayers will wind up paying to plug its 70,000 wells.

Paul Ehrlich

Paul Ehrlich: A journey through science and politics

In his new book, the famous scientist reflects on an unparalleled career on our fascinating, ever-changing planet.

oil and gas california environmental justice

Will California’s new oil and gas laws protect people from toxic pollution?

California will soon have the largest oil drilling setbacks in the U.S. Experts say other states can learn from this move.

popular stories 2022

Our 5 most popular reads from 2022

A corpse, woodworking dangers, plastic titans ... revisit the stories that stuck with our readers this past year.

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