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.

The totals are in — here are the five most viewed stories from our newsroom in 2022.


1. A corpse in a barrel in a drying reservoir

corpse in a barrel in a drying reservoir

Our weekend columnist Peter Dykstra is always on the lookout for the weird and wacky in the environmental realm.

With this column, he found it.

2. The hidden, potential cancer-causing, danger in woodworking and art supplies

BADGE BPA chemical

Reporter Meg Wilcox did a deep dive on a scary chemical that's common in woodworking and art supplies. Might want to check this one out before your next craft night.

3. The Titans of Plastic

petrochemical shell pennsylvania plastic

In collaboration with the excellent Sierra Magazine, reporter Kristina Marusic gives readers a clear-eyed look at the multi-faceted impacts of plastics production.

4. For clean beauty brands, getting PFAS out of makeup might be easier said than done

PFAS in makeup

We spent a good part of the beginning of 2022 examining PFAS chemicals in everyday products. This investigation into makeup caught the eye of readers.

5. Chemicals in everyday products are spurring obesity, warns a new review

chemicals obesity

Our weight depends on more than diet and exercise. Reporter Grace van Deelen reported on the latest research examining a concerning class of chemicals called "obesogens."


President Donald Trump speaking into a microphone
Credit: Gage Skidmore/https://www.flickr.com/photos/gageskidmore/https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Trump taking ‘drill, baby, drill’ plan to Venezuela ‘terrible’ for climate, experts warn

‘Everybody loses’ if production is supercharged in a country with the largest known oil reserves, critics say.

A refinery at night in front of a water source

What Trump’s Venezuela strategy means for Black communities

Environmental justice advocates warn that refining Venezuelan oil will concentrate more pollution and cancer risk in majority-Black communities along the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast.

A technician working on a heat pump installed on the side of a home
Credit: Virrage Images/Big Stock Photo

7 numbers that explain why the future of buildings is all-electric

Key indicators, from the cost of fossil gas to the number of heat pumps sold, signal building decarbonization will march onward in the U.S. despite challenges.

A person wearing blue gloves soldering wire onto a lithium-ion battery
Credit: Fahroni/Big Stock Photo

Old but full of energy: Giving EV batteries a second life

How Moment Energy harvests and puts to work batteries from worn-out electric cars.
 A simple model of an atom on a blue background
Copyright: StefanieSchubbert/ BigStock Photo ID: 124679117

Optimism about nuclear energy is rising again. Will it last?

Companies like Kairos Power are building new types of reactors with the encouragement of the Trump administration, but their success is far from assured.
An illustration of a turtle with plastic in its mouth, surrounded by plastic bottles

Microplastics are undermining the ocean’s ability to absorb carbon

Research reveals microplastics may impair the ocean’s ability to absorb carbon dioxide, weakening a natural buffer against climate change.
Dense seagrass meadow of Neptune grass

Change in Chesapeake’s grass beds means less ‘fish food’

A transformation in the seagrass meadows hidden under the surface of the Chesapeake Bay may have huge implications for fish and crabs living in the estuary.
From our Newsroom
Multiple Houston-area oil and gas facilities that have violated pollution laws are seeking permit renewals

Multiple Houston-area oil and gas facilities that have violated pollution laws are seeking permit renewals

One facility has emitted cancer-causing chemicals into waterways at levels up to 520% higher than legal limits.

Regulators are underestimating health impacts from air pollution: Study

Regulators are underestimating health impacts from air pollution: Study

"The reality is, we are not exposed to one chemical at a time.”

Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro speaks with the state flag and American flag behind him.

Two years into his term, has Gov. Shapiro kept his promises to regulate Pennsylvania’s fracking industry?

A new report assesses the administration’s progress and makes new recommendations

silhouette of people holding hands by a lake at sunset

An open letter from EPA staff to the American public

“We cannot stand by and allow this to happen. We need to hold this administration accountable.”

wildfire retardants being sprayed by plane

New evidence links heavy metal pollution with wildfire retardants

“The chemical black box” that blankets wildfire-impacted areas is increasingly under scrutiny.

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