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."


A large industrial area with smoke coming out of the stacks

After a decade of efforts to regulate methane, the Trump administration promises new rules

In both terms, Trump has rolled back or blocked attempts to reduce highly warming methane emissions from the oil and gas industry.
View of Texas capitol in Austin

Texas continued permitting data centers after Abbott’s pause, report finds

FracTracker and Public Citizen identified 35 permitting actions taken by regulators in Texas in the weeks after Gov. Greg Abbott ordered a moratorium.
A forest filled with tall trees

The overlapping plagues quietly devastating American forests

Trees are suffering one devastating epidemic after another, unleashed by insects and bacteria that enter the country because of global trade.
industrial power grid infrastructure

Pennsylvania study aims to identify power plant sites that can be reactivated

Funded with a $2 million federal grant, the program involves utility regulators and the nonprofit Team Pennsylvania.
A view of downtown Los Angeles, California with palm trees in the forefront

Latest climate report warns of major upheaval to California way of life

The dire projections come from the state’s Climate Change Assessment, which analyzes the impacts of changing weather patterns on the nation’s most-populous state.
An aerial view of a sandy beach and a cliff

A California town’s beaches are washing away. Can its residents turn the tide?

Rapid coastal erosion threatens coastal homes and economies, and as Super El Niño rounds the corner, a town is reckoning with the reality of climate crisis
A baker placing baked goods on a tray

How a Colorado bakery is using ancient grains to save water

As climate change brings hotter temperatures, worsening droughts and increasingly unreliable water supplies to the American West, Colorado farmers are turning to ancient grains and heirloom crops that require less water and can withstand harsh growing conditions.

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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