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."


The facade of the Environmental Protection Agency
Credit: W.Scott McGill/Big Stock Photo ID: 155103338

The Trump EPA is a toothless friend of polluting industries, analysis shows

The EPA’s retreat from its role guarding clean air and water will have lasting effects on public health, critics fear.

Residential neighborhood with a preponderance of rooftop solar

Virginia to cut rooftop solar costs with nation-first bulk-buy program

Teaming up to buy solar can get residents deep discounts. Virginia is the first to try a statewide campaign as utility bills rise and data centers stress the grid.

University of California Berkeley's solar car team members recharging their car at the American Solar Challenge stop July 16 2012 in Ann Arbor MI.
Credit: Susan Montgomery/BigStock Photo ID: 35018129

Aptera's solar-powered vehicle is due to go on sale. I test-drove one

Heads turned wherever I went in this solar-powered electric vehicle due to go on sale later this year.
Solar panels under a cloudy sky

Solar cuts ‘at least £400 from bills in even the cloudiest British areas’

Savings grow as energy prices in Great Britain rise and cost of panel installation falls, analysis finds.

Two people clad in blue haz-mat suits sampling water running adjacent to a coal waste pile

While renewables languish, Pennsylvania pays millions to coal waste companies

More than 20 years after passing a landmark clean energy law, the state gets more of its power from burning coal waste than from solar.
A closeup view of a grapevine with purple grapes hanging from it

Climate crisis pushes French winemakers to bet on warmer future in Brittany and Normandy

As rising temperatures reshape France's vineyards, winemakers are turning to Normandy and Brittany, regions once known for cider, not grapes.

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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