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."


environmental justice

LISTEN: Robbie Parks on why hurricanes are getting deadlier

"In places where there are high minority populations they bear, by far, the most burden of deaths from tropical cyclones."

Dr. Robbie Parks joins the Agents of Change in Environmental Justice podcast for a bonus episode to discuss how hurricanes have become deadlier in recent years and how we can better protect vulnerable communities.

Keep reading...Show less
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.

As federal money flows to carbon capture and storage, Texas bets on an undersea bonanza

Hungry for royalties, the state is awarding offshore leases to oil and gas companies that hope to bury heat-trapping carbon dioxide deep beneath the seafloor. But critics worry about leakage through rock layers, pipeline safety and the lackluster record of carbon capture facilities onshore.

phoenix airport climate heat
Big Stock Photo

Phoenix airport workers file safety complaints, citing brutal heat

Sky Harbor Airport workers formally complained to Arizona occupational safety authorities, citing a lack of water and medical care while working during extreme heat.
window AC climate heat
Big Stock Photo

States withhold cooling aid for the poor as heat gets deadlier

More than 30 million low-income households that are eligible for federal funding to defray the cost of air conditioning have not received any money from a government program that was created to protect vulnerable people from dangerous temperatures, an E&E News analysis shows.

bog carbon climate
Image by Peter Ahrend from Pixabay

The vast bog that helps fight climate change

To the untrained eye it looks like a vast expanse of empty moorland, but the Flow Country holds a secret. Beneath the surface it contains more than double the carbon of all UK forests combined.

Trump's border wall caused 'significant' cultural, environmental damage, watchdog finds

The 450 miles of barrier waived or disregarded environmental and historic preservation laws and interfered with endangered species, diverted water sources and caused other environmental damage, GAO said.
From our Newsroom
children nature

Opinion: When kids feel the magic of nature, they will want to protect it

Improving our quality of life starts with the simple of act of getting kids outdoors.

birds climate change

In the Gulf of Maine, scientists race to save seabirds threatened by climate change

“I could see that, if successful, the methods developed could likely help these species."

fracking economics

Appalachia’s fracking counties are shedding jobs and residents: Study

The 22 counties that produce 90% of Appalachian natural gas lost a combined 10,339 jobs between 2008 and 2021.

Marathon Petroleum y una ciudad de Texas muestran una  potencial crisis de comunicaciones sobre sustancias químicas

Marathon Petroleum y una ciudad de Texas muestran una potencial crisis de comunicaciones sobre sustancias químicas

En los últimos tres años, Marathon ha violado repetidamente la ley de Aire Limpio y tuvo tres emergencias en el semestre de febrero a julio de 2023.

WATCH: How Marathon Petroleum and one Texas city show the potential for a chemical communication crisis

WATCH: How Marathon Petroleum and one Texas city show the potential for a chemical communication crisis

Marathon in Texas City has repeatedly violated the Clean Air Act and had three emergencies in the span of a six month period.

air pollution heart attack

ER visits for heart problems plummeted after Pittsburgh coal processor shut down

Levels of one highly-toxic pollutant fell by 90% and ER visits for heart problems decreased by 42% immediately after the shutdown.

Stay informed: sign up for The Daily Climate newsletter
Top news on climate impacts, solutions, politics, drivers. Delivered to your inbox week days.