Pete Myers honored by Sierra Club for 'Distinguished Service.'

Founder of EHN.org and DailyClimate.org recognized for efforts to increase the public's scientific literacy about our environment and health.

Pete Myers honored by Sierra Club for 'Distinguished Service'


Founder of EHN.org and DailyClimate.org recognized for efforts to increase the public's scientific literacy about our environment and health.

Sept. 15, 2017

Staff Report

Environmental Health News

Follow @envirhealthnews

Pete Myers, founder of Environmental Health Sciences, publisher of EHN.org and DailyClimate.org, was recognized Friday by the Sierra Club for his efforts to bring science before the public.

Myers was awarded the club's "Distinguished Service Award," one of several honors the organization bestows annually on those "who have made outstanding contributions to protecting the environment."

Awards are given in a variety of areas, including conservation, outings, administration, photography, journalism, and working with youth.

Sharing the Distinguished Service Award with Myers is former Rep. Bob Inglis, R-S.C., who spoke out in the House against climate change denial and offshore drilling before being unseated in the Republican Party primary in 2010. Today he runs the Energy and Enterprise Institute, a national campaign aimed at promoting free-enterprise solutions to climate and energy conflicts.

Myers created Environmental Health Sciences and its daily publication, Environmental Health News, in 2002 to provide the public, journalists, and environmentalists with sound scientific information from the field. He added The Daily Climate, a news site focusing on climate and energy, in 2007. Today the two sites reach more than 12 million unique viewers a year.

As fake news gains traction and tolerance of 'alternative facts' accumulates, the need for public understanding of good science grows ever more acute.

"Pete's goal has always been to close the gap between lab and layman," said EHS executive director Douglas Fischer. "As fake news gains traction and tolerance of 'alternative facts' accumulates, the need for public understanding of good science grows ever more acute."

The Sierra Club has bestowed national awards since at least 1961. The club's top honor, the John Muir Award, this year went to Jane Goodall, the British animal behavior expert, conservationist and UN Messenger of Peace who has dedicated six decades to animal research and conservation. Past winners of the Muir Award include the photographer Ansel Adams, Stanford University scientist Paul Ehrlich, former Vice President Al Gore and author Terry Tempest Williams.

The club created the Distinguished Service Award in 1971 to recognize "strong and consistent commitment to conservation over a considerable period of time" by individuals in the public sphere. Past honorees include Edmund Muskie, Frank Church, Pete Seeger and Gaylord Nelson.

EHN welcomes republication of our stories, but we require that publications include the author's name and Environmental Health News at the top of the piece, along with a link back to EHN's version.

For questions or feedback about this piece, contact Brian Bienkowski at bbienkowski@ehn.org.

Collapsed house surrounded by rubble and wood debris.

U.S. to stop publicly tracking financial toll of billion-dollar climate disasters

The federal government will no longer collect or share data on the financial costs of extreme weather events, a move that scientists and lawmakers say will obscure the growing risks of climate change.

Rebecca Dzombak and Hiroko Tabuchi report for The New York Times.

Keep reading...Show less
Disaster aid on a flatbed truck.

Congress proposes major reforms to FEMA in bid to counter Trump cuts

A bipartisan House effort seeks to restructure the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) into an independent agency and expand its powers amid President Trump’s push to shrink or eliminate it.

Thomas Frank reports for E&E News.

Keep reading...Show less
Aerial photo of wind turbines near field with clouds floating over them casting shadows below.

Trump administration budget shifts lead to layoffs at key federal renewable energy lab

More than 100 employees at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory were laid off last week following new federal orders and funding changes under the Trump administration.

Rachel Frazin reports for The Hill.

Keep reading...Show less
Solar battery with red and black connection cables.

Virginia governor blocks bipartisan solar and battery bills, citing cost to utility customers

Gov. Glenn Youngkin vetoed two bipartisan clean energy bills in Virginia that would have expanded small-scale solar and battery storage, despite support from utilities and environmental groups.

Charles Paullin reports for Inside Climate News.

Keep reading...Show less
Yellow excavator on an excavated mountain during daytime with sun rising over the horizon.

Trump’s mining push undermines itself by gutting clean energy demand

The Trump administration is accelerating domestic mining projects while simultaneously undercutting the clean energy policies that would create a stable U.S. market for critical minerals like lithium and graphite.

Alexander C. Kaufman reports for The Atlantic.

Keep reading...Show less
A pile of plastic bottles for recycling.
Credit: Photo by tanvi sharma on Unsplash

Plastics industry misled public on decades-old recycling tech

The fossil fuel industry has aggressively promoted “advanced recycling” as a breakthrough solution to plastic pollution — even while knowing it rarely works.

Dharna Noor reports for The Guardian.

Keep reading...Show less
Seabed with rocks and rays of sunlight permeating the depths.

Trump’s order on deep-sea mining risks fragile ocean ecosystems and global cooperation

President Trump’s decision to fast-track deep-sea mining permits without international agreement has alarmed scientists and conservationists who warn of long-lasting environmental damage and geopolitical fallout.

Richard Schiffman reports for Yale Environment 360.

Keep reading...Show less
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.

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