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TipSheet is a biweekly source for story ideas, background, interview leads and reporting tools for journalists who cover news of the environment.

For questions and comments, or to suggest future TipSheets, email the TipSheet Editor Joseph A. Davis at sejournaleditor@sej.org.

Journalists can receive TipSheet free by subscribing to the SEJournal Online, the digital news magazine of the Society of Environmental Journalists. Subscribe to the e-newsletter here. TipSheet is also available through the searchable archive below and via RSS feed.


Latest TipSheet Items

January 4, 2012

  • Your coverage of the awards, which range from $1 million to $20 million, can focus on topics such as the environmental pros and cons of each project, how urgent the projects really are, how “shovel-ready” they are, their merits in comparison to the projects they beat out, the political implications of the early funding as the presidential campaign heats up, and more.

  • The new Critical Materials Strategy lays out the issues for 16 key materials used in the manufacture of components for electric vehicles, electronics, wind, solar, and lighting equipment — such as current and projected supply and demand, options for reducing supply and demand problems, alternative materials and product designs to explore, and implications for various international relationships.

  • The USDA says the number of winter farmers markets rose 38% from 2010 to 2011; 17% the year before. Coverage can include local foods, family-owned vs. corporate enterprises, validity of claims about being family-owned and/or local, food inspections, quality control, state, FDA and USDA regulations, immigration, unemployment, and career changes.

December 21, 2011

  • Though clicking through pages of list items may be some publications' method to pump up the page views in their web analytics, they are a popular trend. SEJ's year-end TipSheet offers its own interesting lists, including the "Top Eight Sites For Environmental List Journalism" and more.

  • Groundwater depletion can lead to significant impacts on uses such as drinking water, irrigation, industries, and aquifer recharge, while excess can contribute to flooding. To see how the groundwater is faring in your area, check out NASA's groundwater maps, updated weekly.

  • NOAA Fisheries Service has developed an action plan for 6 coastal regions, plus a plan for highly migratory Atlantic species. Projects outlined in the plans will include a wide range of education and communication efforts, targeted fisheries improvements, altered management approaches, scientific studies, and improvements in social and economic data.

  • Shortly before EPA's deadline to finalize its new rules on toxic emissions from US power plants, the tri-national Commission for Environmental Cooperation released its report on emissions from 3,144 power plants in Canada, the US, and Mexico.

December 7, 2011

  • The agency plans to publish by the end of 2011 the first round of annual data reported, for 2010, on emissions from about 7,000 large stationary sources in 28 industry sectors. This data should provide a useful tool for media coverage on sources, impacts, and mitigation efforts, if any.

  • The Institute of Medicine released on Dec. 7, 2011, a report on links between breast cancer and the environment. Along with identifying various risk factors, and the strength of the evidence, the report addresses preventive measures and research gaps.

  • The EPA says the proposed rule would prevent about 17,000 premature deaths each year and hundreds of thousands of illnesses, and avoid substantial environmental damage. The agency estimates that for every $1 spent preventing the targeted pollution there would be health benefits ranging from $5 to $13, and additional environmental benefits.

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