Parts Per Billion

Just within the past few days, two big energy pipeline projects suffered major legal defeats and another one was abandoned by the company pushing it. On this episode of Parts Per Billion, Bloomberg Law's Ellen M. Gilmer updates us on this fast-moving news and explains why the litigation strategy of environmentalists who oppose these projects is now paying off big time. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the coronavirus spreading rapidly, several American Indian reservations in the Southwest are experiencing extreme water shortages, a problem worsened by poor water infrastructure. Though no one denies the acuteness of the problem, what is in dispute is who's to blame. Activists and environmentalists in these communities say decades of water-intensive coal mining has caused a dramatic drop in their aquifer. But the company that ran these now-shuttered coal mines disagrees. On this episode of Parts Per Billion, Bloomberg Law correspondent Tripp Baltz explains the effect this dispute is having on these tribal communities and why Congress may be about to step in. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Trump Administration is putting forth a proposal that would eliminate, in some cases, the penalties for killing protected bird species. And, according to Bloomberg Law reporter Bobby Magill, it got pretty creative in justifying why it believes this move is necessary. On this episode of Parts Per Billion, Magill explains how the administration cited 2009's "Miracle on the Hudson" plane crash as a reason why allowing more birds to be killed might be a good thing. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You would think that record low fossil fuel prices would spell certain doom for the future of solar, wind, and other forms of renewable energy. But you'd be wrong. At least, that's according to Albert Cheung, the head of global analysis at the research group Bloomberg New Energy Finance. Cheung joins Parts Per Billion to talk about why the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic likely won't stop renewable energy from slowly but steadily replacing other forms of energy in the coming decades. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The litigation over the toxic nonstick substances known as PFAS—or also known by their nickname "forever chemicals"—was already going to be pretty complicated. But now the pandemic has dialed that complexity up to a whole new level. On this week's episode of Parts Per Billion, reporter Ellen M. Gilmer talks about the delays these high stakes lawsuits have suffered in recent months and about whether one side in these types of disputes benefits more than the other when court deadlines get postponed. And to check out our new landing page that collects all of Bloomberg Law's reporting on PFAS, click here. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

California has some of the most aggressive climate change regulations of any state in the country. But, with greenhouse gas emissions plummeting due to the economic shutdown, those regulations may actually be backfiring. On this week's episode of Parts Per Billion, Bloomberg News reporter David R. Baker explains how the Golden State's so-called "cap-and-trade" system for greenhouse gasses is struggling to function in a pandemic-afflicted world.  Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The human body isn't the only place the coronavirus can be found. Pieces of the pathogen can be found throughout the environment, even in the waste we flush down the toilet. On this week's episode of Parts Per Billion, reporter Sylvia Carignan explains how environmental testing for the coronavirus might work and why scientists are asking the EPA to get to work developing a standard method of testing. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The EPA has a program to hire older workers to perform administrative, and sometimes more complex, duties. It's meant to help the seniors get some work experience and earn some income, but the workers' wages are drastically lower than those of their younger colleagues. On this episode of Parts Per Billion, reporter Stephen Lee explains who these workers are and why they continue working at the agency despite their low pay. Read more of Stephen's reporting on this issue here. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The price of oil is at a once-unthinkable low due to the coronavirus pandemic and its accompanying drop off in demand. In fact, the global supply of crude outstrips demand by so much that simply finding a place to store it all is becoming a problem. This sudden shift in oil markets could have huge ramifications for the environment, as faulty or haphazard oil storage is a particularly acute source of pollution. On this episode of Parts Per Billion, we hear from Rachel Adams-Heard, a Bloomberg News energy reporter based on Houston, about some of the environmental risks of ultra-cheap oil and about whether, if the price of crude continues to fall, illegal dumping may all of a sudden become financially attractive. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The prospect of the wide release of genetically engineered mosquitoes got much closer to reality recently when the EPA gave a biotech company permission to conduct a mosquito field trial in the Florida Keys. The environmental impacts of releasing GMO insects into the wild could be significant, but perhaps more significant is their potential to rid the world of mosquito-borne diseases. On this episode of Parts Per Billion, reporter Adam Allington explains what these mosquitoes are engineered to do and why their public health properties might lead people to rethink their unease with GMOs. Read more about the mosquito field trial here. And check out Adam's six-part podcast on threats facing bees and other pollinators here. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A strange confluence of events involving a hit Netflix TV show and a global pandemic originating from the animal trade has all of a sudden turned wildlife trafficking into a prime time topic on Capitol Hill. On this episode of Parts Per Billion, reporter Dean Scott explains why both Republicans and Democrats now view a crack down on the sale of wildlife as a winning political issue heading into this fall's elections. Read more reporting on this issue here. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The EPA took action earlier this month to allow cleanup work at some toxic Superfund sites to slow down or even stop during the coronavirus pandemic. The agency did this to protect the workers cleaning up these sites, who may not be able to social distance on the job or to even find the necessary protective gear. But the move also negatively affects the neighborhoods near Superfund sites, many of which contain a disproportionate amount of public housing. On this week's episode of Parts Per Billion, reporter Sylvia Carignan explains what this Superfund order means and why these sites tend to be located in low income communities. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Department of the Interior wants Americans to celebrate the (presumptive) end of the coronavirus pandemic this fall by going out to federal lands and hunting some animals. On this episode of Parts Per Billion, reporter Bobby Magill explains why the department wants to open up millions of acres of public wildlife refuges for hunting and what this could mean for the environment. Click here to read more of Bobby's reporting on this issue. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The massive scope of the coronavirus pandemic is having some strange effects on the environment. For example, some sewer operators are reporting an increased rate of blockages caused by a pile up of those "flushable" sanitizing wipes everyone is using. On this episode of Parts Per Billion, we speak with California correspondent Emily C. Dooley about some of the strange environmental trends that have popped up in her state and elsewhere as a result of the pandemic and its economic aftermath. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The waste management industry is about to get a deluge of medical waste as the coronavirus pandemic ramps up in the U.S. This deluge is also coming at a time when many of its employees will likely be getting sick. On today's episode of Parts Per Billion, reporter Sylvia Carignan talks about how the industry is asking for some leniency from environmental regulators and about how that leniency could affect the environment. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Environmental problems persist, so federal judges hearing environmental cases are struggling to make sure this litigation doesn't grind to a halt. On today's episode of Parts Per Billion, legal reporter Ellen M. Gilmer talks about the many virus-related delays in these cases and about one case over the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline in which a judge decided a hearing must go on. (Note: After the recording of this episode, the judge in the Dakota pipeline case issued a ruling. Visit news.bloombergenvironment.com for breaking news coverage.) Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The EPA under the Trump administration has frowned upon allowing its own employees to work from home—that is, until a global pandemic suddenly changed the agency's mind. On this episode of Parts Per Billion, reporter Stephen Lee talks about the EPA's approach toward telework, how the coronavirus has altered that approach, and about the Trump administration's attempt to bring private-sector management philosophies into the government. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A group of heavily armed ranchers made headlines a few years ago by getting into a tense standoff with law enforcement during their protest of federal grazing policies. Though those Obama-era protests more or less fizzled out, Bloomberg Environment's Bobby Magill says now the Trump administration may be poised to give the angry ranchers nearly everything they wanted. Magill joins our podcast, Parts Per Billion, to talk about the proposal to change grazing rules on federal lands and what its environmental impact could be. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Problems with honey bees have grabbed headlines, but scientists say we should really be tracking the health of native bee species. That's one of many topics discussed at a recent annual conference in Seattle for the American Association for the Advancement of Science, or AAAS. Bloomberg Environment's Adam Allington was at the conference and held a live taping of our special six-part podcast series, Business of Bees. Host: David Schultz. Producers: Jessica Coomes, Marissa Horn, Josh Block. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Two energy companies, Dominion and Duke, want to build a pipeline underneath the famed Appalachian Trail, but environmentalists want them to go take a hike. On this episode of Parts Per Billion, we head out to the trail with Bloomberg Environment's Ellen M. Gilmer and find out what this dispute is about and why it's heading all the way to the Supreme Court. Host: David Schultz. Editors: Marissa Horn and Josh Block. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.