The Long Shadow of Oil Refinery Waste

The use of an oil refinery waste product, petroleum coke, as an ingredient in metals and other products releases large amounts of health-damaging air pollutants, often in disadvantaged communities. The… Read more



Feeding the Plastics Industrial Complex

Billions of taxpayer dollars in the U.S. are helping to pay for dangerous, and often illegal, air pollution from a rapidly-growing plastics industry that disproportionately threatens Black and Latino communities… Read more



The Aluminum Paradox

Aluminum is a key component in solar panels and wind turbines, more efficient cars and planes, and long-lasting construction materials. As demand for low-carbon products grows, aluminum demand is projected… Read more

Trashing The Climate

More than 1,100 municipal landfills emitted at least 3.7 million metric tons of methane in 2021, which had the climate-warming impact of 66 million gasoline-powered vehicles driving for a year… Read more

The Fertilizer Boom

On April 17, 2013, a fertilizer company storage facility in the small town of West, Texas, holding more than 500,000 pounds of ammonium nitrate, caught fire and exploded, flattening more… Read more

The Polluter’s Playbook

Industries in Texas reported 21,769 incidents that released 409,575 tons of illegal air pollution during malfunctions, startups, and shutdowns from September 1, 2016, to August 31, 2022. But in only… Read more