By Phoebe Zerwick
Edgar and I were talking recently about river stories and bemoaning the decline across North Carolina in the kinds of environmental stories YRK members care so much about.
Working with photographer Christine Rucker, I have been a longtime teller of river stories beginning with Yadkin River Story back in 2010 and Dance for the River in 2017. I recently launched a policy and politics newsletter called Down from DC and Edgar asked me to share my go-to sources for environmental news. Most are free but some are behind a paywall. They are all worth your time.
I’ll start with a handful of nonprofit news sites for you to check out. NC Newsline is a statewide news service which often covers environmental policy. Carolina Public Press, founded in western NC, is an investigative journalism site that often digs into environmental stories. NC Local provides explanatory pieces, with recent coverage of Helene recovery and the impact of data centers. NC Coastal Review is focused on coastal issues. And Will Atwater, at NC Health News, is focused on the human-health impacts of damage to our environment through pollution and climate change.
I also pay attention to public radio across the state. Our local WFDD is terrific, but there are other stations worth streaming on your devices. Blue Ridge Public radio did an amazing job during Helene and continues to focus on FEMA and other environmental issues. WUNC, in Durham, WFAE in Charlotte, and Pubic Radio East in Greenville all broadcast environmental stories.
Here are two national reporters who focus on NC. Lisa Sorg at Inside Climate News regularly breaks stories about such issues as micro plastics in our waterways, hog waste and most recently Duke Energy’s plans for a natural gas plant in Davidson County. Brady Dennis, a national environmental reporter at The Washington Post where he won a Pulitzer Prize, is a NC native and lives in Durham, which means that much of his work is focused on his home state.
Finally, a plug for Down from DC, which I co-author with another NC-based journalist. We’re not focused exclusively on the environment, but our goal is to provide the political context for everything that happens in NC in a free and easy-to-read newsletter. I hope you’ll check us out.