In the Toxic Terrain series, former New York Times reporter Keith Schneider examines the rampant overuse of farm fertilizers in US agriculture, and the dire consequences for human and environmental health.
The project is supported by the Alicia Patterson Foundation and the Fund For Investigative Journalism. Several articles have been co-published by other outlets, including the Guardian, Circle of Blue, and Investigate Midwest.
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Read the articles below.
“A national scandal” – new US climate funding could make water pollution worse
The $369 billion Inflation Reduction Act was applauded by a chorus of US organizations and activists enthusiastic about the generous funding earmarked for projects designed to mitigate harmful climate change and improve environmental health.
As US pushes “climate-smart” agriculture, hopes and fears collide
For decades, leading US farm leaders have likened efforts to rein in harmful climate change as attacks on agriculture itself, aligning with oil and gas industry groups to block policies aimed at reducing greenhouse gas…
In Iowa, a tale of politics, power, and contaminated water
IOWA CITY, IOWA – Here in the heart of US farm country, the wretched quality of Iowa waterways is a well-known lament. Farm fields laden with synthetic fertilizers and manure produce bounties of over 2…
Reporting project examines the scandal of US farm pollution
There’s no way to describe farm-related nutrient pollution other than what it is – a national scandal. A tiny minority of Americans, half of one percent, is grossly fouling the waters for tens of millions…
Native American tribe takes a stand to protect its natural resources
MAHNOMEN, Minn. – It’s been centuries since the White Earth tribe migrated west across North America, following an ancestral prophecy to go where “food grows on water.” One of seven Ojibwe bands in Minnesota, White…
Advising farmers on fertilizer, universities add to water pollution woes
WINONA, Minn. – Corn drapes every curve and rise here in Winona County, Minnesota – seemingly endless fields of grain that contribute to the food, fuel and finances of a robust US agricultural economy.
Could farm fertilizers be driving Corn Belt cancers?
BERNE, Minn. – It was a hot afternoon in mid-July and 60-year-old Brian Bennerotte was making a pilgrimage of sorts, navigating a shotgun-straight, gravel road south of Minneapolis on a journey through a landscape stitched…
“What we’re up against” – North Dakota towns fight Farm Bureau to try to keep water clean
DEVILS LAKE, ND – When Clark Steinhaus first heard about a plan to build a feeding operation for 2,499 hogs near the shoreline of North Dakota’s largest natural lake, he was alarmed. As chair of…
US regulators order Minnesota to clean up nitrate contaminated water
In recognition of pervasive farm-related water contamination, federal regulators have ordered three Minnesota state agencies to address “imminent and substantial endangerment to the health” of thousands of residents who are being exposed to high levels…
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