Brett Walton

About Brett Walton

Brett writes about agriculture, energy, infrastructure, and the politics and economics of water in the United States. He also writes the Federal Water Tap, Circle of Blue’s weekly digest of U.S. government water news. He is the winner of two Society of Environmental Journalists reporting awards, one of the top honors in American environmental journalism: first place for explanatory reporting for a series on septic system pollution in the United States(2016) and third place for beat reporting in a small market (2014). He received the Sierra Club's Distinguished Service Award in 2018. Brett lives in Seattle, where he hikes the mountains and bakes pies. Contact Brett Walton

Entries by Brett Walton

Federal Water Tap, June 21: Klamath Dam Removal Takes Another Step Forward

June 21, 2021/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown The administrative preparations for the country’s largest dam removal clear another hurdle. The EPA delays the effective date of the Lead and Copper Rule revisions. A House subcommittee approves bills related to household water debt and PFAS contamination. Federal energy regulators will undertake a new environmental assessment of the Mountain Valley natural gas […]

Brett Walton

Brett writes about agriculture, energy, infrastructure, and the politics and economics of water in the United States. He also writes the Federal Water Tap, Circle of Blue’s weekly digest of U.S. government water news. He is the winner of two Society of Environmental Journalists reporting awards, one of the top honors in American environmental journalism: first place for explanatory reporting for a series on septic system pollution in the United States(2016) and third place for beat reporting in a small market (2014). He received the Sierra Club’s Distinguished Service Award in 2018. Brett lives in Seattle, where he hikes the mountains and bakes pies. Contact Brett Walton

circleofblue.org/author/brett

As a Hot, Dry Summer Begins in California, More Water Wells Are Failing

June 17, 2021/in Water News, WEF/by Brett Walton

Government agencies and nonprofit groups are preparing for difficult months ahead.

Brett Walton

Brett writes about agriculture, energy, infrastructure, and the politics and economics of water in the United States. He also writes the Federal Water Tap, Circle of Blue’s weekly digest of U.S. government water news. He is the winner of two Society of Environmental Journalists reporting awards, one of the top honors in American environmental journalism: first place for explanatory reporting for a series on septic system pollution in the United States(2016) and third place for beat reporting in a small market (2014). He received the Sierra Club’s Distinguished Service Award in 2018. Brett lives in Seattle, where he hikes the mountains and bakes pies. Contact Brett Walton

circleofblue.org/author/brett

Federal Water Tap, June 14: Biden Administration Will Rewrite Trump-Era Clean Water Act Rule

June 14, 2021/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown The EPA and Army Corps will take yet another attempt at defining what waterways are protected by the Clean Water Act. Senators propose $10 billion to test for and clean up PFAS contamination at Defense Department sites. A House committee advances a wastewater infrastructure bill. Federal agencies and local partners aim for a […]

Brett Walton

Brett writes about agriculture, energy, infrastructure, and the politics and economics of water in the United States. He also writes the Federal Water Tap, Circle of Blue’s weekly digest of U.S. government water news. He is the winner of two Society of Environmental Journalists reporting awards, one of the top honors in American environmental journalism: first place for explanatory reporting for a series on septic system pollution in the United States(2016) and third place for beat reporting in a small market (2014). He received the Sierra Club’s Distinguished Service Award in 2018. Brett lives in Seattle, where he hikes the mountains and bakes pies. Contact Brett Walton

circleofblue.org/author/brett

Feds Release First Slice of Water Bill Assistance Funds

June 9, 2021/in Water News, WEF/by Brett Walton

The Department of Health and Human Services released $166.6 million in federal funds for the new, Low Income Household Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP).

Brett Walton

Brett writes about agriculture, energy, infrastructure, and the politics and economics of water in the United States. He also writes the Federal Water Tap, Circle of Blue’s weekly digest of U.S. government water news. He is the winner of two Society of Environmental Journalists reporting awards, one of the top honors in American environmental journalism: first place for explanatory reporting for a series on septic system pollution in the United States(2016) and third place for beat reporting in a small market (2014). He received the Sierra Club’s Distinguished Service Award in 2018. Brett lives in Seattle, where he hikes the mountains and bakes pies. Contact Brett Walton

circleofblue.org/author/brett

Marine Blooms of Harmful Algae Increasing in Europe, Much of the Americas

June 8, 2021/in Water News, WEF/by Brett Walton

Brett WaltonBrett writes about agriculture, energy, infrastructure, and the politics and economics of water in the United States. He also writes the Federal Water Tap, Circle of Blue’s weekly digest of U.S. government water news. He is the winner of two Society of Environmental Journalists reporting awards, one of the top honors in American environmental […]

Brett Walton

Brett writes about agriculture, energy, infrastructure, and the politics and economics of water in the United States. He also writes the Federal Water Tap, Circle of Blue’s weekly digest of U.S. government water news. He is the winner of two Society of Environmental Journalists reporting awards, one of the top honors in American environmental journalism: first place for explanatory reporting for a series on septic system pollution in the United States(2016) and third place for beat reporting in a small market (2014). He received the Sierra Club’s Distinguished Service Award in 2018. Brett lives in Seattle, where he hikes the mountains and bakes pies. Contact Brett Walton

circleofblue.org/author/brett

Federal Water Tap, June 7: First Slice of Low-Income Water Bill Assistance Funds Available

June 7, 2021/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown The Department of Health and Human Services released $166.6 million in funding for a low-income water bill assistance program. Negotiations on an infrastructure package continue. The EPA determines that a proposed mine in northern Minnesota may affect downstream waters, opening the mine to a legal challenge. And lastly, runoff in the upper Missouri […]

Brett Walton

Brett writes about agriculture, energy, infrastructure, and the politics and economics of water in the United States. He also writes the Federal Water Tap, Circle of Blue’s weekly digest of U.S. government water news. He is the winner of two Society of Environmental Journalists reporting awards, one of the top honors in American environmental journalism: first place for explanatory reporting for a series on septic system pollution in the United States(2016) and third place for beat reporting in a small market (2014). He received the Sierra Club’s Distinguished Service Award in 2018. Brett lives in Seattle, where he hikes the mountains and bakes pies. Contact Brett Walton

circleofblue.org/author/brett

Amid Dire Colorado River Outlook, States Plan to Tap Their Lake Mead Savings Accounts

June 2, 2021/in Water News, WEF/by Brett Walton

Arizona and California intend to draw on water they banked in the big reservoir, even as water levels drop.

Brett Walton

Brett writes about agriculture, energy, infrastructure, and the politics and economics of water in the United States. He also writes the Federal Water Tap, Circle of Blue’s weekly digest of U.S. government water news. He is the winner of two Society of Environmental Journalists reporting awards, one of the top honors in American environmental journalism: first place for explanatory reporting for a series on septic system pollution in the United States(2016) and third place for beat reporting in a small market (2014). He received the Sierra Club’s Distinguished Service Award in 2018. Brett lives in Seattle, where he hikes the mountains and bakes pies. Contact Brett Walton

circleofblue.org/author/brett

Federal Water Tap, June 1: EPA Will Revise Water Permitting Tied to Pipelines, Fuel Export

June 1, 2021/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown The EPA says it will revise Trump-era changes to Clean Water Act permitting that centered on energy infrastructure. Senate Republicans increase water spending in their infrastructure counteroffer. The House Natural Resources Committee gets an update on drought conditions in the western states. The Bureau of Reclamation cuts Central Valley Project water allocations in […]

Brett Walton

Brett writes about agriculture, energy, infrastructure, and the politics and economics of water in the United States. He also writes the Federal Water Tap, Circle of Blue’s weekly digest of U.S. government water news. He is the winner of two Society of Environmental Journalists reporting awards, one of the top honors in American environmental journalism: first place for explanatory reporting for a series on septic system pollution in the United States(2016) and third place for beat reporting in a small market (2014). He received the Sierra Club’s Distinguished Service Award in 2018. Brett lives in Seattle, where he hikes the mountains and bakes pies. Contact Brett Walton

circleofblue.org/author/brett

The Stream, May 28, 2021: Australian Coal Mine’s Water Withdrawals Need Deeper Analysis, Court Says

May 28, 2021/in The Stream/by Brett Walton

YOUR GLOBAL RUNDOWN Australia’s government should have conducted a more thorough analysis of the impacts of water withdrawals for the controversial Carmichael coal mine, a court rules. Study shows fish farms in British Columbia can transmit a virus to wild salmon. An outburst of mucus-like marine algae is blanketing Turkey’s Sea of Marmara The African […]

Brett Walton

Brett writes about agriculture, energy, infrastructure, and the politics and economics of water in the United States. He also writes the Federal Water Tap, Circle of Blue’s weekly digest of U.S. government water news. He is the winner of two Society of Environmental Journalists reporting awards, one of the top honors in American environmental journalism: first place for explanatory reporting for a series on septic system pollution in the United States(2016) and third place for beat reporting in a small market (2014). He received the Sierra Club’s Distinguished Service Award in 2018. Brett lives in Seattle, where he hikes the mountains and bakes pies. Contact Brett Walton

circleofblue.org/author/brett

The Stream, May 27, 2021: Chinese Officials Warn of Major Flooding Again This Summer

May 27, 2021/in The Stream/by Brett Walton

YOUR GLOBAL RUNDOWN Seventy-one rivers in China exceed warning levels and officials expect big floods in the coming months. Water infrastructure in Gaza remains impaired following a cease-fire agreement with Israel. Drought in Mexico’s northern Chihuahua state is hurting the production of Indigenous farmers. In northeast India, one of the world’s smallest ethnic groups is […]

Brett Walton

Brett writes about agriculture, energy, infrastructure, and the politics and economics of water in the United States. He also writes the Federal Water Tap, Circle of Blue’s weekly digest of U.S. government water news. He is the winner of two Society of Environmental Journalists reporting awards, one of the top honors in American environmental journalism: first place for explanatory reporting for a series on septic system pollution in the United States(2016) and third place for beat reporting in a small market (2014). He received the Sierra Club’s Distinguished Service Award in 2018. Brett lives in Seattle, where he hikes the mountains and bakes pies. Contact Brett Walton

circleofblue.org/author/brett

The Stream, May 26, 2021: Children Harmed by Attacks on Water Infrastructure, UNICEF Says

May 26, 2021/in The Stream/by Brett Walton

YOUR GLOBAL RUNDOWN Children are collateral damage in attacks on water and sewer systems in conflict zones, according to a UNICEF report. Poland and the Czech Republic work to resolve a dispute over a lignite coal mine that is accused of draining groundwater. Amid drought, hydropower generation declines in California. Water utility customer assistance programs […]

Brett Walton

Brett writes about agriculture, energy, infrastructure, and the politics and economics of water in the United States. He also writes the Federal Water Tap, Circle of Blue’s weekly digest of U.S. government water news. He is the winner of two Society of Environmental Journalists reporting awards, one of the top honors in American environmental journalism: first place for explanatory reporting for a series on septic system pollution in the United States(2016) and third place for beat reporting in a small market (2014). He received the Sierra Club’s Distinguished Service Award in 2018. Brett lives in Seattle, where he hikes the mountains and bakes pies. Contact Brett Walton

circleofblue.org/author/brett

The Stream, May 25, 2021: Mining Denver’s Sewers for Energy

May 25, 2021/in The Stream/by Brett Walton

YOUR GLOBAL RUNDOWN The largest project in North America to tap the heat in sewer pipes is under construction in Denver. Leaders in Iran blame rolling blackouts on drought, heat, and cryptocurrency mining. South African scientists confront challenges in monitoring wastewater for SARS-CoV-2. Water systems in West Virginia report losing large volumes of water to […]

Brett Walton

Brett writes about agriculture, energy, infrastructure, and the politics and economics of water in the United States. He also writes the Federal Water Tap, Circle of Blue’s weekly digest of U.S. government water news. He is the winner of two Society of Environmental Journalists reporting awards, one of the top honors in American environmental journalism: first place for explanatory reporting for a series on septic system pollution in the United States(2016) and third place for beat reporting in a small market (2014). He received the Sierra Club’s Distinguished Service Award in 2018. Brett lives in Seattle, where he hikes the mountains and bakes pies. Contact Brett Walton

circleofblue.org/author/brett

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About Brett Walton

Entries by Brett Walton