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, November 14: Final Months of the Obama Administration

November 14, 2016/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown Transition time for the federal government. Congress has unfinished business in the lame-duck session, including a water infrastructure bill. Congressional Republicans support a lawsuit against the Obama administration’s Clean Water Act rule. A new non-native species is confirmed in Lake Erie. A nuclear waste storage facility is proposed for West Texas. The Army […]

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, November 14: Michigan Declares Western Lake Erie ‘Impaired’ Water

November 14, 2016/in The Stream/by Brett Walton

The Global Rundown Persistent algal blooms led Michigan officials to list Lake Erie as a polluted waterway. An El Nino-fueled drought hammered Vietnam, resulting in record saltwater intrusion in the Mekong delta. After a large earthquake near an oil-storage hub, Oklahoma regulators shut down dozens of wastewater injection wells. Researchers, meanwhile, map the best sites […]

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

West Virginia Confronts Maryland Over Potomac River Authority

November 11, 2016/in United States, Water Law, Water News, Water Policy & Politics/by Brett Walton

Attorney general threatens U.S. Supreme Court lawsuit unless Maryland relaxes grip on the river. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue In yet another sign that securing adequate water supplies is a political imperative in the eastern United States, West Virginia officials have threatened legal action against Maryland over the Potomac River. On November 2, Patrick […]

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

Salween River Dams Intrude on Contested Land | PODCAST |

November 8, 2016/in South Asia, Water & Climate/by Brett Walton

The great rivers of Southeast Asia — the Mekong, Irrawaddy, Salween, and others — are targets for dozens of major dams that will transform the region’s politics and ecology. The contest over the Mekong River is perhaps the most well-known, but conflict in the Salween basin is no less active. Fighting between the central government […]

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, November 7: Colorado River Flood Builds Grand Canyon Sandbars

November 7, 2016/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown Floodwaters will push through the Grand Canyon this week as dam operators release water upstream to build beaches. The Obama administration reevaluates the Dakota Access pipeline route. Hurricane Matthew wrecked protective sand dunes on the southern Atlantic coast. San Diego’s biggest wastewater facility gets an EPA pollution waiver. The U.S. Department of Agriculture […]

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

In Supreme Court, Florida and Georgia Argue Over Water Use

November 3, 2016/in Water Law, Water News, Water Policy & Politics/by Brett Walton

Water planning in the South has not kept pace with demand. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue The latest round of a long-running water conflict in the Deep South reached the U.S. Supreme Court on October 31. The trial, in a closely watched lawsuit, is expected to decide water management authority and water supply and […]

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, October 31: Many Questions for EPA Lead Regulations

October 31, 2016/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown EPA report reveals dozens of considerations for new lead rules. Trial begins today in a U.S. Supreme Court lawsuit between Florida and Georgia over a shared river basin. Bernie Sanders urges the president to intervene in Dakota Access pipeline protest. Lead pollution and clean drinking water are two of EPA’s environmental justice challenges. […]

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

2016 Election: Water on the Ballot

October 27, 2016/in Water News, Water Policy & Politics/by Brett Walton

Voters choose measures on bottled water regulation, government spending, and more. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue Clinton v. Trump is the main draw for the November 8 election, but down the ballot voters in several states will be asked to approve or reject policies and spending measures that affect water supplies. California residents, for […]

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

Manmade Flood Gives Life to Colorado River Delta

October 26, 2016/in Conservation / Environmental Restoration, Water Management, Water News/by Brett Walton

A battered ecosystem begins to recover. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue On March 23, 2014, the gates were opened wide at Morelos Dam on the U.S.-Mexico border near Yuma, Arizona. For the next eight weeks, water pitched into the dry bed of the Colorado River, wetting its delta like the spring floods that coursed […]

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, October 24: Interior Department Supports Klamath Dam Removal

October 24, 2016/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown The Interior secretary sends letter of support to hydropower regulators for Klamath dam removal. The White House joins with local agencies to offer or recommend more than $US 800 million for Puget Sound ecosystems. A government watchdog reviews water affordability in 10 cities with shrinking populations and old water systems. An EPA internal […]

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

Virginia Officials Recognize Groundwater Pumping Allows Sea To Rush In

October 21, 2016/in Groundwater, United States, Water Management, Water News/by Brett Walton

Reversing aquifer decline will test state oversight and local response. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue The Tidewater region of eastern Virginia, swayed daily by the ebb and flow of the Chesapeake Bay, is a wet region with a serious water problem. Due to heavy pumping, water levels in the Potomac aquifer, the area’s principal […]

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

Interior Department Supports Klamath Dam Removal

October 18, 2016/in Infrastructure, Water Management, Water News/by Brett Walton

Permitting process still has years to go before demolition begins. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue Four dams on the Klamath River in California and Oregon are a step closer to being taken down. In an October 17 letter to federal dam regulators, the Department of the Interior signaled its approval of a multi-party agreement […]

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