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, January 19: EPA, Interior Confirmation Hearings Center on Federal Role

January 19, 2017/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown Senate committees question nominees for EPA and Interior. A futurist report from nation’s intelligence agencies considers the potential for water conflict. The Obama administration makes a final donation to a global climate development fund. A binational commission evaluates Great Lakes water quality progress. The outgoing Interior secretary issues a final order on the […]

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, January 16: Healthcare Benefits Determined In Camp Lejeune Water Contamination Case

January 16, 2017/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs determines eligibility for healthcare benefits for veterans sickened by drinking water at Camp Lejeune. The EPA opens applications for a new water infrastructure loan program while also handing out grants for water quality research. The EPA also proposes rules for Great Lakes sewage overflows, lead in drinking […]

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

Water and Climate Dominate World Economic Forum Risk Report

January 13, 2017/in Water Management, Water News, Water Risk/by Brett Walton

Water crises and climate change worry business and political elite.

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

U.S. Governors Discuss Water in 2017 State of the State Speeches

January 12, 2017/in Water News, Water Policy & Politics/by Brett Walton

Leaders outline water policy priorities. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue Akin to the presidential State of the Union, the State of the State speech is an opportunity for U.S. governors to set budget priorities for the upcoming year and champion public policy success (and occasionally failures). Below are summaries of what governors said 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

circleofblue.org/author/brett

No Filter: Treating Drinking Water at the Faucet Is Rarely a Utility’s Contamination Solution

January 11, 2017/in Drinking Water, Water News, Water Policy & Politics, Water Quality/by Brett Walton

Under-the-sink filters are effective. But regulators impose stringent requirements on utilities that wish to use them. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue In response to the lead emergency in Flint, the state of Michigan distributed 146,843 water filters to residents. Installed under the sink, the devices effectively scrub lead from drinking water. U.S. Environmental Protection […]

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

Kansas Town Faces Big Bill to Clean Drinking Water

January 9, 2017/in Drinking Water, Water News, Water Quality/by Brett Walton

In farm country, the cost of nitrate pollution often falls on towns. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue Pretty Prairie, home to 650 people on the southern Kansas plains, is a one-well town. And that well is giving the town fits. The 30-meter-deep (100-foot) borehole draws water from a slice of the Equus Beds aquifer […]

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, January 9: Interior Department Sets Timetable for California’s Delta Tunnels Review

January 9, 2017/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown The Interior Department directs its agencies to complete final reviews of a pair of tunnels through California’s Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The special master in the Florida v. Georgia water lawsuit dredges up an old and outrageous idea. The EPA revises criteria for designating Superfund sites and publishes a $US 1 billion plan 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

2017 Preview: Window of Opportunity for U.S. Department of Agriculture

January 5, 2017/in Water News, Water Policy & Politics/by Brett Walton

Can the USDA make inroads for water quality and water infrastructure where the EPA has struggled? By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue Her appointment as the nation’s top air and water regulator nearing its end, Gina McCarthy is on a confessional tour. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency administrator spoke candidly in recent months about the […]

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

2017 Preview: Flint Lead and Infrastructure Troubles Remain

January 2, 2017/in Water Management, Water News/by Brett Walton

Flint drinking water is not the wreck it was, but it is still not lead-free. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue 2017 will be a year of transition for Flint. The city pivots from an emergency response to elevated lead levels in drinking water and children’s blood to something more mundane: long-term management of 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

Federal Water Tap, January 2: Land Use Politics Touch Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Utah, and Washington

January 2, 2017/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown Michigan and Ohio representatives call for the EPA to label western Lake Erie “impaired.” Regulators propose to withdraw more than 340,000 acres of Washington’s Methow Valley from mining activity. President Obama declares national monuments in Nevada and Utah. Federal science agency debuts an interactive snow data display. Energy regulators say that environmental harm […]

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, December 26: EPA, As Planned, Decreases Pollution Inspections

December 26, 2016/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown The EPA inspects fewer facilities to focus on big-money enforcement cases. The EPA also lists 29 unregulated drinking water contaminants that certain utilities will monitor, to understand how frequently they are found in water systems. The Interior Department finalizes a rule to defend streams from coal mining damage. The head of the EPA […]

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

EPA Turns Away from CAFO Water Pollution

December 22, 2016/in Water News, Water Policy & Politics/by Brett Walton

Inspections and enforcement have declined since 2011, but fines for all pollution increased. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue Federal inspections of cattle and hog feedlots, turkey houses, and other animal feeding operations dropped for a fourth consecutive year, according to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency data. The number of fines and orders to change management […]

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