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

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

Federal Water Tap, December 19: Obama Administration Blocks Mine in Minnesota Wilderness

December 19, 2016/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown U.S. Forest Service rejects renewal of two mining leases near the Boundary Waters in northeastern Minnesota. DuPont agrees to pay $US 50 million to cleanup mercury pollution in a Virginia river. The EPA’s final report on hydraulic fracturing identifies cases of water pollution at all stages of the water cycle in oil 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

Alabama Risks Lives with No Dam Oversight

December 14, 2016/in Infrastructure, Water Management, Water News/by Brett Walton

Only state without a dam safety program. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue Bruce Tschantz is direct about Alabama’s insistence that monitoring and inspecting dams is not needed. “If you live in Alabama below a dam you’re basically taking a life risk,” Tschantz told Circle of Blue. Tschantz brought dam safety to national attention as […]

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. Dam Safety Improves But Faces Evolving Risks

December 13, 2016/in Infrastructure, Water Management, Water News/by Brett Walton

No fatal dam failures in last decade, but plenty of warnings. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue All was quiet at the Fehring house before the flood came. It was before dawn on March 14, 2006. The family was asleep, unaware of trouble upstream. The Ka Loko Dam, strained by six weeks of heavy tropical […]

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 12: House and Senate Pass the Turducken of Water Infrastructure Bills

December 12, 2016/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown Water infrastructure bill delivers a lot of meat and a panful of drippings. EPA survey finds nutrient pollution is biggest stressor for U.S. lakes. EPA drinking water advisory group discusses lead and unregulated contaminants. The number of dams in the United States increases in new survey. To aid wetland health, Lake Ontario water […]

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

After Flint Failure, EPA Refocuses Federal Drinking Water Role

December 6, 2016/in Water News, Water Policy & Politics/by Brett Walton

Agency notes that safe water is a communal effort. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue The lead contamination scandal that unraveled in Flint the last two years and the failure of local, state, and federal officials to address it brought drinking water safety to the forefront of U.S. public policy. For good reason. Twenty-seven million […]

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