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

Potomac River Agreement Reached By West Virginia, Maryland

December 5, 2016/in Water News, Water Policy & Politics/by Brett Walton

Neighbors come to terms on river water permits. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue West Virginia’s attorney general says that a lawsuit over the authority to withdraw water from the Potomac River will not be necessary after Maryland officials agreed to relinquish control of the permitting process. “I welcome Maryland’s willingness to cease its efforts […]

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 5: Army Corps Denies Dakota Access Pipeline Easement

December 5, 2016/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown In a partial win for protesters, the Army Corps will reassess the route of the Dakota Access pipeline. It was a busy week for the EPA: the agency released a new drinking water strategy. An EPA regional office, meanwhile, rates an Army Corps review of a proposed Columbia River coal terminal as “inadequate.” […]

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 28: Army Corps To Evict Dakota Access Pipeline Protest Camp

November 28, 2016/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown Pipeline protesters face December 5 deadline to move camp. U.S. regulators grant another permit to a cross-border electricity transmission line that will boost imports of Canadian hydropower. Nine oil and gas companies develop endangered species habitat plan in the Marcellus Shale region. The EPA rejects many of Washington state’s proposed water quality standards. […]

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

Broken Water Systems Reflect Midwest Election Revolt

November 25, 2016/in Infrastructure, Water News, Water Policy & Politics/by Brett Walton

Trump triumphs in Rust Belt regions with neglected water infrastructure. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue The electoral realignment in Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, all of which voted for Donald Trump after years of Democratic allegiance in presidential elections, coincides with a breakdown of urban water infrastructure, concerns about water affordability, and the deteriorated […]

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 21: Prospects Dim for Water Infrastructure Bill

November 21, 2016/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

The Rundown House and Senate seem no closer on multibillion-dollar water resources bill. Army Corps extends Dakota Access pipeline review. House committee approves a California water deal and a tribal water rights settlement. Green groups and pro-coal lawmakers criticize final environmental review of rule to protect streams from coal mining. At the same time, 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

Better Water Decisions in the Age of Deep Uncertainty

November 15, 2016/in Water Management, Water News/by Brett Walton

Year-old scientific society seeks new responses for an era of rapid change. By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue The old ecological and political order is crumbling. When calculations are complete, 2016 will be the hottest year on record, surpassing a mark set one year ago. The oceans are rising at an increasing rate. In 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, 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

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About Brett Walton

Entries by Brett Walton