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

What Is the IPCC Telling Policymakers About Climate Change and Water?

September 27, 2013/in /by Brett Walton

Oceans are rising faster and becoming more acidic, snowpack is decreasing, and the Earth is heating up. The latest report on climate change from an international panel of scientists is a story of epochal transformations to the Earth’s land, air, and water systems. Greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere are the highest in 800,000 years, […]

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, September 23: Columbia River Treaty Recommendations

September 23, 2013/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

Expand the Scope In addition to recognized goals of hydropower production and flood control, a new Columbia River Treaty with Canada should protect salmon, according to draft recommendations from stakeholders in the Pacific Northwest. A “modernized” treaty should increase summer flows, allow flexibility to adapt to climate change, and consider dam modifications that allow fish […]

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, September 16: National Water Census Update

September 16, 2013/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

Countdown The first products from the National Water Census will be estimates of water flows in rivers without gauges and estimates of evapotranspiration, according to a congressional briefing led by the U.S. Geological Survey. Required in the SECURE Water Act of 2009, the census will be a comprehensive survey of national water use and availability, […]

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

Who Will Pay for Disposal? Drug Companies Lose Against Local Governments in California and Washington

September 11, 2013/in California, Great Lakes, North America, Pollution, Water Law, Water News, Water Policy & Politics/by Brett Walton

Though there still is no continuous national program to properly dispose of the 10 to 40 percent of prescription and over-the-counter medications that go unused, a few local governments in California and Washington are leading the charge to find sustainable funding sources.

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, September 9: EPA Proposes New Water Quality Standards

September 9, 2013/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

A Little Clarity After years of talk, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has released six amendments to the water quality standards that guide how the Clean Water Act is implemented. The amendments do not set numeric water quality targets; they deal with definitions and procedures, such as how to set designated uses for water bodies, […]

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, September 2: Everglades Restoration Plan

September 2, 2013/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

Increase the Flows The Army Corps of Engineers has released a draft report on how it plans to implement a $US 1.7 billion project to revive the Florida Everglades. In essence, the corps will send more water south from Lake Okeechobee, treat it to remove phosphorous, and let it drain slowly to mimic natural filtration […]

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

Fields of Gold in Northern New Mexico’s Monsoon Season

August 30, 2013/in /by Brett Walton

Much of New Mexico is in drought, but signs of water abound near Taos. Photo © Brett Walton / Circle of Blue Fields of showy goldeneye along Kit Carson Road in Taos, New Mexico. Click to see an enlarged image. August is monsoon season in New Mexico, where bright morning skies give way to bulbous, […]

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

Study: Cutting Ogallala Water Use Now Will Benefit Kansas Later

August 27, 2013/in Agriculture, North America, Water News/by Brett Walton

Not all is gloom and doom for the famed underground water resource that lubricates farm economies in the Great Plains. Photo courtesy of Flickr/Creative Commons user deanfotos66 Farming in western Kansas would not be the same without the Ogallala Aquifer. Roughly 94 percent of the water from the aquifer is used for irrigation, which boosts […]

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, August 26: Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Strategy (Plus, Food Safety)

August 26, 2013/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

“Smarter and Stronger” Better data and coordination, financial protections for homeowners, and resilient infrastructure are major pieces to the federal government’s rebuilding plan for the Mid-Atlantic states struck by Hurricane Sandy. President Obama created a task force in December 2012 to give cabinet-level gravitas to the rebuilding plan. The resulting 200-page document and its 69 […]

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, August 19: Water Returns to the U.S. Supreme Court

August 19, 2013/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

Florida v Georgia The long-running water feud between three states in the Southeast will perhaps see two of them face off in the nation’s highest court. Florida Governor Rick Scott, a Republican, announced that he would file a lawsuit in September in the U.S. Supreme Court to stop what he calls “Georgia’s unchecked consumption of […]

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

Fortune Telling: Colorado River Teeters Toward First-ever Shortage Declaration

August 14, 2013/in California, California Drought, North America, Water News, Water Policy & Politics/by Brett Walton

In the short term, water prices would rise and groundwater pumping would increase. In the long term, demand would have to 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, August 12: $US 400 Million Pipeline in Colorado

August 12, 2013/in Federal Water Tap/by Brett Walton

Water Supply The Bureau of Reclamation released a final environmental impact statement for a $US 400 million water pipeline project in southeastern Colorado. The Arkansas Valley Conduit includes roughly 365 kilometers (227 miles) of pipeline plus upgrades to an existing water treatment plant in order to supply 40 towns and water systems currently serving 52,000 […]

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