Our Stories

The Latest by Jessica A. Knoblauch

Senior Staff Writer

Adrian Martinez, photographed in Los Angeles, California.
March 31, 2023

Meet the Environmental Attorney Who Wants to Electrify Everything on Wheels

By Jessica A. Knoblauch  /  California Office

Adrian Martinez says incremental steps to tackle air pollution and climate change aren’t enough.

Two men install a solar panel system on the roof of a home. Solar energy is one way we can transition to a 100% clean energy economy.
March 23, 2023

Creating a Sustainable Clean Energy Transition

By Jessica A. Knoblauch  /  Clean Energy Program

Transitioning to 100% clean energy is a huge opportunity to power our economy and create good jobs without sacrificing our communities or the climate. Here’s how we do it.

A photograph of a drilling site in the Western Arctic. The now paused Peregrine oil drilling project would have been in this region, releasing a carbon bomb.
December 15, 2022

Oil Project in Arctic Put on Pause, But Other Fights Remain

By Jessica A. Knoblauch  /  Alaska Office

The oil drilling project Peregrine is on pause, but another carbon bomb — the Willow Project — could get the go-ahead.

Kirti Datla, Earthjustice’s Director of Strategic Legal Advocacy, photographed in Washington, D.C.
September 27, 2022

The Supreme Court’s Rightward Turn Won’t Stop Us From Using the Law for Progress

By Kirti Datla & Jessica A. Knoblauch  /  Washington, D.C. Office

Earthjustice’s director of strategic legal advocacy reflects on the courts’ conservative shift and what’s really at stake in Sackett v. EPA.

A Conoco-Phillips drill site in the Western Arctic.
March 10, 2022

Court Ices Dangerous Arctic Drilling Plan

By Jessica A. Knoblauch  /  Alaska Office

Our court victory in the Arctic underscores that the law is a powerful tool in stopping climate-wrecking projects.

The aftermath of a raid by Federal Reserve officials on moonshiners in Florida on Nov. 24, 1950, where a small still with six barrels of mash was concealed in a forest.
February 17, 2022

The Surprising Connection Between Gin and Food Safety

By Jessica A. Knoblauch  /  Sustainable Food & Farming Program

A spirited Florida court case threatened the rights of states to enact stricter food laws, so Earthjustice stepped in.

Andrew Rehn looks at toxic coal ash waste seepage on the shore of the Middle Fork of the Vermilion River.
August 10, 2021

Court Victories Signal Hope for Communities Threatened by Coal Ash

By Jessica A. Knoblauch  /  Clean Energy Program

Win after win in the courts and on the ground show the ‘possibility for change’ when community members’ voices are heard.

Dennis Chestnut teaches his grandson, Horus Plaza, how to test the water quality of the Watts Branch of the Anacostia River in Marvin Gaye Park in Washington, D.C. in May 2021.
August 9, 2021

An Infamously Dirty River Is Coming Back to Life Thanks to Community Activism

By Jessica A. Knoblauch  /  Washington, D.C. Office

Due to sustained community pressure and Earthjustice litigation, D.C.’s Anacostia River is finally recovering from decades of pollution.

Marines use firefighting foam during a live fire training exercise aboard Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point in North Carolina in August 2013. PFAS chemicals in firefighting foam have contaminated hundreds of military bases across the country.
July 23, 2021

In a Win for Healthy Air, Washington Won't Burn Toxic PFAS Chemicals

By Jessica A. Knoblauch  /  Toxic Exposure & Health Program

The U.S. government has a dangerous plan to get rid of hazardous “forever chemicals.” Earthjustice is on the case to stop them.

The e-commerce warehouses clustered in the Inland Empire inflict "slow violence" on surrounding communities, says Anthony Victoria-Midence, communications director at the Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice.
May 24, 2021

What It’s Like to Be Boxed In By Amazon

By Jessica A. Knoblauch  /  California Office

As online shopping booms, warehouse workers and communities near internet retail logistics centers are demanding solutions to protect their health and environment.