Peter Lehner's Blog

March 7, 2018

‘Big Pizza’ is Lobbying Congress to Put Profit Ahead of Public Health

One profit-lovers pizza, please, hold the calorie count.

Major pizza chains and convenience stores are fighting the federal menu labeling law in a bid to hide calorie counts.

January 29, 2018

How One Tweak to New York’s Tax Code Could Save Forests, Cut Emissions and Help Rural Communities

In New York, home to these Autumn trees, a novel state tax reform proposed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo taps into a little-known but powerful climate opportunity — the carbon-soaking power of agricultural and forest land.

New York State has an opportunity to show how climate change can be fought through agriculture by incentivizing farmers and forest owners to sustainably manage trees that sequester CO2.

November 1, 2017

A New Crop of Ideas for Fighting Climate Change

Agriculture can be a force for environmental health. Here's how.

February 6, 2018

Counting Calories? New Lawsuit Will Make Restaurants Show You the Stats

Earthjustice goes to court over Trump’s illegal delay on nutrition labels.

June 6, 2017

The Major Food Waste Problem You Haven't Heard About

America wastes millions of acres of land through inefficient food production.

June 1, 2017

FDA Allows Secret, Untested Chemicals into Our Food

Earthjustice has filed a lawsuit challenging a rule that allows thousands of novel, untested chemicals to be used as food additives without FDA review.

April 18, 2017

Food 2.0: Working Toward Greater Efficiency in Agriculture

A new vision for agriculture would eliminate wasteful land use and make carbon sequestration an agricultural product.

April 13, 2017

Water 'Too Thick to Drink, Too Thin to Plow'

Without strong environmental safeguards, the interests of polluters will trump public health every time.

March 31, 2017

Study Shows Wildlife Habitat Is Disappearing in Favor of Crops for Biofuel

Wild American buffalo graze in the grasslands of South Dakota. A new study shows that the renewable fuel standard has had an unwanted side-effect: millions of acres of lost wildland.

A new study shows that the renewable fuel standard has had an unwanted side-effect: millions of acres of lost wildland.

March 24, 2017

Enlist Duo Is Back Again, so We’re Back in Court

A toxic herbicide just won EPA approval despite posing serious risks to human health and wildlife.

March 8, 2017

Making America Polluted Again

The recent slew of administration attacks on protections for clean water, clean air and food and worker safety could send America back to a time of unchecked pollution.

January 10, 2017

Can Climate Science Save Coffee?

Coffee ripening in the Aquiares Estate varietal garden

We need robust climate research to give farmers the tools to adapt to a changing world.

November 28, 2016

Worried About Our Climate Future? Look to Your Plate

There’s one powerful climate solution that lies entirely in our hands: what we eat.

November 18, 2016

Can Your Diet Help Keep Climate Change at Bay?

What's on your dinner table? When it comes to greenhouse gas emissions, not all foods are created equal.

December 14, 2016

Climate Change Is Bad News for Seafood Lovers

Is a seafood diet sustainable if the oceans keep getting warmer?

October 3, 2016

Americans Speak Out Against Toxic Phthalates in Food

The FDA received an outpouring of comments from the public voicing concern about phthalates, harmful chemicals used in food packaging and processing equipment.

September 21, 2016

Antibiotic Use in Livestock Is a Growing Threat

The Food and Drug Administration has failed to crack down on the abuse of life-saving medicines on factory farms.

August 15, 2016

The Hidden Costs of Food

Conservative estimates suggest that the real cost of our food could be roughly double the apparent cost.

July 15, 2016

Cheesed: The Toxic Story Behind Food Packaging

One insidious threat to our health comes from phthalates, chemicals that can leach out of food packaging and into our diets.

June 8, 2016

We Disrupted the Energy System—Let’s Tackle the Food System, Too

Our successes in cleaning up a dirty energy system can guide efforts to make our food system more sustainable.

May 27, 2016

Drones, Data and Insects: How Innovation Can Make the Food System More Sustainable

Ag tech is booming, and it has the potential to redefine how and where we farm.

May 23, 2016

Six Ways We’re Learning to Love Our Food

Just five years ago, agricultural reform seemed out of reach. Today, everyone from chefs to lawyers to farmworkers are helping build a healthier, more sustainable food system. (Spanish language version available.)

May 6, 2016

Climate Change Is Messing with Our Meals

Breakfast, lunch and dinner might look (and taste) different in a warmer world.

April 19, 2016

Concerns About Drinking Water Go Beyond Lead

The biggest source of water pollution in the United States remains largely outside the law. (Spanish language version available.)

April 13, 2016

One Toxic Pesticide Is on the Way Out—With Many More to Go

To grow food without poisonous chemicals, you need to buck the system. (Spanish language version available.)

April 8, 2016

Breaking the Cycle: Moving from Chemicals to Cover Crops

Legal battles over pesticides are full of twists and turns, but we can make a better case for dropping them by ensuring farmers have better alternatives to harmful chemicals. (Spanish language version available.)

April 1, 2016

The Clean Power Plan’s on Hold, but Clean Agriculture Can Move Forward

Cleaning up the electricity sector isn’t the only way to curb climate change; cleaning up our food and agriculture system can cut climate pollution, too.

March 30, 2016

To Eat Healthy, We Need to Farm Healthy

To improve the American diet, we need a sustainable food system that gets healthy, affordable food to all.

March 25, 2016

Fixing Our Broken Food System

Our inefficient, chemical-laden system of food production is costing us not only a healthy environment, but also healthy years of our lives.

December 7, 2015

After 15 Years, EPA Finally Moves to Ban Brain-Damaging Pesticide Chlorpyrifos

Nearly 15 years have passed since the EPA effectively banned the residential use of the pesticide chlorpyrifos, which causes brain damage in children, and the EPA has at last proposed to ban most agricultural uses of this toxic pesticide.