Local Reporting Network

Detroit Could Block Billionaire-Owned Concrete Plant From Further Neighborhood Expansion

We reported on how a concrete plant took over a Detroit neighborhood after a historic land swap facilitated by city officials. Now after years of complaints from residents about dust and noise, officials say they want to limit further growth.

by Jena Brooker, BridgeDetroit

October 29, 2026, 6:00 am EDT

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Toxic Pressure

This Oil Company Is Linked to 1,000 Pollution Incidents and Other Violations. Oklahoma Never Punished It.

Staff at an Oklahoma regulatory agency spent over a year building a case against Citation Oil & Gas, a company notorious for oil field pollution. Instead of disciplining the company, agency leaders chose to let it resume operations.

by Nick Bowlin, The Frontier

October 27, 2026, 5:00 am EDT
In a Newly Drawn District, Black Voters May Get a Representative Who Spent Years Undermining Their Interests

Brent Taylor is the front-runner for one of Memphis’ U.S. congressional districts, recently redrawn from majority Black to majority white. As state senator, he repeatedly used his power to supersede local officials — and the will of the city’s voters.

by Wendi C. Thomas, MLK50: Justice Through Journalism

October 26, 2026, 6:00 am EDT
Nuclear Weapons Waste Made Workers Sick. Despite a Law Meant to Help, the DOE Keeps Fighting Their Claims.

A 2018 Washington state law was supposed to help workers who got sick cleaning up Hanford, a former federal nuclear weapons site. Eight years later, the DOE has spent nearly $12 million fighting to deny them benefits.

by Lizz Giordano, Cascade PBS, and Brandon Block for ProPublica

October 22, 2026, 8:00 am EDT
Smoke and Mirrors

Colorado Marijuana Regulators Failed to Protect Consumers From Potential Contamination, Audit Finds

Colorado’s Marijuana Enforcement Division may have put consumers at increased risk of using unsafe cannabis products, according to a state audit. The findings echo a yearlong investigation into the agency by The Denver Gazette and ProPublica.

by Christopher Osher, The Denver Gazette

October 21, 2026, 11:35 am EDT