Environment, Energy & Climate Change
The Environment, Energy & Climate Change program is designed to protect whistleblowers and support accountability in the environmental realm, emphasizing the deeply intertwined nature of environmental protection, energy production, and global climate change. While we focus considerable attention on environmental impacts related to the production, transportation, and consumption of fossil fuels – particularly as it relates to climate impacts – discreet topics like chemical pollution and nuclear safety are also well within our purview. We pay close attention to the interconnectivity among energy, climate, and the environment.
We provide effective, results-oriented legal representation to those with the courage to stand up to unlawful and unethical behavior in the public or private sector. Our clients have included government employees, corporate whistleblowers, and private citizens empowered to expose threats to environment and public health. The current patchwork of whistleblower laws offers varying degrees of protection and requires expertise to navigate.
The EE&CC team often works in collaboration with other Government Accountability Project programs, such as National Security, Education, Public Health, our International program, and our Food Integrity Campaign (FIC). We bring expertise in environmental law and policy to cross-cutting topics, from chemical pollution to climate impacts. Climate Science & Policy Watch (CSPW) – our flagship initiative founded in 2005 by federal whistleblower Rick Piltz – holds public officials accountable for responsibly using climate science research in policymaking with integrity. Through this variety of partners, allies, and colleagues, we are able to address a broad spectrum of issues where environment and accountability intersect.
Focus Areas
We are built to be flexible, timely, and capable of handling whistleblower cases relating to a broad spectrum of topics and issue areas. Our cases deal with whistleblower disclosures revealing waste, fraud, or abuse of power or resources, or wrongdoing resulting in threats to human health or the environment. We also explore topics where accountability and transparency issues intersect with environmental impacts where whistleblower disclosures may serve to provide effective oversight that is otherwise lacking.
Our areas of focus include:
Whistleblower Profiles
Whistleblowers play an essential role in the environmental movement and in shaping public policy and corporate practices.
Our Work
Media
FOIA Request Filed Seeking Transparency on FEMA’s Role in East Palestine Train Derailment Response
We have submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) seeking access to records and communications related to President Joe Biden's Executive Order issued on September 20, 2023. The Executive Order instructed FEMA to designate a federal disaster recovery coordinator to oversee long-term recovery efforts in response to the East Palestine Train Derailment (EPTD).
FOIA for EPA Records on Facebook Censorship of East Palestine Posts Filed
January 11, 2024 FOIA for EPA Records on Facebook Censorship of East Palestine Posts Filed WASHINGTON - Yesterday, we filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request seeking communications between the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Facebook regarding posts about the Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. The request comes after reports that Facebook flagged or removed posts by whistleblowers and community activists about potential health impacts of the Norfolk Southern train [...]
Environmental Protection Agency Grants Government Accountability Project Expedited FOIA After Denying Original Request
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 3, 2023 Environmental Protection Agency Grants Government Accountability Project Expedited FOIA After Denying Original Request WASHINGTON – Government Accountability Project filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request through the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to review their records and results from its testing of dioxin and other chemicals in the soil, air, and water in East Palestine, Ohio following the Norfolk Southern train derailment in February 2023. This [...]
Government Accountability Project Files FOIA Extension Against EPA
This FOIA request to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) focuses solely on the need for expedited processing of information regarding dioxins and other chemicals of concern in East Palestine.
Resources
Speaking Up for Science: A Guide to Whistleblowing for Federal Employees and Contractors (2018)
Science whistleblowers have historically functioned as one of the most powerful vehicles for exposing environmental, health, and safety risks, research censorship, gross mismanagement, and other abuses that undermine the missions of federal agencies to protect the public interest. This free guide seeks to empower and protect federal employees of conscience by offering guidance about their legal rights to blow the whistle and practical advice for making disclosures about wrongdoing in the safest and most effective ways possible.
Protecting Science at Federal Agencies: How Congress Can Help (2018)
This report was developed by a coalition of prominent watchdog and advocacy groups – including Government Accountability Project – and chronicles a litany of recent attacks on federal science and scientists by Trump administration officials intent on undermining the critical regulatory role government plays in safeguarding public health and safety.
Promoting and Sustaining the National Climate Assessment After a Period of Suppression and Political Influence (2016)
This report analyzes the suppression of the first National Climate Assessment during the George W. Bush administration. By detailing how officials systematically censored sensitive climate change information, it presents a strong case for supporting and defending the USGCRP and the climate change impacts assessment process.
The 2010 Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Disaster
The 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster was the largest U.S. oil spill in history. Evidence, including accounts from dozens of impacted residents and volunteer cleanup workers, suggests that cleanup efforts were more destructive to human health and the environment than the spill itself.
Our initial report from 2013 has led to two follow-up reports, through which it can be seen that the human and environmental health impacts associated with oil and chemical dispersants from the disaster are ongoing: