Author

Alex Brown, Stateline

Alex Brown, Stateline

Alex Brown covers environmental issues for Stateline, reporting from Washington state. Prior to joining Pew, Brown wrote for The Chronicle in Lewis County, Washington state. He’s won awards for investigative reporting and feature writing from the Pacific Northwest Newspaper Association. In 2017, Brown thru-hiked the 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail, which traverses mountain ranges from the Mexican border to the Canadian border. He previously was a congressional correspondent for National Journal, where he covered energy and environment, technology and campaigns. Brown graduated from Union University and is a native of Michigan.

Peter Peterson (left) master sawyer with Urban Hardwoods, inspects a cut of an elm tree as operations manager Dave Hunzicker looks on.

Felled city trees could grow a new lumber economy
By: - December 26, 2022

SEATTLE — When a tree falls in the city, does it make a table? Or a guitar or a cabinet? It’s a question that’s increasingly being asked by state and city leaders, arborists, tree care companies and woodworkers. A growing coalition aims to turn urban wood into a valuable resource, rather than a waste product […]

Supreme Court admissions case could upend environmental justice laws
By: - December 12, 2022

In recent years, more states have crafted environmental justice policies to help communities of color plagued by polluted air and water, poor health outcomes and limited access to green space. But now they fear that work could be upended by a pair of pending U.S. Supreme Court cases examining affirmative action admissions policies at universities. If the court […]

States take on PFAS ‘forever chemicals’ with bans, lawsuits
By: - October 4, 2022

“Forever chemicals” are everywhere. The thousands of chemicals in the group known as perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, are found in cookware, packaging, cosmetics, clothing, carpet, electronics, firefighting foam and many other products. The chemicals, which do not naturally break down, are so widespread that they’re found in the blood of 97% of Americans. […]

Some cities and states say big oil should pay for climate damage
By: - April 14, 2022

In the waning days of 2021, a grass fire broke out in Boulder County, Colorado. Fueled by extreme drought and high winds, the fire swept through the communities of Superior and Louisville. Within hours, it had destroyed more than a thousand structures—making the Marshall Fire the most destructive in the state’s history. The December fire […]

Booster mandates are a tough call for states, businesses
By: and - December 28, 2021

Earlier this month, New Mexico became the first state to require COVID-19 boosters for its state employees, health care workers and educators. Officials there cite recent state research showing that immunity from the first series of shots wanes over time, which corresponds with other studies from around the world. “The evidence is incontrovertible,” said acting […]

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