It starts with a warning. Then it’s just a matter of which way the wind blows. In the evening, someone will go from house to house and tell the neighborhood that tomorrow will be a windy day and perhaps, a bad air day. The next afternoon—if the conditions are just wrong—a toxic dust called coal [...]
A few months ago, Earthjustice campaign manager Kathleen Sutcliffe came to me with an interesting request—she wanted to tell an uplifting story about fracking. Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is a drilling technique that involves blasting chemically treated water into the earth to release oil and gas trapped in underground rock formations. Most of the stories [...]
“It’s like hell. Living in hell,” says Marti Blake, when asked about being neighbors with a coal-fired power plant. “It’s filthy, it’s dirty, it’s noisy.” For 21 years, Blake has lived right across from the Cheswick Generating Station in Springdale, PA, a 40-year-old coal-fired power plant now owned by GenOn Energy. According to data from the [...]
Tom Frantz grew up in California’s central valley. The once sparse rural area is now the source of food for millions of Americans, and throughout his life Tom has seen the bucolic pastures of his childhood transform into modern-day mega-farms. When Tom’s daughter was 10 she started to develop migraines. Then Tom started having breathing [...]
In the words of asthma sufferers, asthma feels: “Like you’re in a pool of water. You can’t breathe. And when you try to breathe it don’t work.” “Like you put a pillow over your face and pushed it. It’s horrible! You feel desperate because you can’t breathe.” “Like you wish you could still be playing [...]
On May 1, 2009, in the midst of the deepest recession in a generation, the Fairfield-Suisun School Board voted to close four schools and layoff more than 80 teachers. It was a local impact of a national problem.
Matt Garcia was the youngest city councilman in the history of Fairfield and was a rising political star when he was shot down in the city he loved. Here he is remembered in words, pictures and sounds. Credits include : photography, audio, editing, production and design
Bettye Graves is raising her third generation of kids. Each generation is more difficult, she says, but everyone deserves a mother’s love. Credits include : video, photography, editing and production.
A local youth pastor feels God is opening a door for him as he pursues his dream of becoming a cage fighter. Credits include : photography, audio, editing and production
Irving Scible, a little person, talks about his notions of normalcy. Credits include: photography, audio, editing and production.
