Our stories make a big impact and I wanted to share some of that with you. Last year, we revealed that the EU exports more than 10,000 tonnes of bee-killing pesticides a year to poorer countries, despite having banned the use of these chemicals in its own fields to protect pollinators [1]. It was the latest in a long-running series of our exposés that are driving action to end this trade across Europe. A month after publication, we saw the latest win for this work, when Belgium became the second country in the world to ban the export of banned pesticides [2].
Stories like this need to be heard – but too often, the mainstream media overlooks them. Our platform shines a light on these kinds of environmental injustices – and exposes the institutions that benefit from them.
Why does this matter? Because knowledge drives action.
Just a few months ago, we found that thousands of England’s most important flood defences were in poor condition before Storm Babet hit [3]. Communities that should have been better protected were left vulnerable to the devastating impacts of flooding. We exposed this scandal and our investigation was picked up by national media such as the Guardian, the Telegraph and BBC radio – leading to more public scrutiny of how the Environment Agency deals with flood risk [4].
This is the news that people need to know. I’m proud to be part of it and I hope you are too – none of this would be possible without Greenpeace supporters funding our work.
If you’re interested, you can read more of our stories online – I particularly recommend our exposé on sewage being poured into England and Wales’ most precious conservation sites. I hope you’ll find the stories insightful.
Crispin Dowler
Co-Editor of Unearthed
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NOTES:
1: EU sending huge quantities of banned, bee-killing pesticides to poorer countries, documents reveal
2: Belgium, France, Germany: Pesticide giants are exporting banned chemicals through European loopholes
3: Thousands of England’s flood defences were in poor condition before storms hit
4: Growing proportion of England’s flood defences in disrepair, analysis finds
