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Leigh Krietsch Boerner

@leighkboerner.bsky.social
4.8K followers 795 following 42 posts

journo on enviro policy, pollution, chemicals, plastics, & other stuff for Chemical and Engineering News. Data ♡er. Recovering chemist and Wirecutter editor. Posts belong to just me and certainly not my employer, the American Chemical Society. She/her/Dr

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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 05/02/2026
“This crappy report that they relied on, which is completely deficient on the merits, was authored by a group of people that shouldn't even have existed.” --Joe Goffman, former assistant administrator of EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation cen.acs.org/policy/litig...
cen.acs.org
Judge rules DOE climate group illegal, but lets their science stand
The scientific community called the group’s July 2025 report ‘fundamentally incorrect.’ The EPA can use it to slash regulations anyway
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 05/01/2026
new year, new union. heck yeah
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 08/12/2025
Not sure I agree it's depressing--there are a lot of seeds of hope in there
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 13/10/2025
please give my new colleague some love (aka reads and reposts)
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Bethany Halford @bethanyhalford.bsky.social · 08/10/2025
The @cenmag.bsky.social science team was up early this morning to report on this year's #ChemNobel. Check out Prachi Patel's excellent story on the prize.
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 08/10/2025
eggshell, oyster, nail, garage: things you don't want to swallow
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 08/10/2025
the world needs this content
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Laura Helmuth @laurahelmuth.bsky.social · 08/10/2025
Six of the nine Nobel Prize winners this year work in the U.S. Three of the six were born outside the U.S., which is the pattern most years. No country has benefited more from welcoming immigrants from around the world. www.nobelprize.org
nobelprize.org
The official website of the Nobel Prize - NobelPrize.org
The Nobel Prize rewards science, humanism and peace efforts. This is one of the central concepts in the will of Alfred Nobel, and it also permeates the outreach activities that have been developed for...
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betsy ladyzhets 😷 @betsyladyzhets.bsky.social · 07/10/2025
COVID-19 data are limited this week due to the government shutdown, but we are not entirely without information on how the disease is spreading. Many independent dashboards as well as state and local sites continue to offer info. (1/3) thesicktimes.org/2025/10/07/n...
The Sick Times COVID-19 trends graphic. Text reads:
"COVID-19 data are limited this week due to the government shutdown, now the second time that vital disease surveillance has been interrupted since Trump took office in January. The CDC has not updated the majority of its COVID-19 and respiratory disease data pages since September 26.

Still, we are not entirely without information, largely thanks to independent data services and researchers. The CDC did update a handful of national-level COVID-19 metrics last Friday. WastewaterSCAN and Biobot Analytics have continued sharing wastewater surveillance data on their regular update schedules. And epidemiologist Caitlin Rivers (whom I recently interviewed) combed through state health department websites to report state-level trends."
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C&EN (Chemical & Engineering News) @cenmag.bsky.social · 01/08/2025
Denise Okafor, a biochemist at Penn State and one of C&EN's Talented 12, will be speaking at the #CENT12 Symposium on Monday, August 18 in Washington, DC. RSVP here: connect.discoveracs.org/talented-12-... Read more: cen.acs.org/biological-c...
Denise Okafor
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 31/07/2025
my in-person recordings of Tuesday's announcement: Lee Zeldin's remarks youtu.be/aozqFnwPk_o Chris Wright's remarks youtu.be/WjGWoyBaNms Q&A at the end youtu.be/ItcKtov6pSM (I did record the whole event but in the interest in time and internet speed, only uploaded these sections)
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 30/07/2025
Yesterday at a semi-truck warehouse in the middle of nowhere Indiana, Lee Zeldin annouced that the EPA is trying to recind the regulatory basis to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. I was there. Here's my story for @cenmag.bsky.social: cen.acs.org/policy/regul...
cen.acs.org
EPA rejects key finding underpinning US climate rules
Energy secretary cites new DOE report on climate change by known climate denialists to justify repeal
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 12/06/2025
my take on the EPA rollback of power plant emissions rule, in @cenmag.bsky.social An interesting thing is kinda buried tho. cen.acs.org/policy/EPA-a...
cen.acs.org
EPA aims to roll back greenhouse gas and mercury emission rules
Zeldin’s EPA argues that US power plant carbon emissions aren’t ‘significant’—recent study says total is more than most countries
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 29/05/2025
Trump's 'Gold Standard Science' EO is more like 'fool's gold'. Latest from me in @cenmag.bsky.social cen.acs.org/policy/Gold-... (to steal a term from @standupforscience.bsky.social's open letter)
cen.acs.org
‘Gold Standard Science’ may lead to discarding valid research
Trump’s executive order gives political appointees power to enforce standards that scientists call unattainable
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 21/05/2025
why are men so emotional
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 20/05/2025
Grad students will need to start cutting their pH strips into quarters instead of into halves I guess
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Open Environmental Data Project @openenvirodata.bsky.social · 20/05/2025
The Senate #Environment and #PublicWorks Committee is interested in hearing how the #EPA 's work has helped you, a loved one, or your community. Deadline is TODAY (before the budget hearing tomorrow) docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
docs.google.com
How has the EPA helped you?
Has the Environmental Protection Agency cleaned up a toxic area in your community? Restored clean water access to your community? Cleaned up the air you breathe? Replaced lead pipes in your town? The...
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Krystal Vasquez @kvasquez.bsky.social · 13/05/2025
ATTN #ChemSky: It's time to nominate folks for C&EN's Trailblazers 🎉 This year, we'll be featuring disabled chemists & chemical engineers, and highlighting their research and how they make their workspaces more accessible! Nominate someone here by June 4: cenm.ag/nominatetrai... #DisabledInSTEM
C&EN's Trailblazer Logo on an orange background
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Manny I. Fox Morone @mannyfoxmorone.bsky.social · 12/05/2025
I'm helping lead @cenmag.bsky.social's Trailblazers 2025, and I want you 🫵 to nominate a chemist with disabilities for us to feature. Before June 4, fill out this form and recognize a chemist who inspires you: cenm.ag/nominatetrai...
cenm.ag
Microsoft Forms
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 12/05/2025
any ALS researchers follow me here? or ppl know of researchers on BlueSky studying ALS? will go looking for myself, but trying the passive option first.
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 07/05/2025
EPA reorg essentially dissolves its independent science arm, the Office of Research and Development (ORD). But the EPA is not answering questions about it, and ORD scientists are left scrambling and confused. My latest for @cenmag.bsky.social cen.acs.org/environment/...
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Richard Van Noorden @richvn.bsky.social · 02/05/2025
Trump proposes unprecedented budget cuts for US science in next fiscal year NASA cut by 24% NIH cut by 40% EPA cut by 55% NSF cut by 56% Analysis from @maxkozlov.bsky.social @dangaristo.bsky.social @alexwitze.bsky.social and @nature.com team www.nature.com/articles/d41...
nature.com
Trump proposes unprecedented budget cuts to US science
Huge reductions, if enacted, could have ‘catastrophic’ effects on US competitiveness and the scientific pipeline, critics say.
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 02/05/2025
this is why journalists tend to drink, isn't it
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 02/05/2025
EPA reorg includes changes to offices of Administrator, Air and Radiation, Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP), and Water. No details on the ORD? Looking to talk to EPA scientists, esp from ORD. Please reach out l_boerner@acs.org or leigh_boerner.75 on signal. lnkd.in/gVt-iAEv
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Peter Aldhous @peteraldhous.com · 02/05/2025
ICYMI yesterday: EPA Funding Cuts Target Disadvantaged Communities, Analysis Shows insideclimatenews.org/news/0105202...
insideclimatenews.org
EPA Funding Cuts Target Disadvantaged Communities, Analysis Shows - Inside Climate News
In its bid to resist a court order to unfreeze grants, the Trump administration reveals a laser focus on eliminating environmental justice aid.
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C&EN (Chemical & Engineering News) @cenmag.bsky.social · 29/04/2025
The US Food and Drug Administration plans to work with industry to remove petroleum-based food dyes from the US food supply by the end of next year. cen.acs.org/food/food-in... 🧪
cen.acs.org
FDA eyes phaseout of petroleum-based food dyes
Plan relies on industry voluntarily eliminating artificial colors in food
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Krystal Vasquez @kvasquez.bsky.social · 24/04/2025
Ever had to wear an ill-fitting lab coat? I have! It's a common experience that's uncomfortable at best, and dangerous at worst. Read more about lab coats and the companies rethinking their designs at @cenmag.bsky.social: cen.acs.org/safety/lab-s... #ChemSky #Science
cen.acs.org
Ill-fitting lab coats raise safety and inclusivity concerns
The protective garments are not only uncomfortable but can pose a danger to researchers
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 24/04/2025
Trump's Jan EO, now a proposed OPM rule, makes federal workers who don't advance presidential policies easier to fire. My latest in @cenmag.bsky.social cen.acs.org/policy/US-ru... (edited bc apparently I can't spell)
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Alexandra Witze @alexwitze.bsky.social · 24/04/2025
Panch resigns: www.science.org/content/arti...
science.org
Exclusive: NSF director to resign amid grant terminations, job cuts, and controversy
“I have done all I can,” says Sethuraman Panchanathan, a Trump appointee who has led agency since 2020
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 18/04/2025
Funding via the NSF GRFP grants dropped 56% for chemists this year, but all chemistry subfields were hit about the same. More on the gutting of the GRFP from @cenmag.bsky.social. Words by @bribarbu.bsky.social, data by me cen.acs.org/policy/resea...
cen.acs.org
NSF halves graduate fellowship awards
Students from all fields lose out on tens of millions of dollars in career-boosting funds this year
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Alexandra Witze @alexwitze.bsky.social · 18/04/2025
Termination of these NSF grants has begun. Per agency director Sethuraman Panchanathan today: "Research projects with more narrow impact limited to subgroups of people based on protected class or characteristics do not effectuate NSF priorities." www.nsf.gov/updates-on-p...
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Krystal Vasquez @kvasquez.bsky.social · 03/12/2024
I also wrote a short news story for @cenmag.bsky.social about a study that found that #DisabledinSTEM researchers get paid significantly less than their non-disabled peers: cen.acs.org/careers/sala... 🧪
cen.acs.org
STEM employers pay scientists with disabilities up to $14,360 less than those without disabilities
Ableist attitudes in STEM responsible for pay disparities, researcher says
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Krystal Vasquez @kvasquez.bsky.social · 03/12/2024
Since it's International Day of Persons with Disabilities, I wanted to share a handful of disability-related stories I've written. First, for @cenmag.bsky.social, I recently wrote about how a lot of labs are still inaccessible to disabled scientists: cen.acs.org/careers/dive... #DisabledinSTEM 🧪
cen.acs.org
Making space in STEM for people with disabilities
Many research labs are inaccessible to disabled scientists, but they don’t have to be
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Krystal Vasquez @kvasquez.bsky.social · 03/12/2024
Adding to my thread, I wanted to highlight 3 @cenmag.bsky.social stories (not written by me) that are also relevant to the #DisabledInSTEM community: 1. A story by @leighkboerner.bsky.social talking about how Deaf scientists are expanding ASL's scientific vocab: cen.acs.org/education/sc...
cen.acs.org
Expanding American Sign Language’s scientific vocabulary
A lack of signs for many scientific terms impedes deaf people’s entry into the sciences. Deaf scientists want to chip away at the barriers by developing more ASL signs for scientific terms.
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 25/11/2024
And I'm continuing to cover the UN plastics treaty #INC5 for @cenmag.bsky.social. My past coverage: cen.acs.org/environment/... cen.acs.org/environment/... cen.acs.org/environment/... cen.acs.org/environment/...
cen.acs.org
World policymakers trudge tough road as they reconvene in Ottawa for the fourth UN plastics meeting
Negotiators have had a particularly hard time with the plastics treaty. But how do UN treaties work, and how can this one move forward?
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 25/11/2024
“Just because we are at a football stadium doesn’t mean we play games.” Just one of many small details in another lovely colleague Aayushi Pratap's reporter's notebook on #COP29 for @cenmag.bsky.social cen.acs.org/environment/...
cen.acs.org
A reporter’s notebook from COP29, the big climate conference
Lower-income countries say ‘show me the money’ at this year’s conclave in Azerbaijan
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Bri Barbu @bribarbu.bsky.social · 25/11/2024
This article is part of a larger package on microplastics, featuring contributions from my wonderful colleagues Prachi Patel, @fmorningstar.bsky.social, Priyanka Runwal, and Alex Tullo!
cen.acs.org
Managing microplastics
Taking a magnifying glass to this tiny threat
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 25/11/2024
My lovely colleague Bri gives the skinny on the biodegradable plastics PLA, PBAT, and PBS. These do break down eventually, but they still make microplastics, and they're not the magic solution to the plastic problem.
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 25/11/2024
Good morning, is anyone at #INC5 still up?
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Elizabeth Kolbert @elizkolbert.bsky.social · 14/11/2024
and so it begins... www.cjr.org/the_trump_re...
cjr.org
Trump Threatens New York Times, Penguin Random House over Critical Coverage
Legal letter follows complaints aimed at CBS News, the Washington Post, and the Daily Beast.
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 14/11/2024
being on BlueSky today is like
tenor.com
Uhf Firehouse GIF - Uhf Firehouse Wild - Discover & Share GIFs
Click to view the GIF
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 14/11/2024
What that plastic policy do? Researchers built a model that predicts the effects of UN plastic treaty policies on plastic associated waste and GHGs. It turns out there are multiple paths for an effective treaty. @cenmag.bsky.social cen.acs.org/environment/...
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Leigh Krietsch Boerner @leighkboerner.bsky.social · 19/08/2024
you know that thing about how if there's a question in the headline, the answer is usually no? cen.acs.org/environment/...
cen.acs.org
Is the US really changing its plastic policy?
A White House closed-door meeting left many questions, but environmental advocates are cautiously optimistic
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