Bombs in Our Backyard

Investigating One of America’s Greatest Polluters

The Pentagon has poisoned millions of acres and left Americans to guess at the threat to their health. Its oversight of thousands of toxic sites has been marked by defiance and delay.

Impact of Our Reporting

Defense Inspector General to Investigate Military’s Toxic Open Burning

by Abrahm Lustgarten

August 14, 2018, 1:20 pm EDT

Congress Aims to Force Pentagon Reform on Open Burning of Munitions

by Abrahm Lustgarten

May 10, 2018, 2:56 pm EDT

17 stories published since 2017

How the EPA and the Pentagon Downplayed a Growing Toxic Threat

by Abrahm Lustgarten

July 9, 2018, 5:00 am EDT
Suppressed Study: The EPA Underestimated Dangers of Widespread Chemicals

by Abrahm Lustgarten, Lisa Song and Talia Buford

June 20, 2018, 4:54 pm EDT
Get an Inside Look at the Department of Defense’s Struggle to Fix Pollution at More Than 39,000 Sites

by Abrahm Lustgarten

May 7, 2018, 5:00 am EDT
Canadian Research Adds to Worry Over an Environmental Threat the Pentagon Has Downplayed for Decades

by Abrahm Lustgarten

January 9, 2018, 2:40 pm EST
Long Story Short

by Abrahm Lustgarten

December 30, 2017, 5:00 am EST
War at Home

by Ranjani Chakraborty and Abrahm Lustgarten

December 28, 2017, 9:30 am EST
The Bomb That Went Off Twice

by Abrahm Lustgarten

December 18, 2017, 7:30 am EST
Reporting Recipe: Bombs in Your Backyard

by Ryann Grochowski Jones and Abrahm Lustgarten

November 30, 2017, 11:00 am EST
Bombs in Your Backyard

by Lena V. Groeger, Ryann Grochowski Jones and Abrahm Lustgarten

November 30, 2017, 11:00 am EST
How Military Outsourcing Turned Toxic

by Abrahm Lustgarten

September 26, 2017, 8:00 am EDT
Dangerous Pollutants in Military’s Open Burns Greater Than Thought, Tests Indicate

by Abrahm Lustgarten

August 2, 2017, 1:12 am EDT
Kaboom Town

by Abrahm Lustgarten

July 21, 2017, 8:00 am EDT
In Colfax, Echoes of Another Conflict

by Ashley Gilbertson/VII Photo

July 21, 2017, 7:59 am EDT
Open Burns, Ill Winds

by Abrahm Lustgarten

July 20, 2017, 8:00 am EDT
Toxic Fires

by Hilary Fung

July 20, 2017, 7:59 am EDT

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Bombs in Our Backyard

Impact of Our Reporting

Defense Inspector General to Investigate Military’s Toxic Open Burning

Congress Aims to Force Pentagon Reform on Open Burning of Munitions

How the EPA and the Pentagon Downplayed a Growing Toxic Threat

Suppressed Study: The EPA Underestimated Dangers of Widespread Chemicals

Get an Inside Look at the Department of Defense’s Struggle to Fix Pollution at More Than 39,000 Sites

Canadian Research Adds to Worry Over an Environmental Threat the Pentagon Has Downplayed for Decades

Long Story Short

War at Home

The Bomb That Went Off Twice

Reporting Recipe: Bombs in Your Backyard

Bombs in Your Backyard

How Military Outsourcing Turned Toxic

Dangerous Pollutants in Military’s Open Burns Greater Than Thought, Tests Indicate

Kaboom Town

In Colfax, Echoes of Another Conflict

Open Burns, Ill Winds

Toxic Fires

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