Resource Center

Stories

The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast.

These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need.

Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:



Search results for "sand" ...

  • Frac sand mining booms in Wisconsin

    An ongoing series looking at the recent growth in Wisconsin’s sand mining industry to meet the increased demand from oil and gas drillers. The frac sand industry has created jobs and economic development in Western Wisconsin, but many residents worry that the industry is not properly regulated. Concerns remain about the impact of the mining on human and environmental health, transportation, and land use.

    Tags: Sand mining; oil; gas; human health; environment; transportation; land use

    By Reporter: Kate Prengaman; Photographer: Lukas Keapproth; Editors: Dee J. Hall; Kate Golden; Andy Hall

    WCIJ

    2012

  • Sand mining surges in Wisconsin

    Exploring how mining firms in the state of Wisconsin inject sand under the Earth's surface to release oil and natural gas, and the health implications of the residual dust that is released in the air as the sand comes up.

    Tags: wisconsin; sand; hydrofracturing; natural gas; oil; health; concerns; implication; Department of Natural Resources

    By Jason Smathers; Sarah Karon; Julie Strupp; Kate Golden; Lauren Hasler

    Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism

    2011

  • What's in your burger?

    This story revealed how a number of restaurants aren’t following health code guidelines. These violations include not using gloves, not cooking at correct temperatures, no mouth guards at buffets, no sanitizer in rag buckets, dirty restrooms, no dates on food in the refrigerator, and storing food where it is subject to contamination.

    Tags: health inspection; records; Cedar City; food; sickness; food protection code; Public Health Department; home-owned; chains; privately owned

    By Candice Sandness

    n/a

    2009

  • Baby-Faced Butchers

    Realtor Michael McMorrow was murdered on May 23, 1997 in Central Park after being stabbed 34 times, disemboweled and thrown into the lake. The two killers were teenagers: a spoiled rich girl, Daphne Abdela and her working class boyfriend Christopher Vasquez.

    Tags: assault; stabbing; violence; juvenile

    By Stella Sands

    Freelance

    2007

  • Secret Police

    KGTV "audited Sand Diego county law enforcement agencies requesting public records. Working with CalAware, a state-wide open records advocacy group, we went undercover to see how these agencies would comply with California's Open Record laws."

    Tags: CalAware; undercover; open record; law enforcement; oral request; written request; public documents

    By JW August; Kristen Castillo; Marti Emerald; Steve Atkinson; Lauren Reynolds; Elizabeth Sanchez; Heidi Ortiz; Felicia Kit; Doris Lewis; Joe Little; Rett Lawrence; Erica Simpson; Michael Gonzalez; Michael Gleeson; Christian Cazares; David Gonzalez; Jeannette Donahoo; Jamila Hillebrand; Steve Lyew; Michelle Krish Brubaker; Jermaine Ong

    KGTV-TV (San Diego)

    2007

  • Access Denied

    The Trib sets out to test how government employees around the state were handling public records request made by citizens. They discover that bureaucrats have largely rendered meaningless, one of the strongest public record laws in the nation. Forty-three percent of the agencies audited violated the records law in some way. Also, public employees tried to force reporters, who were posing as citizens, to reveal personal information or explain why they wanted the records.

    Tags: Chris Davis; Matt Doig; First Amendment Foundation; FAF; Florida Press Association; Bob Ford; Welaka; Mayor Gordon Sands

    By Tom Bayles

    Herald-Tribune (Sarasota, Fla.)

    2004

  • Paradise at Risk

    As erosion continues to eat away at Florida's beaches, tourism, a staple of the state's economy, will decline. This fact led to "Paradise at Risk," an in-depth look into the dollars behind the disappearance of the shoreline. This Gannett investigation involved 67 journalists at three Florida newspapers, three TV stations and two news bureaus.

    Tags: erosion; beach; sand; coast; economy

    By Anton Caputo

    Florida Today (Melbourne

    2002

  • Sand Dollar Man

    WFTS investigates a man who was dumping thousands of gallons of chlorine used to bleach sand dollars on his property. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection came out to inspect the property several times, but failed to take any soil or water samples. Residents were concerned about what the chemicals were doing to the environment, but no action was taken by officials.

    Tags: TAPE; TRANSCRIPT; environment

    By Robin Guess;Mark Friedman;Matt McGlashen

    WFTS-TV (Clearwater

    2001

  • Sandcastle Politics

    Governing looks at the environmental and fiscal controversies surrounding beach nourishment pleas in hurricane-prone East Coast states, around the Gulf Coast, along the Pacific shore and across the Great Lakes. "Hunkering down to fight against the ocean may be a futile game in the long run and could ultimately only make matters worse," reports the magazine. The story points to geologists' warnings that multimillion efforts to keep sand on the coastlines have to be repeated every few years, and voices concerns that "nourishment merely makes beach towns lazy about doing serious land-planning." The report includes a sidebar with information on "sand dollars" spent by 11 states for shore protection from 1995 to 1999.

    Tags: land use; Oak Island; hurricanes; erosion; sand; tourism; storms; coastline; sea; ocean; local governments; beaches; Coastal Area Management Act

    By Cristopher Swope

    Governing

    2001

  • Secrets in the Sand

    Inside Edition investigates a Fox network production. The story reveals "that one of the highest rated television special of 1999, "Opening the Lost Tombs: Live from Egypt" was a fake." The analysis uncovers that the special has been "cleverly staged to convince audiences they were witnessing the live first time openings of ancient tombs."

    Tags: TAPE; TRANSCRIPT; Egypt; tombs; mummy; pyramids; Fox network; ratings

    By Matt Meagher;Michael Corn

    Inside Edition (New York)

    2000