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 "water board" ...
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MSD
Corruption in the Louisville Metropolitan Sewer District. The MSD oversees sewer treatment, storm water management and Ohio river flood control for the several hundred thousand people who live in Louisville and Jefferson County, Kentucky. Throughout the investigation, The Courier-Journal discovered that MSD board members owned companies that they were doing business with the agency they served, excessive bonuses to top officials, and a secret $140,000 lawsuit with an HR chief when he threatened a whisteblower lawsuit.
Tags: Louisville Metropolitan Sewer District; MSD; Jefferson County; Kentucky
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"The California Water Enforcers"
In this month-long, five-part series, Jim Holt investigated a water tax imposed on "tiny recession-battered towns" in California. After finding a "controversial" Memorandum of Understanding, Holt found that state legislators imposed million-dollar water fines that essentially taxed "the water we drink."
Tags: taxes; League of California Cities; Santa Clarita Valley; Office of Enforcement; State Water Resources Control Board; chloride; fines; water
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"Tainted Water"
For more than 20 years, the harmful chemical perchlorate has seeped into San Bernardino County's groundwater. The seep is thought to have started at a local dump site; however, records about the site were lost in the late 1980s by "two state regulatory agencies." The problem wasn't reported again until 1997, but warnings were "dismissed" by the county. The site was "rediscovered" in 2001, but it wasn't until 2009 that the county got serious about stopping the chemical seep. It is estimated that the cleanup operation will be completed by 2013.
Tags: Perchlorate; Broco facility; Department of Toxic Substances Control; Butch Ariza; Water Board; Barry Groveman
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"State 7th in U.S. in boat mishaps accidents"
Arizona has one of the highest boating accident rates in the country. It is also one of the only states to not have boater education laws or require boat operators to take any type of education course before going out on the water. The National Transportation Safety Board has been urging Arizona to create and enforce such safety laws to decrease the number of accidents.
Tags: National Transportation Safety Board; boating accidents; personal watercraft; Arizona State Parks Department; Sen. Linda Gray; Game and Fish
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Banking on the Badge
The Orange County Register exposes large pensions and incompetence of local public officials across agencies at a time when California is struggling to stay fiscally afloat.
Tags: orange county; public officials; watchdog; incompetence; pension; salary; costs; expense; executives; water board; police;
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Rough Love
Tranquility Bay, a "behavior modification school" in Jamaica, is a boarding school where parents send their troubled teenagers. But what parents get for their $40,000 yearly tuition is often overly harsh discipline that results in the children being injured and abused. The reported conditions include "no running water, beatings by staff, and being forced to lie in silence, face-down on the floor for hours at a time - over a period of several months." At least six other schools which like Tranquility Bay are affiliated with the Utah-based World Wide Association of Specialty Programs and Schools "have been raided and/or closed during the past decade, following allegations of abuse or questionable practices."
Tags: Tranquility Bay; boarding schools; at-risk youths; troubled teens; child abuse; inmate abuse; World Wide Association of Specialty Programs and Schools
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Water Worries
"This four part series found serious flaws in management of the Madison Water Utility and, as a result, troubling problems with safety of the city's water supply. The series showed that the utility's response to the contaminant manganese in the tap water of many Madison homes and the potential health impacts of exposure to the mineral was late and inadequate."
Tags: water; magnese; industrial carcinogen; aging wells; pipes; Board of Water Commissioners; Madison Water Utility
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Insult and Injury
The disability benefits program run by the Social Security Administration is hurting scores of people it is supposed to be helping. Because of massive delays in Social Security's processing of claims, disabled workers are losing their cars, homes and other possessions. The system also relies on questionable medical exams to make decisions on disability claims.
Tags: Social Security Advisory Board; Social Security Advisory Service; National Organization of Social Security Claimants' Representatives; Social Security Administration; disability benefits; disability claims; North Carolina Disability Determination Services; disabled workers; social security benefits; North Carolina Division of Aging; disability application
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The Story of Sprawl
"A city is composed of four elements: water, land, buildings and people. Urban areas function when these elements combine in the right proportions. Too much or too little of any one, and the city develops the signs of strain: overcrowding, water shortages, jammed highways. As North America's third-fastest-growing city, Toronto is not immune." Reporter John Lorinc reports on the urban sprawl of Toronto and raises the question of possible solutions.
Tags: developers; Ontario Municipal Board; urban; growth; cities; housing; Credit Valley Conservation Authority; property; environment
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No title (id: 13967)
Two multi-part series and dozens of individual stories revealed millions of rate-payers' dollars were wasted by the Birmingham Water Works Board of directors. WBRC-TV documented contributions to religious organizations, money donated to sporting events, political contributions, and hundreds of thousands of dollars spent on lavish entertainment and catered meals. WBRC discovered that board member salaries had skyrocketed and often were paid even though board members never showed up for meetings. The investigation uncovered more than $300,000 spent by managers that could not be accounted for. (July 16 - November 22, 1996)
Tags: Carpenter McReynolds Wasted money: down the drain TAPE No Script