Sam Brasch
Climate and environment reporter for Colorado Public Radio in Denver, CO.
- Reposted by Sam BraschDon was taken into custody by federal agents last night in Los Angeles.
- You work in a newsroom long enough and your heart hardens a little bit, even if you don't want it to. Pieces like this break it back open. www.theverge.com/policy/86856...
- The NSF just released a "dear colleague" asking for ideas to inform its plans to restructure the National Center for Atmospheric Research. This includes proposals to repurpose NCAR's Mesa Lab, an architectural icon below the Boulder Flatirons, for "private use."
- Reposted by Sam BraschColorado lawmakers brace for their biggest battle yet over AI data centers www.cpr.org/2026/01/20/c... via @sambrasch.bsky.social #copolitics
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- Many other reporters are ahead of me of this story, but some critical local context: Rep @joeneguse.bsky.social thinks dismantling NCAR is partially motivated "by a desire to retaliate against CO" for refusing to release former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters. www.cpr.org/2025/12/17/t...
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- NCAR once represented a commitment to make U S. the world's leader in atmospheric science. Now the White House has announced plans to disband it — hours before it will likely lose power to prevent wildfires on another extremely dry, hot, windy day around Boulder.
- After Colorado started reintroducing moose in 1978, the species is thriving statewide. Ecologist also suspect the ungainly ungulates are behind a collapse of willow habitats in Rocky Mountain National Park. www.cpr.org/2025/12/08/c...
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- The AI boom isn't just a massive drain on water and electricity. In north Denver, local residents worry future data center could be the area's latest air pollution source. My latest: www.cpr.org/2025/10/14/a...
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- Colorado red-hot EV market is burning bright before it fades away. Here's my report from hanging out at dealerships before federal EV tax credits expire at the end of the month. CO's generous incentives are also on steep, downward trajectory. www.cpr.org/2025/09/03/s...
- This isn't happening because public media is irrelevant in the digital age. It's happening because PBS and NPR offer free news and educational programming--and keep finding ways to do it despite a shifting media landscape. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/18/b...
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- Absolutely terrifying! www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/int...
- Because tense city council meetings are somehow a new thing in...Boulder? This whole NYT article trying to connect the dots between the horrible tragedy on Sunday and local Boulder politics is really reaching.
- Reposted by Sam BraschAn underappreciated aspect of the new WMO report -- if the temperature predictions are correct, the world will pass 1.5C in as a long-term average (i.e., the _actual_ Paris goal) in 2027. In just two years. www.washingtonpost.com/climate-envi...
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- If anyone in Colorado has experienced something similar, please let me know.
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- Another story from Hotspots, our on-going series about communities leading Colorado's geothermal energy boom. This one really brings it home. Across the state, more homeowners and homebuilders are turning to ground-source heat pumps for heating and cooling. www.cpr.org/2025/04/24/c...
- It's fascinating how Sec. of Energy Chris Wright uses Denver's success in dealing with its "brown cloud" as a national example. What he leaves out: the metro area has seen big PM improvements, but its ozone issue has gotten worse due, in part, to oil and gas. www.foxnews.com/video/637176...
- Behold the power of dirt cheap leases and probably some political misgivings about Tesla. Nissan is now the #1 EV brand in CO.
- Curious if Sen. Michael Bennet's support of Energy Sec. Chris Wright will shape the D primary for CO Gov Wright has repeatedly tried to reframe climate change as a good thing. Before voting to confirm him, Bennet praised his "deep expertise in energy innovation." www.axios.com/local/denver...
- Reposted by Sam BraschBREAKING from @science.org: The Trump admin is seeking to kill nearly all climate research at NOAA, its climate science agency. Its near-final budget proposal would end all NOAA research labs, academic institutes, and regional climate centers. And it wants to fully end the NOAA Research division.
- CPR loses a real one today. @startribune.com, cherish this man and give him a premium bus pass.
- NOW: EPA Region 8 staff organized by AFGE Local 3607 rallying in defense of their jobs after President Trump promised broad layoffs at the agency.
- Here's why hot spring operators are getting worried about a potential geothermal energy rush in Colorado: www.cpr.org/2025/03/21/h...
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- This could be such a great addition to southwest Denver, but sandwiching an outdoor soccer stadium between two major urban highways seems like an air quality disaster. denverite.com/2025/03/18/d...
- It looks like CO's nuclear debate is heating gup. A coalition of environmental groups is calling on Gov. Polis to veto HB25-1040, which would classify nuclear as a "clean" energy resource in Colorado. docs.google.com/document/d/1...
- NEW: Nuclear is set to be reclassified as a "clean" energy resource under a bill overwhelmingly passed by Colorado lawmakers last week. Business interests + unions + big utilities backed the legislation. www.cpr.org/2025/03/17/l...
- Trump may have gotten himself a nice new Model S, but his administration isn't interested in buying EVs for federal workers or even maintaining all EV chargers on federal property. www.npr.org/2025/03/12/n...
- What's wild is the exact same scientists who originally warned the world about the risks of nuclear winter were at the forefront of modeling climate change. www.cpr.org/2020/01/09/a...
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- NEW: Black-footed ferrets were saved by a federal breeding program centered around Colorado. It was led by Tina Jackson — a USFWS biologist fired by DOGE last month. She's now worried staff and funding cuts could drag the species back to the brink of extinction. www.cpr.org/2025/03/05/t...
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- Today's the day for Colorado Today! Listen and subscribe to CPR's new daily podcast, out this morning. It's short (less than 15 minutes) and gets you up to date with the top stories around Colorado. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/c...
- My latest with Ishan Thakore: NOAA, NWS layoffs hit the agencies' CO today, including a Boulder center monitoring dangerous space weather www.cpr.org/2025/02/27/f...
- Nothing hits quite like an IKEA medium breakfast after an early morning pledge drive shift. 🤌🤌
- CPR News is launching a daily podcast! Our top-notch team has spent months putting together a 10-15 show with all the local news you need to navigate this beautiful state. Check out the trailer and get ready for the launch on March 3. www.cpr.org/podcast-epis...
- Hello Reddit username MattC1973! This is proof I am who I say I am. Thanks for being game to help with some of our reporting.
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- Would delisting wolves as an endangered species end Colorado's reintroduction program? No. Here's why: www.cpr.org/2025/02/06/b...
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- Colorado-based Boom Supersonic has set out a vision revive faster-than-sound passenger flight. They got a lot closer by flying a demonstrator beyond Mach 1 today. Just a reminder: success would likely mean a massive increase in climate pollution. grist.org/transportati...
- Colorado, like California, relies on firefighters to help fight blazes. Communities also have rules banning them from joining local fire departments once they've completed their sentences. denverite.com/2025/01/22/p...
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- This is how CO's Republican congressional delegation is referring to the Canadian wolves CPW has already released somewhere on the Western Slope this week.
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- Here's one unfortunate lesson LA can learn from CO's Marshall fire. Even if the blaze spares a home, it often bathes the entire structure in smoke and ash. Indoor air pollution can linger inside for months afterward. www.cpr.org/2024/12/31/m...
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- RTD CEO Debra Johnson thinks Denver is too cold and the food kinda sucks here. Amazing reporting from @nbminor.bsky.social. www.cpr.org/2024/12/10/a...
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- On the job with the Goosinator.
- A new report finds Colorado is now the #1 state in the U.S. for EV market share. One big reason is CO residents buying tons of non-Tesla EVs last quarter, which helped knock California off its throne. www.cpr.org/2024/12/04/c...
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- Rocky just did the most bizarre rendition of Defying Gravity, but I, for one, fully support a full corporate merger between the NBA and Broadway.
