John Ryan
Environment Reporter
About
John Ryan joined KUOW as its first full-time investigative reporter in 2009 and became its environment reporter in 2018. He focuses on climate change, energy, and the ecosystems of the Puget Sound region. He has also investigated toxic air pollution, landslides, failed cleanups, and money in politics for KUOW.
Over a quarter century as an environmental journalist, John has covered everything from Arctic drilling to Indonesian reef bombing. He has been a reporter at NPR stations in southeast and southwest Alaska (KTOO-Juneau and KUCB-Unalaska) and at the Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce.
John’s stories have won multiple national awards for KUOW, including the Society of Professional Journalists' Sigma Delta Chi awards for Public Service in Radio Journalism and for Investigative Reporting, national Edward R. Murrow and PMJA/PRNDI awards for coverage of breaking news, and Society of Environmental Journalists awards for in-depth reporting.
John welcomes tips, documents, and feedback. Reach him at jryan@kuow.org or for secure, encrypted communication, he's at heyjohnryan@protonmail.com or 1-401-405-1206 on the Signal messaging app.
Location: Seattle
Languages: English, some Spanish, some Indonesian
Professional Affiliations: SAG-AFTRA union member and former shop steward; Society of Environmental Journalists member and mentor
Stories
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'It's bringing healing:' Methow Valley land returned to Colville Tribes
More than a century after the United States government took most of their land, the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation are getting small chunks of it back.
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Tri-Cities researchers say they can extract lithium from water. That's a big deal.
The nanoparticle technology could supply a large share of the lithium needed for batteries as America transitions to electric vehicles.
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Scenic Tacoma road permanently closed to cars. Blame climate change
Crumbling cliffs have led Metro Parks Tacoma to permanently close two miles of Five Mile Drive, a popular park road built atop the bluffs of Tacoma’s Point Defiance 109 years ago.
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Looking for an electric vehicle? Here’s why they’re hard to find in Washington
Automakers have shifted deliveries of the climate-friendly vehicles to states with better incentives for selling clean cars.
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Seattle fish research could shake up global tire industry
Research from the Seattle area has found that tires shed a fish-killing chemical into local streams.
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Kelp has protected Samish people for millennia. Now it needs their help
Scuba divers are heading underwater to help rescue one of the most important habitats in Puget Sound.
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Scientists race to rescue world’s fastest sea star from oblivion
Scientists are racing to revive a critically endangered species that has succumbed to a mysterious underwater pandemic up and down the West Coast.
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Amazon.com's pollution grows despite massive green energy push
Amazon says a major investment in green power plants will help the company run its operations on 100% clean electricity by 2025.
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Biden unveils protection plan for old-growth forest during Seattle visit
On Friday, President Joe Biden visited Seattle’s Seward Park to announce and sign an executive order meant to protect old-growth forests on federal lands.
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Olympic Peninsula glaciers expected to disappear in the next 50 years
Devoting your life to something that is disappearing can be tough.