Abrahm Lustgarten
I report on climate change and how people, companies and governments are adapting to it.
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I’m discreet and handle confidential communications and sources with extreme care.
What I Cover
I investigate the social and political consequences of our rapidly warming environment, focusing on how money and power influence policy. My reporting is science driven, and I embrace nuance and complexity, telling the stories that are most difficult to tell.
My Background
I have been reporting on environmental harm and the warming planet for ProPublica since its inception in 2008 and before that as a writer covering the global oil industry at Fortune. I’ve reported from around the world, including Iran, Russia, Indonesia and China. Throughout, my work has focused on the social and economic consequences of warming and the conflicting business interests that often drive them.
My most recent reporting has focused on global migration, finance and conflict associated with climate change. In 2024, I wrote about how climate pressures are driving far-right extremism and violence in the United States, especially around fears of immigration. In 2022, I investigated how the International Monetary Fund and global banks have paralyzed small climate-vulnerable nations with debt that makes it impossible for them to address their own climate risks. That work followed a three-part 2020 investigation into the potential displacement of billions of people and global climate-driven migration, both outside and inside the United States, which is also the subject of my third book, called “On The Move.”
This work — beginning with my early investigation into fracking in 2008 — has been recognized with honors, including a George Polk Award; a Scripps Howard Award; the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine’s communications award; and consecutive Whitman Bassow prizes from the Overseas Press Club. My 2015 series about water scarcity in the American West, “Killing the Colorado,” was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.
California and EPA Poised to Expand Pollution of Potential Drinking Water Reserves
A little-known program under federal environment law is being used to permit oil and gas companies to inject waste into the state’s aquifers, even as the thirst for groundwater grows.
Gimme a Break! IRS Tax Loophole Can Reward Excessive Water Use in Drought-stricken West
Experts fear tax deductions for water use as a “depleted asset” could actually worsen the crisis as rivers and reservoirs dry up.
Federal Report Appears to Undercut EPA Assurances on Water Safety In Pennsylvania
Dimock, one of many places where gas drilling boomed in Pennsylvania, gets a sobering take on the quality of its drinking water.
As One of Its Chief Sources of Water Dries Up, California Eases Restrictions on Use Nonetheless
A single relatively wet winter has led California officials to relax in a way some water experts fear is reckless.
Drought be Dammed
The water crisis in the West has renewed debate about the effectiveness of major dams, with some pushing for the enormous Glen Canyon Dam on the Colorado River to be decommissioned.
Liquid Assets
A maverick hedge fund manager thinks Wall Street is the answer to the water crisis in the West.
Former Las Vegas Water Czar Joins Board of Casino Giant
Patricia Mulroy’s appointment to the board at Wynn Resorts re-ignites debate about her performance during a time of explosive growth and worsening drought.
Amid Drought, California Experiments With Leasing Water Rights
The state's cities need water. Its farmers have it. Could leasing rights to it solve the crisis responsibly?
Less Than Zero
Despite decades of accepted science, California and Arizona are still miscounting their water supplies.
