An investigation by The New York Times examines the firing of an EPA environmental engineer after he pushed to require microplastics monitoring at Ocean Era’s proposed offshore fish farm, Velella Epsilon, in the Gulf of Mexico. According to the report, the monitoring requirement was dropped after EPA officials worried it could set a precedent for regulating other industries, even though Ocean Era had agreed to the requirement.

The article also explores what the case could mean for scientific integrity, environmental oversight, and the future regulation of offshore fish farms.

Dive deeper into the investigation (paywall) →

Photo: Oregon State University / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)