Drilled
Pushkin Industries
Drilled is a true-crime climate change podcast exposing how corporate corruption and political operatives built decades of climate denial and delay. Hosted and reported by award-winning investigative climate journalists and led by Amy Westervelt, each season unravels new evidence of deception, disinformation, and the power structures keeping real climate solutions out of reach.
In September 2025, a group of Brazilian ministers trekked all the way to chilly North Dakota to see a presentation on a new type of clean energy project, one that promised to help them deliver Brazilian President Lula’s dream of turning Brazil into “the Saudi Arabia of sustainable aviation fuels.” It was the latest in a string of projects from Midwest Republican kingmaker and corn ethanol magnate Bruce Rastetter, whose investments in Brazil might just transform him into a global carbon czar, even as his Summit pipeline carbon project faces fierce opposition from Iowa to North Dakota. The problem? It all requires loads of land and none of it does a thing about climate change.
In September 2025, a group of Brazilian ministers trekked all the way to chilly North Dakota to see a presentation on a new type of clean energy project, one that promised to help them deliver Brazilian President Lula’s dream of turning Brazil into “the Saudi Arabia of sustainable aviation fuels.” It was the latest in a string of projects from Midwest Republican kingmaker and corn ethanol magnate Bruce Rastetter, whose investments in Brazil might just transform him into a global carbon czar, even as his Summit pipeline carbon project faces fierce opposition from Iowa to North Dakota. The problem? It all requires loads of land and none of it does a thing about climate change.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Oct 7, 2022 • 1h 60min
Widening the Lens of Accountability: Live with Naomi Oreskes, Jennifer Jacquet, Dr. David Michaels, Geoffry Supran, and Jessica Wentz
Taped live at the Harvard Faculty Club, Naomi Oreskes speaks to her forthcoming book The Big Myth, focused on the origin story behind free-market ideology, followed by a panel discussion on how to widen climate accountability to include not only oil companies but also the other industries and enablers that have obstructed climate action. Additional resources: UCS Science Hub for Climate LitigationClimate Social Science NetworkJennifer Jacquet's The PlaybookMore from Dr. David MichaelsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Sep 20, 2022 • 16min
Congressional Hearings on Climate Disinformation Reveal Industry PR Playbook
Three Congressional hearings shed a light on climate disinformation this week, with one looking at oil companies' role, another looking at the role of PR firms, and a third looking at corporate attempts to limit the free speech of environmental activists. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Sep 13, 2022 • 15min
West Virginia Leads on Climate Obstruction
From its state treasurer to its attorney general to its Senator, West Virginia is leading the charge on climate obstruction and dismantling environmental regulation. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Aug 23, 2022 • 47min
The Supreme Court's Continued Climate Take
West Virginia vs. EPA was just the beginning of climate cases before the Supreme Court this year. From question the SEC's disclosures to major Clean Water challenges, there's more to come. EarthJustice's Sam Sankar and Kirti Datla join to give us a preview of what's coming up. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Aug 16, 2022 • 31min
"Woke Capital": A New Front in Climate Obstructionism
Jesse Coleman, senior investigator for Documented, walks us through an eye-opening investigation into the State Financial Officers Federation, an obscure group organizing Republican state treasurers in the fight against "woke capital."See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jul 12, 2022 • 36min
What the IPCC Really Said About Carbon Dioxide Removal
Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) came up in the latest IPCC report and the summary and report itself tell a different story. The summary is vastly more positive about the potential of this tech (thanks in no small part to influence from Saudi Arabia and the United States), so we're looking at the complete picture of what the report actually says about it. Nikki Reisch and Carroll Muffett from the Center for International Environmental Law join to help.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jun 28, 2022 • 44min
West Virginia vs. EPA: Worst-Case Scenario and What Comes Next
The Supreme Court is taking its time in releasing a ruling in the controversial West Virginia vs. EPA case. We explore the roots of the case, its position in rightwing judicial strategy, and what avenues for climate action would remain in a worst-case scenario. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jun 21, 2022 • 37min
The "Culture War" Embraces Climate
Jennie King, lead author on a new report on climate disinformation on the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, discusses the reports findings, including how culture warriors—including 16 key superspreaders—have embraced climate denial and disinformation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jun 16, 2022 • 30min
Regulating Greenhouse Gases Under TSCA
As the Supreme Court weights in on West Virginia vs. EPA, a group of climate scientists and advocates filed a petition demanding that the EPA regulate greenhouse gas emissions, not under the Clean Air Act, but under law no one has yet applied to climatee change: the Toxic Substances Control Act.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jun 14, 2022 • 21min
Why Is a California Air Board Funding Natural Gas Expansion?
Floodlight's Miranda Green returns with a new story about the push for natural gas in southern California: an air board tasked with cleaning up pollution is giving millions of dollars in grant money to gas projects. Read the story here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
