Wildfires are becoming more intense, frequent, and destructive as the climate heats up. Drilled reporter Royce Kurmelovs and Canadian author John Vallaint, author of Fire Weather, discuss the climate-fire nexus.

 

Wildfires are becoming more intense, frequent, and destructive as the climate heats up. Drilled reporter <a href="https://www.roycekurmelovs.com/">Royce Kurmelovs </a>and Canadian author <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/58679/john-vaillant/">John Vallaint,</a> author of <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/554938/fire-weather-by-john-vaillant/">Fire Weather</a>, discuss the climate-fire nexus.
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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.

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&rsquo;s dream of turning Brazil into &ldquo;the Saudi Arabia of sustainable aviation fuels.&rdquo; 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.

A true-crime podcast about climate change, hosted and reported by award-winning investigative journalist Amy Westervelt.

Drilled

Drilling Deep: John Vaillant on Climate Change and Wildfire

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/bc7389b2-00ac-49d8-92fc-b3ec00ead3f9/transcript

Treating climate solutions like an infinite money cheat might not be a great way to actually solve the problem, though it's sure to make plenty of "green" entrepreneurs rich. It makes sense that businessmen would stay focused on profits, but why do climate advocates keep supporting these ideas?

This season is a collaboration with the Intercept Brasil. You can get the show in Portuguese on their feed as well, and companion stories at: https://www.intercept.com.br/

Treating climate solutions like an infinite money cheat might not be a great way to actually solve the problem, though it's sure to make plenty of "green" entrepreneurs rich. It makes sense that businessmen would stay focused on profits, but why do climate advocates keep supporting these ideas?
This season is a collaboration with the Intercept Brasil. You can get the show in Portuguese on their feed as well, and companion stories at: <a href="https://www.intercept.com.br/">https://www.intercept.com.br/</a>

A Tipping Point

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/78913c98-9421-4ea8-bb73-b46a016c8f67/transcript

With the sustainable aviation fuel industry set to explode, carbon capture has thrown the corn ethanol industry a lifeline...but what does another corn ethanol boom mean for everyone else?

This season is a collaboration with the Intercept Brasil. You can get the show in Portuguese on their feed as well, and companion stories at: https://www.intercept.com.br/

With the sustainable aviation fuel industry set to explode, carbon capture has thrown the corn ethanol industry a lifeline...but what does another corn ethanol boom mean for everyone else?
This season is a collaboration with the Intercept Brasil. You can get the show in Portuguese on their feed as well, and companion stories at: <a href="https://www.intercept.com.br/">https://www.intercept.com.br/</a>

The Saudi Arabia of Biofuels

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/2e14db54-1fc7-42b6-9464-b46301786826/transcript

Industrial agriculture has wrapped itself in a green cloak in Mato Grosso, promising jobs, money and endless opportunities, all in the name of "sustainability." But the good times are only happening for a select few. Local residents are dealing with extreme weather, lack of access to fresh food, and a pesticide overload that has increased the risk of birth defects and lowered lifespans. Meanwhile, Bruce and the guys have now ventured into new territory: the Amazon.

This season is a collaboration with the Intercept Brasil. You can get the show in Portuguese on their feed as well, and companion stories at: https://www.intercept.com.br/

Industrial agriculture has wrapped itself in a green cloak in Mato Grosso, promising jobs, money and endless opportunities, all in the name of "sustainability." But the good times are only happening for a select few. Local residents are dealing with extreme weather, lack of access to fresh food, and a pesticide overload that has increased the risk of birth defects and lowered lifespans. Meanwhile, Bruce and the guys have now ventured into new territory: the Amazon. This season is a collaboration with the Intercept Brasil. You can get the show in Portuguese on their feed as well, and companion stories at: <a href="https://www.intercept.com.br/">https://www.intercept.com.br/</a>

Into the Amazon

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/8858630a-ecce-4d89-b14a-b45d0127fc84/transcript

Drilling Deep: John Vaillant on Climate Change and Wildfire

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