Author

Ashli Blow
Ashli Blow is a freelance writer who covers environmental science and policy. Her stories range from the lives of people in urban watersheds to those who roam the wilderness. She was raised in Memphis and produced breaking news at WMC Action News 5. She has now been working in journalism and strategic communications for nearly 10 years. Ashli lives in Seattle and is a graduate student at the University of Washington, studying climate policy.
Brownfield bill funnels millions into polluted properties but slights environmental justice needs
By: Ashli Blow - March 7, 2023
Tennessee legislative committees are moving forward a bill that would give money to communities that want to clean up abandoned and polluted properties, but not all counties will have the same opportunity to obtain funding from the emerging Brownfield Redevelopment Area Fund and Grant Program. Across the state, factories, gas stations, dry cleaners and other […]
Velsicol closed its chemical plant 10 years ago. Memphis still endures its toxic legacy.
By: Ashli Blow and Eli Motycka - November 14, 2022
In North Memphis, milk crates and cardboard boxes sit under a pecan tree that doesn’t bear fruit anymore. Kathy Yancey-Temple is building raised beds for a community garden on her street. On a sunny autumn morning she spends her time buying soil to fill these upcycled planters. She doesn’t trust what’s in the ground. “It’s […]
Memphis ice storm crystalizes need for resilient, reliant action
By: Ashli Blow - February 7, 2022
Heavy ice-encased tree branches crashed onto power lines across Memphis – causing 132,000 people to lose power in the first week of February. Five days later, many of them are still in the dark. For many, it feels like the same song, second verse. Last February, a winter storm brought about freezing temperatures that caused […]
Ford megasite atop ‘recharge zone’ for underregulated Memphis Sands aquifer
By: Ashli Blow - January 3, 2022
Ford Motor Co. promises a green future at its Blue Oval campus, where it will produce zero-emissions pickup trucks with advanced batteries. But forthcoming plans and actions in the new year will prove whether the company and the state are committed to protecting the existing environment at the megasite – like the Memphis Sands aquifer […]