Joined May 2026
The destruction of wetlands in the United States has increased the amount of flood insurance claims by $10 billion over the past 40 years, a phenomenon expected to worsen in tandem with climate change, according to new research.  The peer-reviewed study, conducted by scientists at the Universit…
More than 1.7 million people participated last week in the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia—consistently one of the world’s largest mass gatherings.  Muslims are expected to perform Hajj at least once in their lives, but an increasingly perilous threat looms over the holy jour…
Another warm, arid winter could leave Colorado River reservoirs nearly dry.  That is one of the projections a group of Colorado River experts released Monday, building on a previous report released last September assessing the future of the waterway’s federally managed dams under different hydr…
Scientists are venturing into the Grand Canyon’s hidden cave networks to solve a mystery: how snowmelt travels underground to supply the park’s vital springs. Their discoveries could help protect the canyon’s water from drought, contamination, and other growing threats.
A massive global analysis found that nitrogen pollution can either speed up or dramatically slow the natural "breathing" of forest soils, depending on the ecosystem's condition. The results reveal hidden tipping points that could affect how forests store carbon and cope with climate change.
A breakthrough hydrogen-production method could make clean fuel far cheaper and easier to generate. Researchers at the University of Birmingham developed a perovskite-based catalyst that splits water into hydrogen at much lower temperatures than existing technologies, potentially allowing factories,…
The agency pointed to gazebos, massages, and a $20,000 budget for pens to justify the cuts. But the groups that lost funding say those claims don't add up.
Underground power lines are far less vulnerable to extreme weather, but burying them doesn't come cheap. After a historic ice storm in northern Michigan, utilities there are reconsidering the cost.
From Seattle to Atlanta, host cities used the tournament to speed up rail and bus upgrades years in the making — while trying to avoid the mistakes of past World Cups.
Neonics are contaminating ecosystems and communities.
Electric vehicle insurance costs an average of 42 percent more than it does for other cars.
Brooke Rollins’s latest culture war crusade threatens a delicate compromise between Potter Valley farmers and nearby tribes.
After months of complaints from business and political leaders about new coastal management rules, New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill is now facing blistering criticism from environmental advocates for agreeing to a one-year delay and new review of regulations intended to prepare the state for sea-level…
A new federal lawsuit contends emissions at the Everglades migrant detention site known as Alligator Alcatraz, associated with more than 200 diesel-burning generators and 100 diesel-burning lighting towers, are harmful to human health and the environment and violate the Clean Air Act. The litigation…
This story was supported by the Pulitzer Center. On the island of Moorea, in French Polynesia, deep green volcanic mountains slope from high peaks down towards the sea. But they don’t stop at the shore. The ridgelines of ancient lava flows stretch underwater, providing the perfect rocky substrate fo…
A proposed federal logging project in the forests bordering Yellowstone National Park is drawing growing concern from local residents, business owners and conservation advocates who fear it could have lasting impacts on wildlife habitat, recreation and tourism in one of Montana’s most iconic landsca…
Federal energy efficiency rebate programs will no longer cover a switch from fossil fuels to electricity for heating, according to long-awaited guidance from the Department of Energy. The department published an update on how it will implement consumer programs with $8.8 billion in funding. The new …
Scientists have developed a solar desalination system that turns seawater into drinking water without creating environmentally damaging brine. Special laser-textured metal panels use sunlight to evaporate water while automatically moving salt deposits away from the working surface, preventing cloggi…
A world-famous conservation program that helped save Sweden’s endangered wolverines is now struggling as funding stagnates and local trust erodes. Researchers say the decline offers a cautionary lesson: protecting wildlife requires long-term commitment, not just early success.
Kitchen sponges release microplastics as they wear down during everyday use, with some sponge types shedding far more than others. Researchers estimated that millions of households could collectively release hundreds of tons of microplastics annually.
Federal energy efficiency rebate programs will no longer cover a switch from fossil fuels to electricity for heating, according to long-awaited guidance from the Department of Energy. The department published an update on how it will implement consumer programs with $8.8 billion in funding. The new …
A proposed federal logging project in the forests bordering Yellowstone National Park is drawing growing concern from local residents, business owners and conservation advocates who fear it could have lasting impacts on wildlife habitat, recreation and tourism in one of Montana’s most iconic landsca…
Neonics are contaminating ecosystems and communities.
Kitchen sponges release microplastics as they wear down during everyday use, with some sponge types shedding far more than others. Researchers estimated that millions of households could collectively release hundreds of tons of microplastics annually.
This story was supported by the Pulitzer Center. On the island of Moorea, in French Polynesia, deep green volcanic mountains slope from high peaks down towards the sea. But they don’t stop at the shore. The ridgelines of ancient lava flows stretch underwater, providing the perfect rocky substrate fo…
From Seattle to Atlanta, host cities used the tournament to speed up rail and bus upgrades years in the making — while trying to avoid the mistakes of past World Cups.
Underground power lines are far less vulnerable to extreme weather, but burying them doesn't come cheap. After a historic ice storm in northern Michigan, utilities there are reconsidering the cost.
The agency pointed to gazebos, massages, and a $20,000 budget for pens to justify the cuts. But the groups that lost funding say those claims don't add up.
Scientists have developed a solar desalination system that turns seawater into drinking water without creating environmentally damaging brine. Special laser-textured metal panels use sunlight to evaporate water while automatically moving salt deposits away from the working surface, preventing cloggi…
A world-famous conservation program that helped save Sweden’s endangered wolverines is now struggling as funding stagnates and local trust erodes. Researchers say the decline offers a cautionary lesson: protecting wildlife requires long-term commitment, not just early success.
Scientists have developed a solar desalination system that turns seawater into drinking water without creating environmentally damaging brine. Special laser-textured metal panels use sunlight to evaporate water while automatically moving salt deposits away from the working surface, preventing cloggi…
Scientists have developed a solar desalination system that turns seawater into drinking water without creating environmentally damaging brine. Special laser-textured metal panels use sunlight to evaporate water while automatically moving salt deposits away from the working surface, preventing cloggi…
It’s a towering example of the contentious debate over what to do with the state’s ever-growing supply of oilfield waste.
A surprising new discovery suggests that tiny microbes living inside fish may be helping shape the chemistry of the world’s oceans. Scientists found evidence that bacteria in the guts of marine fish work alongside their hosts to produce calcium carbonate, a mineral that plays an important role in oc…
As bad as things got in Los Angeles in January 2025, when 31 people died and more than 16,000 buildings were destroyed by wildfires roaring into residential neighborhoods, many wildland firefighters look back on the rest of last year as a dodged bullet.  Across the nation, according to the Nati…
The world’s largest meat company is preparing to build a sprawling industrial beef operation in Nigeria—its first on the African continent—but has not revealed details about its plans, prompting a challenge by environmental advocates. JBS, the Brazilian beef juggernaut plagued by corruption scandals…
FOLKSTON, Ga.—The world’s smallest heron hops from blade to blade in a patch of tall grass, testing its footing above the dark water as it searches for an evening meal. “This was already worth the trip out today,” Joshua Howard said earlier this month from a gray flat-bottomed tour boat just a few y…
A vast swamp in southeast Georgia, the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge is an environmental wonderland: a protected wilderness of blackwater channels, peat and dense wetland forests, supporting a rich array of wildlife and plant life.  By July, the Okefenokee could be internationally recogni…
India is increasingly turning to cheap solar to meet its booming energy needs. Its solar buildout could soon be a model for other emerging economies.
The shoreline of Louisiana has never been still or fixed, though recent generations have treated it as such. Since the last ice age roughly 20,000 years ago, around when people arrived in what is now the United States, sea levels have repeatedly reshaped aspects of the Gulf Coast. But today, human-c…
GARDEN GROVE, Calif.—The day before his 41st birthday, Hernando Morales found himself hurrying his one-year-old into the backseat of his car when an industrial tank just over a mile away from his apartment threatened to explode and release toxic chemicals throughout the area. Five days later, local …
Sávio Bortolini Pimentel just missed getting on the roster to represent his national team, Brazil, at the 1994 FIFA World Cup in the United States. At the time, he was a 20-year-old professional player with the Rio de Janeiro team Flamengo. He recalls other players telling him after the fact that th…
From our collaborating partner Living on Earth, public radio’s environmental news magazine, an interview by host Steve Curwood with author Terry Tempest Williams.  At first glance, a desert may appear barren. But it’s actually a place teeming with life. There are coyotes, wind in the cottonwood…
Nearly three dozen young lab-grown elkhorn corals were outplanted onto reefs in Florida’s Dry Tortugas National Park this spring, including a group of “Flondurans,” marking the first time this experimental cross-breed of Florida and Honduran elkhorn corals was introduced to the remote park about 70 …
A new study suggests Antarctica’s ice sheet hit a climate tipping point about one million years ago, making it far more reactive to temperature and CO2 changes. Researchers warn this surprising sensitivity could offer clues about how the continent may respond to today’s warming world.
As the United States limits what can be considered a wetland, and qualify for federal conservation measures, many Washington state residents are trying to protect more of them for water management, carbon sequestration and buffering against climate-driven disasters. But the difficulty of finding the…
President Donald Trump said new regulatory rollbacks on chemical refrigerants will reduce the prices consumers pay for groceries and will not impact the environment. However, U.S. chemical, refrigeration and air-conditioning manufacturers said the changes will raise prices and his administration’s o…
More than a month after Sinlaku hit the Western Pacific, the death toll stands at 17 and many families remain without stable housing or electricity.
Licensed therapist Leslie Davenport breaks down some of the tools that can help manage anxiety in the face of mounting climate catastrophe.
At a virtual public comment hearing hosted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday, a long line of environmental advocates voiced strong opposition to proposed new regulations weakening requirements that utilities must follow in cleaning up toxic coal ash residue at hundreds of sites…
Climate targets aside, the future of any retail brand depends on you buying more clothes.
New research suggests Earth’s climate can swing wildly on surprisingly short timescales — even during hot, ice-free greenhouse periods. By studying ancient sediments from the Late Cretaceous, scientists uncovered repeating climate shifts tied to tiny changes in Earth’s orbital wobble. These cycles m…
A casual walk through an Ithaca cemetery led to the discovery of a gigantic hidden bee population — roughly 5.5 million ground-nesting bees packed beneath the soil. Scientists believe it may be one of the largest bee aggregations ever documented and say the insects are crucial pollinators for apple …
The Arctic Ocean may have crossed a dangerous tipping point. Scientists say the rapid disappearance of sea ice is triggering a hidden chemical shift that is stripping the ocean of nitrate — a nutrient essential for the tiny plankton that support Arctic life. As nitrate levels plunge, the entire food…
Scientists have solved the mystery of the Seychelles’ vanished crocodiles using DNA from historic museum specimens. The reptiles were not a unique species after all, but an isolated population of saltwater crocodiles that likely drifted thousands of kilometers across the Indian Ocean.
