Environment

Environmental Policies Of Brazil's New President Jair Bolsonaro Alarming Scientists

11:35pm November 01, 2018

NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with environmental educator and researcher Suzana Padua about how the election of Brazil's new president Jair Bolsonaro may threaten the country's conservation efforts.

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In New Mexico, an elected Land Commissioner oversees oil and gas leases on millions of acres of state land. The race is drawing big money from fossil fuel interests and environmental groups.

Why Big Money Is Being Pumped Into A Small New Mexico Race

11:35pm November 01, 2018

by Nathan Rott

As battles over energy and climate heat up, national groups are putting more money into local races with a big impact. That includes the election of the land commissioner in New Mexico.

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Butterflies swarm a flowering plant at the National Butterfly Center, a 100-acre wildlife center and botanical garden in Hidalgo County, Texas.

Butterfly Preserve On The Border Threatened By Trump's Wall

5:40pm November 01, 2018

by Claire Harbage

The National Butterfly Center is a habitat for more than 100 species of butterflies. The proposed barrier would cut off 70 percent of its property, putting it in a no man's land along the Rio Grande.

Arkansas farmer David Wildy inspects a field of soybeans that were damaged by dicamba in 2017.

The EPA Says Farmers Can Keep Using Weedkiller Blamed For Vast Crop Damage

2:08pm November 01, 2018

by Dan Charles

The Environmental Protection Agency has given farmers the OK to continue to spray the controversial weedkiller dicamba. The chemical is prone to blowing in the wind and damaging other vegetation.

A year after Hurricane Maria touched down in September 2017, the island is still recovering. On Tuesday lawyers for the government admitted they had not yet overhauled the island's emergency response plans for the next major hurricane.

Government Lawyer Says Puerto Rico's Hurricane Response Plan 'Does Not Exist'

8:17pm October 30, 2018

by Adrian Florido

For months, Puerto Rican officials have said their government is ready for another hurricane. But the part of its emergency response plan dealing specifically with hurricanes hasn't been completed.

People walk in a flooded Saint Mark Square in Venice, Italy.

Heavy Rains, Wind Blamed For 11 Deaths In Italy

7:06pm October 30, 2018

by Richard Gonzales

Venice saw an unusually high tide leaving three-quarters of the city covered in water. Officials in large areas of the country closed schools and urged residents to stay indoors.

Governor Roy Cooper Issues Executive Order To Cut Greenhouse Gases

7:58am October 30, 2018

by Associated Press and Eddie Garcia

Governor Roy Cooper issued an

A pig waste lagoon in Iroquois County, Ill.

Environment

World's Biggest Pork Producer Pledges To Cover Manure Ponds

2:45pm October 29, 2018

by Dan Charles

Smithfield Foods says it will pay farmers to cover their manure ponds with plastic on more than 1,000 U.S. farms. Those "lagoons" have become increasingly controversial.

Oregon State University oceanographer Jack Barth deploys a glider that will spend weeks at sea collecting data on everything from dissolved oxygen levels to temperature. "When we used to think about hypoxia in the ocean, we think about little areas. But n

Coastal Pacific Oxygen Levels Now Plummet Once A Year

8:17am October 28, 2018

by Kristian Foden-Vencil

Scientists credit the crab and oyster industries with noticing a change in oxygen levels in coastal Pacific waters.

Environment

Forsyth County Considers Proposal For Regional Park On Belews Lake

4:08pm October 26, 2018

by Keri Brown

Forsyth County officials are considering a plan to buy land near Duke Energy's Belews Creek Steam Station. The property would be used for a new regional park.