Environment

California Firefighter On Battling The Thomas Wildfire

4:34pm December 12, 2017

The Thomas Fire is now the fifth-largest fire in modern California history. NPR's Robert Siegel speaks with battalion chief Fred Burris about what battling this wildfire is like.

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Melt ponds dot a stretch of sea ice in the Arctic Ocean, north of Greenland. This year was the Arctic's second-warmest in at least 1,500 years, after 2016.

Arctic's Temperature Continues To Run Hot, Latest 'Report Card' Shows

4:34pm December 12, 2017

by Christopher Joyce

The extreme warming trend continues, and scientists fear that floating sea ice will be gone by midcentury. That will have extraordinary effects closer to home.

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Cal Fire firefighters keep watch on a wildfire blaze burning the mountainside near the Cate School campus in Carpinteria, Calif., on Dec. 10, 2017.

Firefighters Struggle To Contain Southern California's Thomas Fire

4:27pm December 12, 2017

by Samantha Raphelson

Firefighters made some progress controlling the Thomas Fire in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, which is the fifth-largest in the state's history. Other fires in the area are mostly contained.

France's President Emmanuel Macron meets with former U.N. Secretary-Generals Kofi Annan (left) and Ban Ki-moon (right) at the Elysee Palace in Paris on Monday.

Macron Awards U.S. Climate Scientists Grants To 'Make Our Planet Great Again'

8:57pm December 11, 2017

by Richard Gonzales

A day before an international summit on the climate, the French president offers some researchers an opportunity to make France a "second homeland."

California Officials Say Thomas Fire Is The Fifth Largest In State History

5:02pm December 11, 2017

by Stephanie O'Neill

California officials say the Thomas Fire advancing on Santa Barbara is now the fifth worst in state history. This announcement comes after firefighters lost ground in containing it over the weekend.

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How 311 Helped Understand Air Pollution After Harvey

7:46am December 10, 2017

by Rebecca Hersher

NPR has obtained recordings of calls made by Houston residents fearful about putrid odors in the hours and days after Hurricane Harvey started flooding the city's petrochemical infrastructure.

China's ban means recycling is piling up at Rogue Waste System in southern Oregon. Employees Scott Fowler, Laura Leebrick and Garry Penning say their only option for now is to send it to a landfill.

Recycling Chaos In U.S. As China Bans 'Foreign Waste'

12:40pm December 09, 2017

The U.S. ships a big chunk of its recycled goods to China. But China doesn't want them anymore, and that's leaving the recycling industry in turmoil.

Thoroughbred Horses Killed In California Wildfire

5:28pm December 08, 2017

NPR'S Mary Louise Kelly speaks with Dan Dunham, trainer at the San Luis Rey Downs Training Center. Several thoroughbred horses were killed there, caught in a California wildfire.

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Hundreds Of Thousands Flee California Wildfires

5:28pm December 08, 2017

by Stephanie O'Neill

The fires in Southern California have forced many residents to evacuate multiple times within just a few days. That's leading to confusion about where to head next.

How does lead wind up in crockpots and other ceramic food and drink containers? Ceramic ware is glazed before entering a kiln to bake. These glazes sometimes contain lead to give products an attractive shine.

Can Your Ceramic Cookware Give You Lead Poisoning?

8:00am December 08, 2017

by Natalie Jacewicz

Mass-produced crockpots and other ceramic food containers are probably safe, but handmade earthenware might merit a home test.