Environment

Utilities Fight For Revenue Lost To Solar Power

2:20am January 05, 2015

Solar energy had a banner year in 2014, but as more U.S. households make their own electricity, they're paying electric utilities less. Utility companies across the nation are fighting back.

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Water vapor, which looks like smoke, is seen rising from a power plant near Hengshui in China's Hebei province. In November, President Obama announced a landmark carbon-cutting deal with China — the world's leading producer of greenhouse gases. And the

2014 Brought Lasting Action On Climate Change Policy

4:19pm January 04, 2015

by Scott Horsley

The EPA moved ahead with far-reaching polices to reduce carbon pollution from power plants. And the president struck a landmark deal with China to curb its carbon output as well.

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Road Salt Contributes To Toxic Chemical Levels In Streams

2:51pm January 04, 2015

by Cheryl Corley

One of the primary tools that U.S. transportation departments count on to keep roads safe is road salt. But that has meant rising levels of chloride in many northern streams.

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Marya Gelvosa and Josh Gerritsen run a small farm on Maine's rocky mid-coast, providing their local community with beef, lamb and heritage poultry. They're decades younger than the average American farmer, but they love the lifestyle. "It's very fulfillin

Environment

A Young Generation Sees Greener Pastures In Agriculture

10:54am January 04, 2015

by Jennifer Mitchell

The average age of a farmer in the U.S. is over 58 and climbing. But in places like Maine, a growing number of under-35 farmers see an opportunity for better lives growing food for their communities.

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Ecologists found signs of Ebola in a Rousettus leschenaultii fruit bat. These bats are widespread across south Asia, from India to China.

Where Could Ebola Strike Next? Scientists Hunt Virus In Asia

12:45pm January 03, 2015

by Michaeleen Doucleff

A handful of ecologists knew for years that West Africa was at risk for an Ebola outbreak. Now they're figuring out where else in the world the virus could be hiding. Many signs point to Asia.

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The drought forced many citrus farmers near Orange Cove, Calif., to mulch their trees because they couldn't afford to keep them alive. Recent rain and new groundwater regulations have eased the crisis, but only slightly.

Rain Eases California Drought Anxiety, If Not The Actual Drought

1:25pm January 01, 2015

by Kirk Siegler

This year was the third-driest on record for the state, but recent storms, plus new groundwater regulations, have given the hardest-hit agricultural towns a glimmer of hope.

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One Man's Trash, Another Man's Fashion Brand

12:33pm December 30, 2014

by Laura Secorun Palet

Spanish entrepreneur Javier Goyeneche is looking to transform the world of sustainable fashion, with clothes that are made out of 80 or 90 percent recycled materials — from tires to old fishing nets.

Environment

'Tis The Season To Recycle Your Christmas Tree

7:15am December 30, 2014

by Neal Charnoff

It's time to start thinking about what to do with your Christmas tree. Many Christmas trees across North Carolina are destined to become mulch or sand-dune protectors.

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By the 1960s, humpback whales and other whale species had been hunted extensively, sometimes to the point of near extinction. Then a recording of humpback whale songs helped shift public opinion on the hunting of all whale species.

Recordings That Made Waves: The Songs That Saved The Whales

6:22pm December 26, 2014

by Michael May

In the mid-1960s, a biologist discovered the beauty of humpback whale songs. But his recordings weren't just academic — they were woven into popular music, and they kicked off an entire movement.

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A still from the Schmidt Ocean Institute of a new species of snailfish.

Unexpected Life Found In The Ocean's Deepest Trench

5:39pm December 26, 2014

by Christopher Joyce

An expedition to the Pacific's Mariana Trench has found evidence that life exists miles below the surface. But it's not life as we know it.

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