Environment

Fire swept through Australia's Wollemi National Park, but firefighters were able to save rare groves of prehistoric Wollemi pines.

Aussie Firefighters Save World's Only Groves Of Prehistoric Wollemi Pines

3:55pm January 16, 2020

by Laurel Wamsley

Fire swept through the canyons where the rare trees had outlived the dinosaurs. For days, the smoke was so thick that no one knew whether the careful plan to protect them had worked.

For decades, the Earth has steadily gotten hotter. The planet has already warmed about 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit (or almost 1 degree Celsius) compared with in the mid-20th century.

2019 Was The 2nd-Hottest Year On Record, According To NASA And NOAA

7:09pm January 15, 2020

by Rebecca Hersher

Last year's data collected by the agencies is the latest confirmation that the Earth is steadily getting hotter. The planet is now almost 1 degree Celsius warmer than it was in the mid-20th century.

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World's Largest Asset Manager BlackRock To Build Around Sustainability In Investments

5:05pm January 14, 2020

NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with Larry Fink — CEO of BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager — about his plan to put climate sustainability at the center of the company's investment strategy.

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Vacant rowhouses line a portion of Franklin Square, a formerly redlined neighborhood in Baltimore. New research shows many communities subjected to discriminatory housing practices in the 1930s are hotter today.

Racist Housing Practices From The 1930s Linked To Hotter Neighborhoods Today

5:05pm January 14, 2020

by Meg Anderson

A study of more than 100 cities nationwide shows neighborhoods subjected to discriminatory housing policies nearly a century ago are hotter today than other areas.

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BlackRock Chairman and CEO Larry Fink, seen here in Paris in July, wrote in his annual letter to CEOs that climate change will soon cause "a significant reallocation of capital."

Environment

World's Largest Asset Manager Puts Climate At The Center Of Its Investment Strategy

4:52pm January 14, 2020

by Laurel Wamsley

"We believe that sustainability should be our new standard for investing," BlackRock CEO Larry Fink says. The investment giant's move puts pressure on companies to reduce reliance on fossil fuels.

The Navajo Generating Station shut down in November 2019. The West's largest coal-fired power plant provided $12 million in yearly royalties to the Hopi Tribe.

Hopi Look To Tourism, Ranching For Income After Coal Power Plant Closure

10:18am January 14, 2020

by Laurel Morales

The coal power plant that provided about 80% of the Hopi Nation's budget closed last month. Tribal leaders are now trying to figure out how to replace the revenue, which was their economic lifeline.

Residents who were living at the foot of Taal Volcano unload their belongings from an outrigger canoe while the volcano spews ash as seen from Tanauan town in Batangas Province, south of Manila, on Monday.

Volcanic Eruption In Philippines Causes Thousands To Flee

2:36pm January 13, 2020

by Scott Neuman

Some 13,000 people were evacuated from the area surrounding Taal Volcano, about 45 miles south of the capital, Manila. Authorities warned that a second explosive eruption could come in hours or days.

Science

Carolina Curious: Are Bugs Disappearing in North Carolina?

7:29am January 13, 2020

by April Laissle

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison is seen here last week visiting Kangaroo Island, which was devastated by wildfires.

Australian Prime Minister To Launch Inquiry Into Handling Of Wildfires

3:27pm January 12, 2020

by Laurel Wamsley

"There are things that I could have handled on the ground much better," the PM said. Many have linked the deadly fires to climate change and blamed conservative Australian governments for inaction.

Much of New South Wales, Australia, including the Sydney Opera House, lay under a shroud of smoke Thursday. The state remains under severe or very high fire danger warnings as more than 60 fires continue to burn within its borders.

Australia's Wildfires Are Releasing Vast Amounts Of Carbon

8:16am January 12, 2020

by Nathan Rott

The Australian bushfires are emitting huge amounts of climate warming carbon into the atmosphere. Normally, new vegetation that grows back would recapture it, but that may be changing.