Environment

A partial list of advisories and warnings by the National Weather Service office serving Baton Rouge between Aug. 8 and Aug. 12. Record-breaking rainfall caused deadly floods in the area.

Flooding In Louisiana Raises Questions About Timing, Urgency Of Warnings

8:39pm August 22, 2016

by Rebecca Hersher

More than a dozen people have died and tens of thousands of homes have been damaged by floodwaters. Local authorities and residents wonder if something more could have been done to lessen the toll.

Naha Jumper, 41, and his father, Moses, 64, chase after some uncooperative animals who keep retreating into the woods. Florida cattle are shy, and face dangers like bears and even panthers.

South Florida's Seminole Cowboys: Cattle Is 'In Our DNA'

12:42pm August 22, 2016

by Jacki Lyden

Florida, with its lush grasslands, ranks 10th in the nation for its beef cattle herds — nearly 2 million head. And the Seminole Tribe of Florida is a major player in the cattle industry.

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Louisiana Ignored Dire Forecasts And Flash Flood Warnings

9:58am August 21, 2016

Tens of thousands in Louisiana were surprised by floods last week. In a changing climate, what more can be done to warn communities that the weather can do things they aren't used to?

In Drought-Stricken California, There's No Longer A Fire "Season"

9:55am August 21, 2016

The state now sees wildfires that are on average bigger than ever and that burn through more of the year. Cal Fire's Southern Region information officer Michael Mohler speaks to Rachel Martin.

Sea ice melts off the beach of Barrow, Alaska, where Operation IceBridge is based for its summer 2016 campaign.

As July's Record Heat Builds Through August, Arctic Ice Keeps Melting

6:33pm August 19, 2016

by Christopher Joyce

July 2016 was Earth's hottest month on record. And Arctic ice has shrunk this year almost as much as it did in 2012 — the most severe melt to date.

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Water-based recreation is being banned along much of the Yellowstone River to help limit the spread of a parasite that appears to be killing fish.

Montana Officials Close Yellowstone River To Fight Fish-Killing Parasite

6:02pm August 19, 2016

by Richard Gonzales

An extraordinary effort to limit a widespread fish kill comes a week before the centennial celebration of the National Park Service.

Rescued Relish is an anything-goes condiment made from excess produce that Philabundance, a Philadelphia anti-hunger organization, can't move. The relish is modeled on a Pennsylvania Dutch chowchow recipe — a tangy mix of sweet, spicy and sour flavors.

Artisanal Food Waste: Can You Turn Scraps Into Premium Products?

1:10pm August 19, 2016

by Jessica Leigh Hester

Entrepreneurs hope that, instead of paying bottom dollar for produce that might otherwise have ended up in the landfill, customers will pony up for high-end foods made from rescued ingredients.

An abandoned house at the west end of Shishmaref, Alaska, sits on the beach after sliding off during a fall storm in 2005.

Threatened By Rising Seas, Alaska Village Decides To Relocate

8:37pm August 18, 2016

by Merrit Kennedy

Rising sea levels have eroded Shishmaref for many years. Now, the Inupiat Eskimo village has voted to move. One resident told NPR that it's a matter of protecting their unique community.

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Travis and Sadiye Rieder play with Sinem in their home. They've agreed that if they want more children, they'll adopt.

Should We Be Having Kids In The Age Of Climate Change?

5:27pm August 18, 2016

by Jennifer Ludden

For some climate activists, the personal decision to have a child is also fraught with moral consequences: the negative impact on the environment, and on the quality of life for those children.

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Pacific white shrimp raised in Eco Shrimp Garden's indoor aqua farm in New York's Hudson Valley, which owner Jean Claude Frajmund describes as a spa for shrimp. They grow for six months before they're ready for harvest.

Shrimp Grown In Tanks Make A Splash, Coming To A Market Near You

5:08pm August 18, 2016

by Allison Aubrey

The U.S. appetite for shrimp is often fed in unsavory ways, with seafood produced unsustainably, sometimes with slave labor. In New York's Hudson Valley, an indoor aqua farm is raising an alternative.