Environment

Colorado, Wyoming Plan For River Water Share

6:45am February 23, 2016

by Melodie Edwards

The Colorado River is arguably the most allocated river in the world. Drought and climate change have left less water to go around, and that has every state that relies on the river scrambling.

The half-naked hatchetfish, shown here munching on a shrimp, is just one of many billions of mesopelagic ocean fish that migrate up and down the water column each day to hunt food and avoid predators.

Mysterious Ocean Buzz Traced To Daily Fish Migration

7:19pm February 22, 2016

by Christopher Joyce

Scientists say the buzz picked up by hydrophones in the Pacific may be caused by "fish farts" — the emptying of air bladders that let clouds of fish rise and fall during daily hunts for food.

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An aerial view of Rostov-on-Don region, where the fertile steppes support some of Russia's best farmland.

For Russian Farmers, Climate Change Is Nyet So Great

12:19am February 22, 2016

by Corey Flintoff

While warmer weather might make farming possible in cold regions such as Siberia, it's already causing havoc on existing farmland in the south of Russia.

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Florida Bay Relapse Threatens Ecosystem

8:25am February 20, 2016

by Nancy Klingener

From 1989 to 1994, the estuary between mainland South Florida and the Keys was in collapse. Sea grass died and algae bloomed. Now it's happening again.

Frank Mazzotti, a professor of wildlife biology and researcher with the Everglades environmental restoration team, has been studying alligators in the national park for more than a decade.

Honey, Who Shrank The Alligators?

8:32pm February 19, 2016

by Amy Green

For many, the alligator is the face of the Florida Everglades. But the reptiles are shrinking in size and population, a signal that the watershed might not be doing as well as it should.

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Residents Return Home After Workers Cap Leaking Gas Well In Los Angeles

6:00pm February 19, 2016

by Kirk Siegler

Residents are returning to the Los Angeles community of Porter Ranch now that the leaking natural gas well there has been capped.

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This is one of several canals that will be filled to slow the movement of water through the Everglades, restoring an ecosystem environmentalist Marjory Stoneman Douglas called the "river of grass."

Once Parched, Florida's Everglades Finds Its Flow Again

9:52am February 19, 2016

by Greg Allen

The Everglades lost half its ecosystem after Tamiami Trail was built through the heart of the national park in the 1920s, cutting off water flow. Now, restoration efforts are finally taking effect.

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War May Not Have Led To Easter Island's Ancient Collapse

5:34pm February 17, 2016

by Hannah Bloch

The question of what caused Easter Island's demise is a matter of hot debate. War is often blamed, but new research suggests that obsidian blades on the island were used for farming — not fighting.

The captain and crew of the Moriah Lee pose with sablefish caught off the coast of Half Moon Bay, Calif. A new study found that fishermen in the West Coast sablefishery were much less likely to engage in risky behavior — like sailing out in stormy weath

Study: Program To Protect Fish Is Saving Fishermen's Lives, Too

5:58pm February 16, 2016

by Clare Leschin-Hoar

Catch share programs — where fishermen are allotted a set quota of the catch --reduce the notoriously risky behavior fishermen are known for, like sailing in stormy weather, a new study finds.

John Boyd Jr., with his father, John Boyd Sr.

Environment

Farmer John Boyd Jr. Wants African-Americans To Reconnect With Farming

10:43am February 15, 2016

by NPR Staff

The president of the National Black Farmers Association says African-Americans have a negative association with farming — and he wants that to change.

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