Environment

In the 1970s, the Brazilian government declared the Amazon open for settlement. Rondonia became like Oklahoma during the land rush. The poor and dispossessed of other Brazilian states were encouraged to move in. Quickly, trees gave way to farms and cattle

In The Amazon's Fire Season, 'You Either Burn Or You Starve'

6:56am November 05, 2015

by Lourdes Garcia-Navarro

This is the time of year subsistence farmers clear land by setting fires in the Amazon. They say it's the only way they can make a living, but it's delivering another blow to the rain forest.

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Alaskan fisherman David Fry and his baited hooks.

Episode 661: The Less Deadly Catch

7:24pm November 04, 2015

Today on the show, how an economic fix took the deadliest job in America and made it safer. And why a lot of people are mad about it.

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Elizeu Berçacola surveys the scene after he and his fellow rubber tappers set afire one of three illegal logging camps.

Deep In The Amazon, An Unseen Battle Over The Most Valuable Trees

3:07pm November 04, 2015

by Lourdes Garcia-Navarro

For generations, the rubber tappers of the Amazon have gone about their business in a way that preserves the rain forest. Today, they are increasingly in conflict with criminal logging gangs.

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A piece of cacao cut open to reveal its fruit. The seeds, in particular, hidden at the center of the fruit, are a key ingredient in chocolate production.

In The 'Cradle Of Cacao,' Chocolate Brigades Fight For A Bigger Harvest

2:40pm November 04, 2015

by Kirk Siegler

Ecuador's chocolate is famous, and a sweet spot in an otherwise souring economy. The government is paying a small army of pruners to trim back 120,000 acres of Amazonian cacao farms to boost yields.

Keystone XL Pipeline Company Asks U.S. To Pause Review Of Application

7:55pm November 03, 2015

by Jeff Brady

TransCanada has asked the State Department to suspend its review of its permit to build the Keystone XL Pipeline Monday until Nebraska decides on its route.

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Nebraskan Farmer Voices Opposition To Keystone XL Pipeline

5:52pm November 03, 2015

NPR's Robert Siegel talks to Jenni Harrington, a fifth generation Nebraskan farmer, about the suspension of the permit to build the Keystone XL pipeline, which would run through her town.

Tropical Cyclone Chapala Batters War-Torn Yemen's Southern Coast

5:40pm November 03, 2015

Thousands flee war-torn Yemen as tropical cyclone Chapala batters its southern coast. NPR's Kelly McEvers talks with journalist Iona Craig for the latest on the storm.

Flares at the Bridgeton Landfill outside St. Louis burn off noxious fumes, including those generated by an underground fire that's been burning since 2010. The "fire" is really a high-temperature chemical reaction that consumes the waste below the landfil

Landfill Fire Threatens Nuclear Waste Site Outside St. Louis

3:01pm November 03, 2015

by Véronique LaCapra

There's no barrier between the underground chemical reaction and nearby radioactive waste. Federal, state and local officials disagree about the danger it poses; residents are confused and concerned.

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Environmental activists protest the proposed Keystone XL pipeline in Washington, D.C., earlier this year.

5 Things To Know About The Keystone XL Pipeline

11:48am November 03, 2015

by Scott Horsley

The Canadian company that had been pushing for approval to build the project is asking for a timeout in the review process. Here's what you should know.

TransCanada Puts U.S. Permit Application For Keystone XL Pipeline On Hold

9:15pm November 02, 2015

by Laura Wagner

The company building the controversial oil pipeline from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico has suspended its permit application while waiting for approval on its preferred route through Nebraska.