Environmental News

MPR News is your source for environment news from Minnesota and across the country.

Getting to Green: Minnesota’s energy future

Getting to Green is an MPR News series that shares stories about Minnesota’s clean energy transition, including what needs to be done to get there.

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Climate Cast

Listen to Climate Cast, the MPR News podcast all about our changing climate and its impact in Minnesota and worldwide.

June 4, 2020 4:55 PM

Doctor: Preventing the worst effects of climate change, the next pandemic go hand in hand

Climate change has exacerbated some of the health inequities behind disparities in COVID-19 cases.

by Paul Huttner

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June 4, 2020 4:21 PM

Team that made early climate predictions marks 30 years, 'spot on' accuracy

The team predicted global temperatures would rise half a degree Celsius by 2020.

by Paul Huttner

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June 4, 2020 10:07 AM

State officials agree to give Line 3 permits additional scrutiny

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency announced that a “contested case hearing” on a draft water quality permit for Line 3 will be held later this summer. The decision further delays the contentious project by at least three months.

by Dan Kraker

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May 29, 2020 6:54 AM

Climate change and deforestation mean Earth's trees are younger and shorter

A new study finds rising temperatures and climate-driven disasters are helping transform the very makeup of the world's forests. This has major implications for biodiversity and more warming.

by Nathan Rott

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May 22, 2020 4:00 AM

Meet the Minnesota scientists trying to track COVID-19 spread — through sewage

Two University of Minnesota researchers are looking for the virus in wastewater — even before test results reveal its presence in a community.

by Kirsti Marohn

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May 21, 2020 4:00 AM

Our pandemic habits cut carbon emissions, but it's not clear they'll last

Energy demand plummeted because of the pandemic shutdown. A big question is whether new habits like telecommuting and flying less will endure, and mean lower oil consumption in the future.

by Jeff Brady

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May 20, 2020 10:33 AM

'Catastrophic' dam failures in Michigan force thousands to evacuate

The National Weather Service called the event "extremely dangerous" and said it was caused by "catastrophic failures at the Edenville and Sanford dams," located roughly 140 miles north of Detroit.

by Brakkton Booker

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May 20, 2020 5:28 AM

Audio postcard: Hunting for wild orchids in the Twin Cities metro

This week, authors Kelly Povo and Phyllis Root went hunting for wild orchids — specifically, a beautiful white flower called the showy orchid. They found them in abundance at French Regional Park in Plymouth.

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May 19, 2020 4:00 AM

Traffic is way down, due to lockdowns, but air pollution? Not so much

Car traffic took a big dip beginning in late March, and headlines celebrated clean air around the U.S. But an NPR analysis of EPA data tells a more troubling story.

by Lauren Sommer, Rebecca Hersher, Huo Jingnan and Robert Benincasa

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May 14, 2020 3:56 PM

Minnesota skies getting smokier with climate change

Wildfire smoke is causing 33 percent fewer blue sky days in Minnesota during the summer.

by Paul Huttner

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