Environment Archives · Page 28 of 53 · New England News Collaborative

Vermonters Are Complying With Composting Law, Which Means … A Lot Of Food Scraps

October 18, 2020

The state’s new law that bans household food scraps in landfills went into effect on July 1. Vermonters are getting on board with the new system, which means transfer stations are struggling to keep up and new businesses are popping up to haul the food scraps to composting facilities. For the past three months or…

As Climate Change Drives Droughts, Water Conservation And Infrastructure Become Key

October 4, 2020

Despite some recent rain, New Hampshire’s drought is growing, causing wells to run dry across the state. And the hotter temperatures of a changing climate could make future droughts more likely. As part of NHPR’s By Degrees project, Annie Ropeik reports on how the dry conditions are affecting people who rely on well water, and…

Machine Gun Range Proposal Has Environmentalists Up in Arms

September 3, 2020

On a tree-lined street in south Sandwich, everything is quiet. Sprinklers, birds, and the occasional landscaping truck are all that make a noise. But when physician and retired Air Force colonel Jane Ward walks through the neighborhood, she hears the quiet before the storm. “We’re pretty close to Camp Edwards or Joint Base Cape Cod,”…

Fishermen And Scientists Join Forces To Track Effects Of Climate Change

August 14, 2020

Last October, lobstermen fishing off the coast of southern New England noticed the lobsters getting more active. That’s fairly common, says Mark Sweitzer, a commercial fisherman out of Port Judith, Rhode Island. “It’s not unusual for there to be a big pop of lobster in September or October,” says Sweitzer. “Fall’s our best fishing.” But…

Industry Heavyweights To Invest In UMaine Offshore Wind Project Near Monhegan Island

August 7, 2020

The University of Maine’s effort to pioneer floating offshore wind technology took a $100 million leap forward Wednesday with the announcement that two industry heavyweights are going to invest in development of the project near Monhegan Island. A subsidiary of the Mitsubishi company, called Diamond Offshore Wind, is joining with RWE Renewables to invest the…

Towns Struggle with Costs as ‘Corona-Recycling’ Increases by 20%

August 4, 2020

At the Bourne Integrated Solid Waste Management Facility, everything has its own smell. “You get the gas smell, old trash smell, new trash smell, recycling smell,” said Dan Barrett, general manager of the facility. “There’s a lot of different smells, and if you’ve been around long enough, you’ll know the difference.” After driving his truck…

As Plastic Waste Surges, Local Woman Helps Cape Reduce Dependence

July 24, 2020

On a hot summer Friday, a Toyota RAV4 rolls into the parking lot of Cape Cod Beer in Hyannis. It’s there for an outdoor festival with live music, cornhole, and, of course, beer. Trailing just behind the car is a bright green shed. The driver parks it right in front of the beer garden. “I…

As New Hampshire Continues COVID Ban On Reusable Bags, Some Say Politics Is Trumping Science

July 21, 2020

Massachusetts recently announced that it was ending its pandemic moratorium on reusable shopping bags, saying towns could go back to reinforcing their bans on single-use plastic bags. Meanwhile, New Hampshire and many other states are still not letting shoppers bring their reusable bags to stores. But is that actually helping to slow the spread of…

Pandemic Complicates New Hampshire Cities’ Plans For Dealing With Climate Change-Driven Heat Waves

July 16, 2020

New Hampshire is seeing more heat waves due to climate change. And staying cool is even harder this year because of COVID-19. Our new climate change reporting project, By Degrees, has this look at how New Hampshire’s cities are coping. On one of the hottest days of the summer so far, the sprinklers built into…

COVID And Black Lives Matter Have Spurred Real Change; Why Can’t Climate Change Do The Same?

July 14, 2020

Our new climate change reporting initiative, By Degrees, begins in an unprecedented time – one where people are making seismic shifts in their lifestyles and attitudes in response to COVID-19 and the Black Lives Matter movement. Many of our listeners have wondered: why haven’t people reacted the same way to the climate emergency, and could…

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