Stories
When patients or nurses need help in an emergency room, an alarm normally sounds. At Cambridge Health Alliance hospital in Everett, the beeps from the alarms never seem to stop these days. The CHA Everett ER had near record levels of patients last week, even though the holiday week is normally quiet. On a recent afternoon, there…
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A new report released Monday finds that surface water quality on Cape Cod has degraded for the third year in a row. The Association to Preserve Cape Cod’s annual State of the Waters report tracks the water quality of the Cape’s freshwater ponds, marine estuaries, and public drinking water. Although the report’s findings don’t indicate an immediate threat…
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New Hampshire Secretary of State William Gardner, who earned a national reputation as gatekeeper of the state’s first-in-the-nation presidential primary, announced Monday that he will retire in the coming days. Gardner has held the office since December 1976, when he was elected at the age of 28. He’s the longest-serving secretary of state in the…
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Vehicles are responsible for most of the greenhouse gas emissions in Maine. One goal in the state’s climate change response plan is to get more electric vehicles on the road. There are currently only about 6,000, which is a 90% increase from just a couple years ago. But it’s still a drop in the bucket…
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To store greenhouse gases, Maine looks to protect more than 2 Rhode Islands’ worth of forest by 2030
Around the world, the push is on for large-scale conservation. Scientists say at least 30% of lands, fresh water and oceans need protection by 2030 to slow global warming and prevent species extinctions. The ambitious 30 x 30 goal is part of President Biden’s climate agenda. It’s also a target in Maine, the most heavily…
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Since the 1800’s in Maine, the Christmas tree has been an essential point of light for many in the darkest month of the year. But scientists say that some of the state’s best-loved conifers are under threat, with extreme weather making it difficult for them to grow. When Ephraim Weston moved from Massachusetts to the…
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COVID infections are surging in much of the country, especially in parts of New England. And New Hampshire is at the epicenter. More than half of patients who show up in the emergency room at Monadnock Community Hospital in southwest New Hampshire are testing positive. And doctors are having a tough time finding beds for all the…
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Different types of phytoplankton will react differently to warming oceans and this can affect which marine species thrive in the region, according to a new study led by researchers in New England. Phytoplankton — single-celled, diverse organisms that use carbon dioxide to produce oxygen — are the base of the food web for species like…
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It’s Saturday, and Sarah Mahoney is one of several Planned Parenthood volunteers knocking on doors in Windham, Maine, a politically moderate town not far from Portland. No one answers at the first couple of houses. But as Mahoney heads up the street, she sees a woman out for a walk. “Hey! We’re out canvassing,” she…
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The transfer station in Derry, N.H., is full of neatly organized piles of everything residents don’t want. Old couches, discarded Halloween decorations, and tidy mounds of plastic, cardboard, glass, and aluminum. Mike Fowler, the director of public works for the town of Derry, says it wasn’t always this way. In 1991, the town passed an…
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