Environment

Breaking news on the environment, climate change, pollution, and endangered species. Also featuring Climate Connections, a special series on climate change co-produced by NPR and National Geographic.

20 Million Years Later, Russians Work To Drill Into Lake 4 Feb 2012, 2:25 pm

Russian researchers in Antarctica are on the verge of piercing a hole through two miles of ice into an ancient lake, untouched by the light of day for some 20 million years. But it’ll be a delicate process to break through without disturbing the pristine waters. Guest host David Green speaks with Antarctic researcher John Priscu about the process.

Source: Environment |

Sturgeon Scarcity Affects More Than Caviar 4 Feb 2012, 1:00 pm

Sturgeon have been swimming around for more than 200 million years, but their eggs are sought after for caviar. This week, the National Marine Fisheries Service placed the Atlantic sturgeon on its endangered species list. Guest host David Greene speaks with Dr. Ellen Pikitch, executive director of the Institute for Ocean Conservation Science at Stony Brook University.

Source: Environment |

‘Arctic Oscilliation’ Behind Season’s Mixed Winter Weather 3 Feb 2012, 8:00 pm

For snow fans in the contiguous US, this winter has left much to be desired. The warm and mild season in the lower 48 and the wild snow dumps and cold weather up north in Alaska can be blamed largely on a weather pattern called “arctic oscillation.” Audie Cornish gets an explanation of the weather phenomenon from meteorologist Jeffrey Masters.

Source: Environment |

New USDA Map May Mean Earlier Planting In North 3 Feb 2012, 8:00 pm

A new map from the USDA has some northern gardeners hoping to grow plants that used to be considered too fragile for cold weather zones. The hardiness zone chart is about a half zone warmer than the last one issued in 1990. The USDA says the changes are not due to global warming, but to more sophisticated mapping methods. Seed sellers and buyers say that, whatever the reason, the warmer temperatures expand possibilities for planting this spring.

Source: Environment |

Tick Tally Reveals Lyme Disease Risk 1 Feb 2012, 11:00 pm

Researchers counted more than 5,000 ticks to calculate the risk of Lyme disease in the Eastern U.S. Turns out the risk is high in the Northeast and nearly zero in the South.

Source: Environment |

Is Today’s Beef Better For The Environment? 1 Feb 2012, 10:10 pm

A new study wants to rectify beef’s image as an environmental miscreant. It says modern beef production is a lot kinder to the environment than it was 30 years ago.

Source: Environment |

Pacific Mackerel Stocks That Feed Farmed Salmon In Decline 30 Jan 2012, 6:01 pm

At current rates of overfishing, jack mackerel stocks in the southern Pacific could collapse soon, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists reports.

Source: Environment |

Invasive Pythons Put Squeeze On Everglades’ Animals 30 Jan 2012, 5:31 pm

Burmese pythons have been slithering around south Florida for decades, but scientists now say the invasive constrictors are so bad, they’re eating their way through the swamps. The snakes have decimated populations of mammals like raccoons, possums and white-tailed deer.

Source: Environment |

Wolves Attract Tourists, But Reality Lurks 28 Jan 2012, 1:00 pm

A niche industry of tour companies is taking people into wolves’ habitat at Yellowstone National Park. Montana Public Radio’s Dan Boyce went on an expedition with a man who recognizes the problems wolves bring to the landscape even as he makes his living off of them.

Source: Environment |

Ancient Skull Holds Clues to Dog Domestication 27 Jan 2012, 6:00 pm

A 33,000-year-old skull of a “wolf on the way to becoming a dog” was found in a Siberian cave. Evolutionary Biologist Susan Crockford, co-author of a study about the skull in PLoS ONE, discusses why the discovery challenges common beliefs about dog domestication.

Source: Environment |