Environmental News

It’s well documented that climate change is having its most dramatic effects in the Arctic. Sea ice is retreating and the permafrost is melting. The sea level is rising. Storms are more intense.

A St. Lawrence University professor is getting a first-hand view of how that’s affecting remote villages in Alaska. And he wants to bring the views of the Native Americans who live there to the world. "The story is really becoming more human-centered, I think," says SLU environmental studies professor Jon Rosales. "It used to be the polar bears were the emblematic, charismatic up in the Arctic that people associated climate change with. But it’s really human now and it’s really impacting people in a very dramatic way."

Rosales returned to three villages on the Bering Strait this summer, where Alaska reaches out to Siberia. His wife’s family lives in one of them. Rosales told David Sommerstein one village, Shaktoolik, faces imminent danger as the fall storm season begins.

When we think of the death of a family member, we usually think of cemeteries and funeral parlors. But some people are taking burial home. Home burial is legal in both New York and Vermont. In New York, however, a licensed funeral director has to be involved. In our series, “Greening the Afterlife,” we’ve met a Vermont woman who wants to be buried behind her home. And we’ve heard from a carpenter who builds biodegradable wooden coffins. You can hear those stories and watch slide shows of them on our website, ncpr.org. In part 3 of the series, Angela Evancie introduces us to a Vermont family who already buried a husband and father on their own property. More...

The post-bailout arm of General Motors that’s in charge of liquidating failed assets of the car-maker wants to tear down the Powertrain plant in Massena. The plant closed for good last year. But the buildings, the equipment, and the soil underneath is contaminated with toxic PCB oil. Federal environment officials now say Motors Liquidation Company has to clean it all up before demolition can begin. As David Sommerstein reports, the extent of the contamination has some former workers and the Massena community worried.

Earthworms, friend to lawn and garden, are actually an invasive species in northern forests which developed in the worm-free evironment of retreating glaciers 10,000 years ago. Martha Foley and Dr. Curt Stager discuss their return, and the consequences for boreal soil, trees and wildflowers.

There was a time not so long ago when nature writers shaped the national debate.

Books and articles by authors like Rachel Carson and Bob Marshall helped build popular support for conservation, environmental laws, and creation of the national parks.

But in the age of oil spills and climate change, some of the country’s top nature writers wonder whether their work can still make a difference.

Brian Mann attended a conference of writers earlier this month and has our story.

At a recent nature writing conference at Paul Smiths College, author and New York Times columnist and essayist Verlyn Klinkenborg teaches about the power of the sentence in strong writing.

A Vermont coffin builder is taking a new approach to burial. Richard Winter, sole proprietor of Vermont Coffins, builds biodegradable coffins from locally harvested wood. It's "back to the land" brought to a new level - a philosophy that Winter's customers appreciate. Angela Evancie visited his wood shop in Calais Vermont and came back with this radio essay. More...

A coalition is trying to stop a nuclear plant from shipping low-level radioactive waste to Sweden by way of the St. Lawrence Seaway. Bruce Power operates North America’s largest nuclear power plant northwest of Toronto. The company says its plan is safe and good for the environment. David Sommerstein reports. More...

Critics of the Adirondack Park Agency have long claimed that its zoning rules and regulations stifle economic activity.

But over the years, the APA has approved eight shovel-ready business parks for light industry and manufacturing.

Businesses who choose to locate in these industrial parks - which stretch from Tupper Lake to Moriah - face little or no APA oversight.

Still, most remain empty or nearly empty.

As Jon Alexander reports, the real problem may be the lack of infrastructure and convenient access in remote rural towns.

When it comes to making funeral arrangements, many assume that doing so means giving in to death. Not so for Elinor Randall. The Plainfield, Vermont woman makes no bones about planning for her burial. Several years ago, she established a cemetery on her own property. Angela Evancie spoke with Randall about her choice More...