As stewards of America’s natural resources, rural communities are often on the front lines of both environmental disasters and innovations. You can keep up with the latest environmental news from across rural America here.
To Ensure Access to Electric Cars, Some Activists Are Calling Attention to ‘Charging Deserts’
“If we don’t get in now, we’re going to be behind — and we’ll never catch up.”
More stories about the environment
The Electric Vehicle Boom Could Bring Lithium Mines Back to North Carolina
Not all locals are happy about it.
Wildfire Maps Underscore Risks — and Costs — of Climate Change
A controversy and the ultimate recall of fire hazard maps for Oregon proved the importance of an extended comment period and the need for feedback from populations in question.
Four Hooves Beat Four Wheels for Some Early Flood Relief Teams
In the hours and days following Eastern Kentucky’s July 28 flood, a horseman’s group was among the many people and organizations that volunteered to deliver supplies to families cut off by the destruction.
Tree Thieves: Examining Crime and Identity in the Woods of the Pacific Northwest
In her first book, writer Lyndsie Bourgon examines the history and social complexities that drive timber poaching in old growth forests.
How Can Mangroves Help Turn the Tide Against Climate Change?
Home to rich ecosystems, these coastal forests are also a superior carbon storing species.
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An Education Interrupted: Eastern Kentucky Schools and Students Face a Long Road to Recovery after the Floods
Young people need predictability, safety, and security – just the things the flood washed away. School districts grapple with complex logistical issues while trying to tend to the needs of families and pupils.
Small-Scale Forest Landowners Gain Foothold in U.S. Carbon Markets
New efforts seek to give smallholders alternatives to logging while helping to curb climate change.
Research: Rural Climate Change Opinions Are More Complicated Than You Might Think
A study showed that Indiana’s rural populations skepticism of climate change is complex. Some of it can be associated with a sense of being ignored and blamed for climate change woes.
Commentary: (Distant) Neighbor Helping Neighbor
When La Grange, Texas, needed help recovering from the floods of Hurricane Harvey, national groups stepped up to lend local people a hand. Now those Texans are paying it forward by sending money to help the people of Eastern Kentucky.
Will Salmon Finally Win This Year?
This could be the year that four Snake River dams in the Northwest get dynamited to allow salmon a hope of surviving.
Commentary: Things the Flood Takes
Last month’s flash flood in Eastern Kentucky killed 39 people, including Dennis Stacy. Those who survived will never be the same.
Commentary: TVA Owes Eastern Kentucky Reparations for Strip Mining’s Role in Flooding
The Tennessee Valley Authority’s appetite for cheap coal flattened the mountaintops of Eastern Kentucky. It decimated one region in the name of helping another.
As the President Visits Kentucky After Flooding, Residents Send a Message of Resilience and Frustration
Kentuckians affected by the recent flooding want Biden to know they are strong and determined to rebuild. But they also want the federal government to know what they really need in terms of disaster relief.
First Person: Before the Flood, Breaking Beans at Hindman
After the flood waters of Troublesome Creek damaged buildings, automobiles, and 120 years of history, Hindman Settlement School now faces the dual task of preserving its legacy while addressing the current needs of a hard-hit community.
Commentary: The Vanishing Paradise of the West’s ‘Ditches’
In the arid West, thousands of small canals, universally called ditches, create ribbons of green life as they deliver diverted river water throughout the region. But as the climate becomes drier, ditches are disappearing, and the loss can be deeply felt.
Eastern Kentucky Flood Relief and Recovery – How You Can Help
Historic floods have swept through parts of Eastern Kentucky, leveling communities and leaving at least 38 dead, with that number likely to rise. Here’s how you can help.
Commentary: A ‘Second Disaster’ Caused by Good Will
People naturally want to help others who are in need, and that’s a good thing. To avoid creating more strain for already hard-hit communities, it’s best to give cash. Here’s why, plus a list of ways to contribute to recovery in Eastern Kentucky.
Westerners Struggle to Manage Booming Wild Horse Populations
With hundreds of thousands of wild horses venturing onto private, state or tribally owned lands, there is a sense of urgency to address wild horse populations that got out of control.
Parts of Oregon with Serious Threat of Wildfire Will Face New Building Codes
A 2021 state law will require some properties in the “wildland-urban interface” to take additional measures to protect new construction from wildfires. A new assessment says wildfire poses a serious risk to over half the state.
Mud and Mutual Aid: The Early Days of Recovery from Eastern Kentucky Floods
With 38 deaths and thousands of homes and businesses destroyed, Eastern Kentuckians face a daunting task to recover. While larger efforts get organized, neighbors are helping neighbors. But it’s going to take more, says the publisher of the Daily Yonder.
As Temperatures Rise, Farms Are Sprouting in Alaska
Even as farms decline across the US, a longer growing season is bringing food security to a state that has long relied on sustenance from afar.
Clean-Water Advocates Add Their Voices to Supreme Court Case That Will Be Heard This Fall
Sackett v. EPA would limit which waterways the government can regulate under the Clean Water Act. The case will be heard after a tumultuous spring term in which the court reversed precedents in environmental regulation, abortion rights, and gun control.
Improving Carbon Storage in Pastures Requires Both Training and Support of Ranchers, Study Shows
Farmers in the Cerrado savanna in Brazil created healthier pastures. But doing so required more than just training. Hands-on support was also critical.
Restoring Native Prairie Plants? You May Be Missing One Key Ingredient—Fungi
Vulnerable native fungi are easily killed off, but many native prairie plants can’t re-establish without them.
Torn to Pieces: a Photograph, a Band, a Town and a Tornado
When a devastating tornado struck Dawson Springs, Kentucky, a marching band photo took flight and traveled more than 100 miles away from home. Its journey unearthed more than two decades of local history.
Turning Tides: Offshore Wind Farms at Odds with Oregon’s Fishing Trade
Fishermen worry that possible offshore energy development could block access to important fisheries, hurting the fleet and the communities that support the industry.
Helping Forest Firefighters Battle a Different Kind of Burnout
As wildfires increase in intensity and frequency, a Canadian initiative is protecting the mental health of those on the front lines.
The White House Wants to Protect Old-Growth Forests
President Biden issued an Executive Order on Earth Day highlighting forests’ critical role in addressing climate change.
How a Nebraska Ethanol Plant Turned Seeds into Toxic Waste
State regulators shuttered the AltEn plant in 2021 after years of environmental violations. Residents are just beginning to grapple with its toxic legacy.
As Utility-Scale Renewables Expand, Some Midwest Farmers Are Pushing Back
Rural communities are concerned about losing agricultural land in a region long-defined by its farming roots.
Will Piecemeal Approach to Monarch Butterfly Preservation Save the Species?
State governments and private businesses are collaborating to protect habitat to keep the monarch off the endangered species list. Conservationists say a more comprehensive approach will be necessary to save the butterfly, whose population has dropped nearly 90% in the last 20 years.
Report: The Majority of Farmers Applying to USDA Conservation Programs Are Being Rejected
According to a new report, the lack of federal funding and a preference for industrial livestock operations in some states are to blame.
Time, Tradition and Trust: The Navajo Nation Takes on Climate Change
Navigating between traditions, customs and the science, the Navajo Nation takes an increasing initiative in addressing an existential danger of a changing climate.
Concerns about War Increase Efforts to Mine Potash in Michigan, Worrying Some Locals
The war in Ukraine has the U.S. looking for fertilizer at home. A mine in Central Michigan would use 2 million gallons of groundwater a day for its operations.
Study Suggests Farmers Could Use Perforated-Pipe Stream Buffers More Widely
An Iowa State researcher says riparian buffers that direct surface water to root systems could be installed in more places without causing erosion.
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