Wildfires, invasive species and climate change are seriously threatening the Hanford Reach National Monument, and with it, a rare plant that grows only in one place in the world.Read More
Coal plant closures in the Northwest and an increase in natural gas generation meant fewer heat-trapping carbon dioxide emissions recently contributed to climate change, according to new data from the Northwest Power and Conservation Council.Read More
Recent atmospheric research may help Northwest forest managers better prepare for wildfires.Read More
One family’s continuous wildfire preparation paid off this summer in North Central Washington.Read More
Washington’s state vehicles soon will plug in instead of gas up.Read More
Maine's population of rare Atlantic puffins took a hit this year, as the number of chicks to survive a tough summer plummeted. The state's coastal bays and the Gulf of Maine is among the fastest-warming large water bodies on the planet, making the puffins' fate a test-case for how climate change could disrupt marine ecosystems worldwide.Read More
Pets dead or sick after coming in contact with Columbia River water near the Tri-Cities, Wash. Now health officials have confirmed the culprit, Anatoxin-a in toxic algae.Read More
Whoosh Innovations said its fish passage system could transport salmon quickly over the Snake River dams – and generate $60 million over 10 years by diverting water from fish ladders to hydropower turbines.Read More
Scientists have discovered they can track fire lines and can quickly draw attention to spot fires using satellites.Read More
Northern leopard frogs are rapidly disappearing in the Northwest. Biologists hope this effort will help the population in Washington.Read More
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris attend a virtual wildfire briefing with seven governors. CREDIT: Https://Www.Youtube.Com/Watch?V=PzvDeLvcQ7U The federal government is asking how it can help better fight wildfires […]Read More
From Oregon to the Dakotas, hay stocks for hungry cattle are already low. On top of that, ranchers say summer pastures are dry from the widespread drought.Read More
There are thread-like worms on Mount Rainier that reserachers are looking at live at 32 degrees or they die... called ice worms. Read More
More manatees have died already this year than in any other year in Florida's recorded history, primarily from starvation due to the loss of seagrass beds, state officials said.Read More
As forecasters warned of a record-breaking heat wave in the Pacific Northwest and western Canada last weekend, officials set up cooling centers, distributed water to the homeless and took other steps. Still, hundreds of people are believed to have died from Friday to Tuesday.Read More
Indiscrete comments made by an ExxonMobil lobbyist to undercover activists may figure prominently in upcoming congressional hearings about the role of oil companies in the battle against climate change.Read More
Scores of deaths along the U.S. West Coast and in the Vancouver metro area in Canada are being blamed on an ongoing heat wave that has broken records.Read More
A major heat wave is hitting the Northwest. Heat and its long-term effects kills more people in the U.S. than any other weather-related issue. Now is the time to prepare. Here are some steps you can take to get ready: Read More
It might be tempting to shrug at the scorching weather across large swaths of the West. This just in: It gets hot in the summer. But this record-setting heat wave's remarkable power, size and unusually early appearance is giving meteorologists and climate experts yet more cause for concern about the routinization of extreme weather in an era of climate change.Read More
The company behind the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline said Wednesday it's officially terminating the project. TC Energy already had suspended construction in January when President Biden revoked a key cross-border presidential permit. The announcement ends a more than decade-long battle that came to signify the debate over whether fossil fuels should be left in the Read More
A secret cache of clean energy is lurking in sewers, and there are growing efforts to put it to work in the battle against climate change.Read More
Gov. Jay Inslee signed the Climate Commitment Act, environmental justice legislation, a clean fuels standard and bills related to reducing Washington’s single-use plastic waste and hydrofluorocarbon pollution.Read More
Last year, Wyoming and Montana — another major coal state — asked the Supreme Court to override a decision by Washington state to deny a permit to build a coal export dock on the Columbia River. The interstate lawsuit followed years of unsuccessful attempts by the dock’s developer, Utah-based Lighthouse Resources, to contest the permit denial in federal court.Read More
The state’s new fuel standards will slowly lower the amount of heat-trapping greenhouse gasses coming out of vehicle tailpipes through 2035. That means cleaner technologies biodiesel or renewable natural gas will get a boost over gasoline and diesel.Read More
Next week, President Biden will announce a number that could shape the rest of his presidency: a new goal to cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. The announcement marks the country's renewed commitment to the Paris accord, the international climate change agreement that former President Trump withdrew from.Read More
New research out of the University of Washington finds a correlation between warmer ocean waters and mass strandings of By-the-wind sailor jellyfish over the past two decades. The brief, widespread beachings of "gazillions" of purplish-blue jellies along the Pacific Northwest coast create a memorable sight for those who chance to be in the right place at the right time.Read More
Smaller, faster-melting snowpack could deplete water supplies, increase wildfire risk and invite invasive species. The Cascades might reach that point earlier.Read More
Congresswoman Deb Haaland would be not just the first Native American Interior Secretary, but also the first in a presidential cabinet. She faced tough — and, at times, misguided — questioning from Republican lawmakers worried about the president's climate goals.Read More
The United States on Friday officially rejoined the Paris Agreement on climate change designed to limit global warming and avoid its potentially catastrophic impacts.Read More
Warmer winter weather, more rainfall and less snow will contribute to significantly increased flooding in the Columbia River Basin this century due to climate change, new research says.Read More
You may be used to hearing a pushy car salesperson ask the timeless question, "What can I do to get you in this car?" But one big thing could be different in Washington state a decade from now. Proposals introduced this winter in the Washington Legislature would end sales of new gasoline-powered cars in the state by 2030.Read More
The U.S. officially withdrew from the accord to limit climate-warming greenhouse gas emissions late last year, after President Donald Trump began the process in 2017. It is the only country of the nearly 200 signatories that has withdrawn. Biden vowed to sign on Inauguration Day the documents needed to rejoin the agreement.Read More
The U.S. is regulating greenhouse gas emissions from commercial aircraft for the first time. But critics are saying the rules will be ineffective. The Environmental Protection Agency said Monday the rules are being finalized after first being made public in July.Read More
Several big farm groups, traditionally hostile to environmental regulations, are now working with environmental advocates in support of farmer-friendly actions to reduce carbon emissions. Read More
Officials hope to auction off leases before President-elect Joe Biden takes office. He has pledged to protect the pristine landscape that's home to polar bears and migrating caribou. Read More
New research suggests that a U.S. Forest Service proposal to allow the cutting of larger trees on public lands east of the Cascades in Oregon and Washington will have an outsized impact on forest carbon storage in the Pacific Northwest.Read More
The move, long threatened by President Donald Trump and triggered by his administration a year ago, further isolates Washington in the world but has no immediate impact on international efforts to curb global warming.Read More
The fires in Washington are largely under control now, but the state has been experiencing dangerous, even deadly, wildfires for years, something Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee says are only made worse by climate change.Read More
There's only been one other year – 2005 – that Greek names have been needed. The National Hurricane Center on Friday announced storms called Alpha and Beta have formed in the Atlantic.Read More
On the other side of the country Joe Biden also addressed the fires, linking them to climate change. Read More
David Legates, a professor whose research has been supported by fossil fuel companies, has been hired for a top position at the federal agency that oversees weather and climate forecasting.Read More
Hurricane Laura rapidly intensified before it made landfall. Abnormally hot water in the Gulf of Mexico helped it gain power.Read More
Climate change and reducing greenhouse gas emissions are not part of the $3 trillion in U.S. relief packages passed so far — despite a long history of funding energy programs after economic crises.Read More
Deforestation, climate change and the disturbances it can exacerbate – like wildfires, extreme droughts and insect outbreaks – are decimating old growth forests across the globe. That means forests worldwide are filling in with younger and shorter trees, according to a new study.Read More
In a study recently published in the Journal of Wildlife Management, WSU scientists found that lynx only occupy about 20% of potential habitat in Washington.Read More
As the climate warms, fire seasons will get worse – that’s especially true for low-elevation ponderosa pine forests east of the Cascades. According to a University of Washington study published in the journal Fire Ecology, wildfires there will be larger and more frequent. Read More
Will the current lull in activity make a difference in the air we breathe or the future of climate change?Read More
The wildflower season at Mount Rainier National Park was short in 2015. Some of the lupines stopped flowering and didn’t make seeds like they normally do. The shorter season also meant fewer people saw peak blooms. A new study looks at how winter changes may affect tourist season at Washington's iconic park.Read More
Climate change isn’t a new topic for progressive churches like Shalom United Church of Christ in Richland. But it is perhaps tinged with new urgency. Survey results from the Pew Research Center show that congregations are delving into environmental awareness recently. And so are farmers.Read More
JPMorgan Chase is the latest investor to say it won't finance drilling in Alaska's Arctic. Some welcome the move, but there's also concern in a state that depends heavily on oil revenue. Read More
