Environment
An image of an adult spotted lanternfly. An image of an adult spotted lanternfly.

Spending Millions to Stop the Spread of a Destructive Insect Invader

Southeastern Pennsylvania is ground zero for an invasive species outbreak that’s threatening trees and crops. Can it be contained?

  • By Bill Lucia

Spending Millions to Stop the Spread of a Destructive Insect Invader

Southeastern Pennsylvania is ground zero for an invasive species outbreak that’s threatening trees and crops. Can it be contained?

  • By Bill Lucia
An image of an adult spotted lanternfly.
Then-California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signs the cap of Cindy Brenneman, a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) member after a news conference at the Santiago Fire Incident Command Post at Irvine Regional Park in Orange, Calif., Oct. 27, 2007. Then-California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signs the cap of Cindy Brenneman, a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) member after a news conference at the Santiago Fire Incident Command Post at Irvine Regional Park in Orange, Calif., Oct. 27, 2007.

Caught in a Disaster? Your Rescuer Might Be an Amateur

CERT volunteers have played a prominent role in responding to California wildfires in recent years.

  • By The Pew Charitable Trusts

Michigan Daycare Center Reports High PFAS in Its Water

STATE AND LOCAL ROUNDUP | Trial runs for the dreaded L train shutdown in N.Y.C. … job losses in Trump counties … and Maine is not prepared as tick-borne diseases spread north.

  • By Michael Grass
The orca is part of an endangered population of whales in the northeastern North American Pacific Ocean. The orca is part of an endangered population of whales in the northeastern North American Pacific Ocean.

Federal, Tribal and Local Officials Join Effort to Save Orca

The 4-year-old whale, summering off the coast of Washington, is emaciated.

  • By Kate Elizabeth Queram

Trump Administration Takes First Step in Weakening Fuel Economy Standards

If finalized, the EPA proposal would also revoke California’s ability to set its own goals used by 13 other states and ignite a fresh legal battle.

  • By Dave Nyczepir
EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler

EPA Administrator Seeks ‘50-State Solution’ to Fuel Economy Standards

Democratic senators grilled Andrew Wheeler over a draft proposal to freeze limits in model year 2020, against the wishes of California and 13 other states.

  • By Dave Nyczepir
In this March 28, 2017, file photo, a train near hauls coal mined from Wyoming's Powder River Basin near Bill, Wyo. In this March 28, 2017, file photo, a train near hauls coal mined from Wyoming's Powder River Basin near Bill, Wyo.

Senators Seek to Rein in State Power Over Key Environmental Permit

A lawyer with the Natural Resources Defense Council said the GOP-backed legislation threatens to “neuter the rights of all 50 states to protect their rivers, streams and coastal waters.”

  • By Bill Lucia
A jaguar sits in shade in Mexico. A jaguar sits in shade in Mexico.

US-Mexico Border Barriers Threaten 1,500 Plant and Animal Species

Barriers at the border disrupt the natural habitat of animals like jaguars and ocelots.

  • By Ephrat Livni, Quartz
Cars on Interstate 405 in Los Angeles. Cars on Interstate 405 in Los Angeles.

Reported Trump Auto-Emissions Rollback Plan Takes Aim at California

STATE AND LOCAL NEWS ROUNDUP | Calling on pranked Georgia Rep. Jason Spencer to resign … Heading off a marijuana swap-economy in Vermont … Fearing the Trump trade war across North Dakota’s 6.6 million-acres of soybean fields.

  • By John Tomasic, Special to Route Fifty
Salt flats of Badwater Basin in Death Valley in California. Salt flats of Badwater Basin in Death Valley in California.

Climate Change May Cause 26,000 More U.S. Suicides by 2050

Unusually hot days have profound effects on mental health and human physiology.

  • By Robinson Meyer, The Atlantic
A new EPA inspector general report faults the agency in its response to the Flint water crisis. A new EPA inspector general report faults the agency in its response to the Flint water crisis.

Delayed EPA Response to Water Crisis Increased Health Risks to Flint Residents, IG Finds

A new watchdog report found that the federal agency's regional office didn't establish clear roles for the state environmental agency and failed to create clear lines of communication.

  • By Eric Katz
In this Jan. 14, 2016 file photo, a drainage pipe that was the original culprit of a coal ash spill is seen at the Dan River Steam Station in Eden, North Carolina. In this Jan. 14, 2016 file photo, a drainage pipe that was the original culprit of a coal ash spill is seen at the Dan River Steam Station in Eden, North Carolina.

New EPA Chief Hands Off Coal Ash Regulation to the States

STATE AND LOCAL NEWS ROUNDUP | California high court blocks proposal to split state …. Which states pay the most and least in sales taxes? … Mentally ill in Boston and stranded in an ER.

  • By John Tomasic, Special to Route Fifty
Environmental Protection Agency Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler Environmental Protection Agency Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler

California Isn’t Expecting Policy Changes Under the New EPA Head

The court battle over the state’s strong fuel economy standards is still on.

  • By Dave Nyczepir
A boat speeds on the water in the Chesapeake Bay near Annapolis, Maryland. A boat speeds on the water in the Chesapeake Bay near Annapolis, Maryland.

Mid-Atlantic Officials Share Regional Efforts to Regulate the Environment

Frustrated by federal environmental deregulation, states are turning to ‘cooperative federalism’ to achieve clean air and water goals.

  • By Dave Nyczepir
In this Tuesday, May 17, 2016, photo, cattle graze around an idle pump jack on a South Texas ranch near Bigfoot, Texas. In this Tuesday, May 17, 2016, photo, cattle graze around an idle pump jack on a South Texas ranch near Bigfoot, Texas.

Why 'Orphan' Oil and Gas Wells Are a Growing Problem for States

Nobody knows how many orphan and abandoned drilling sites exist, but the federal government estimates there could be more than a million.

  • By The Pew Charitable Trusts

A Frightening New Reason to Worry About Air Pollution

A massive study solidifies the link between particulates from cars and diabetes.

  • By Olga Khazan, The Atlantic
Honolulu, Hawaii, USA. June 14, 2018. A surfer enjoys a wave at Ala Moana Bowls. Honolulu, Hawaii, USA. June 14, 2018. A surfer enjoys a wave at Ala Moana Bowls.

Hawaii Moves to Ban Sunscreen Believed to Damage Baby Coral

Hawaii's governor is expected to ban oxybenzone, the chemical in most sunscreens, this week. It would go into effect in 2021.

  • By Zoë Schlanger, Quartz
Shrimp boats in Apalachicola Bay in March 2018. Shrimp boats in Apalachicola Bay in March 2018.

As State ‘Water Wars’ Get Salty, Oysters Get a Say

The Supreme Court last week seemed to suggest that in water disputes between states, the health of an aquatic ecosystem can be considered alongside drinking-water and farming concerns.

  • By The Pew Charitable Trusts
This July 6, 2011, file photo shows a grizzly bear roaming near Beaver Lake in Yellowstone National Park, Wyo. This July 6, 2011, file photo shows a grizzly bear roaming near Beaver Lake in Yellowstone National Park, Wyo.

GOP Senator Proposes More State Control of Endangered Species Act

Sen. John Barrasso, of Wyoming, unveiled draft legislation Monday to amend one of the nation’s bedrock environmental laws.

  • By Bill Lucia
Three state legislatures this year have debated banning plastic straws. Three state legislatures this year have debated banning plastic straws.

She Sells Soda by the Seashore—But Maybe Not With a Plastic Straw

Some cities are banning plastic straws, while three state legislatures have debated the issue this year.

  • By The Pew Charitable Trusts