RSS Feed from NPR's Environment Programs

Scientist: 'Don't Give Up' On Stopping Asian Carp: Click here

Two Asian carp species that could devastate the Great Lakes ecosystem may be a few miles from Lake Michigan. To halt their migration, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built an underwater electric fence on a canal 20 miles south of the lake. But tests conducted by David Lodge at Notre Dame indicate that they have gotten close to the lake despite the barrier.

Obscured By War, Water Crisis Looms In Yemen: Click here

News from Yemen has been dominated recently by an escalating rebellion along the border with Saudi Arabia. But the country has been making news for decades because of its severe overuse of a rapidly disappearing water supply, the result of natural and political causes.

Financial Crisis Is 'Green' For The Environment: Click here

New studies are projecting that carbon dioxide emissions — greenhouse gas emissions — will decrease for the year 2009. That is thanks to the global recession. But the reprieve is small and expected to be short lived.

Fungus Provides Clues To North American Extinctions: Click here

One of the great mysteries about North America is what killed off woolly mammoths and other exotic animals that roamed the land after the last ice age. Ideas have ranged from a comet impact and climate change to human hunters. A study published Friday in Science Magazine provides new clues about this — cleverly deduced from samples of a fungus that grew on the animal's dung.

Reef Conservation Strategy Backfires: Click here

Conservationists worried about overfishing on the Pacific island of Kiribati persuaded fishermen to pick coconuts instead. The strategy backfired: Coconut oil production increased, but so did fishing. It turns out, fishermen who earned more money in coconut agriculture had more leisure time — which they spent fishing.

Higher Temperatures May Be Behind Pine Growth: Click here

Ancient bristlecone pine trees found in certain parts of California and Nevada have been growing at an unprecedented rate in the last 50 years. According to a recent study, this growth has most likely been caused by warmer temperatures. Malcolm Hughes, one of the study's lead researchers and a professor of dendrochronology at the University of Arizona's Laboratory for Tree-Ring Research, offers his insight.

California Requires TVs To Be More Energy Efficient: Click here

Power-hungry TVs will be banned from store shelves in California after state regulators adopted a first-in-the nation mandate to lower electricity demand. On a unanimous vote, the California Energy Commission on Wednesday required all new televisions up to 58 inches to be more energy efficient beginning in 2011.

Environment Or Economy? Obama's Balancing Act: Click here

To sell Congress and others on the idea of taking bold steps to curb global warming, President Obama casts his arguments in terms of job creation. Many environmental activists say they wish he'd do more to push the "green" agenda.

Top Executives Launch Electric Car Coalition: Click here

A group of executives from more than a dozen auto, transportation and energy companies launched a new coalition Monday to urge the federal government to make a major investment in electric transportation. Their goal is to bring 100 million electric cars to the road by 2030.

Lower Tuna Limit Still Too High, Researchers Say: Click here

The international commission that regulates fishing of tuna and other large migratory fish in the Atlantic voted to sharply reduce the fishing quota for bluefin tuna at their latest meeting. But some scientists say the new quota is too high to sustain the species.

The Dirt On Dust: Click here

Where does all that dust under your couch come from? It turns out that most household dust comes from outside — and may contain some pretty harmful stuff. How the toxins in dust get into your body depends on the size of the dust particle.

Brown Pelican Flies Off The Endangered List: Click here

After nearly 40 years on the brink of extinction, the brown pelican has made a substantial enough comeback that it was removed Wednesday from the endangered species list. The bird was nearly killed off by the pesticide DDT.

EPA Drafts Chesapeake Bay Cleanup Strategy: Click here

The Environmental Protection Agency has outlined a new effort to help protect and restore the Chesapeake Bay, the nation's largest estuary. And it targets the root causes of the trouble: runoff.

Researchers Get Dirty To Clean Up Chesapeake: Click here

A team of scientists is studying mud, ooze and other material from the bay's bottom to help the EPA crack down on pollutants. The tubes of glop they've collected from throughout the Chesapeake Bay are like biopsies — they indicate where the bay is healthy and where it's dying.

Climate Rift Grows Between U.S., Poor Nations: Click here

As the world prepares for crucial climate-change talks in Copenhagen next month, there is a growing rift between the United States and some of the world's poorest nations. The gap grew wider this past week, at the final official pre-Copenhagen talks in Barcelona.