Environmental Health

"President Donald Trump’s transportation department has been pulling back grants already announced for recreational trails and bicycle lanes, telling local officials their projects fail to promote road capacity or are “hostile to motor vehicles.”"

"The state’s first climate deception case unfurled Thursday in North Carolina Business Court, where attorneys for the town of Carrboro and Duke Energy spent six hours sparring over legal arcana to answer a single question: Should a jury hear a case alleging that Duke Energy is responsible for lying about the link between climate change and extreme weather that has inflicted millions of dollars of property damage on the town? "

"The Trump administration has offered coal reserves in Wyoming in its latest move to reinvigorate the country’s coal industry. One environmental lawyer says it’s “ludicrous” to be selling leases for the most expensive and dirtiest form of energy."

"A third of the U.S. Geological Survey’s Climate Adaptation Science Centers are expected to drastically wind down and possibly close after Sept. 30." "Tracking bird populations after hurricanes. Mapping the risk of megafires across the Midwest. Identifying less expensive ways to battle invasive plants. Preparing communities’ stormwater drains against intense flooding."

"Staffing cuts under the Trump administration mean forecasters are struggling to maintain normal operations." "Some National Weather Service staffers are working double shifts to keep forecasting offices open. Others are operating under a “buddy system,” in which adjacent offices help monitor severe weather in understaffed regions."

"A new study found that 75 streams in Alaska’s Brooks Range have turned orange due to thawing permafrost, which releases metals like iron, aluminum and cadmium that exceed U.S. Environmental Protection Agency safety thresholds for aquatic life."

"NAACP leaders cite energy, water usage and a lack of transparency around the project as causes for concern."

"Residents of Indianapolis’ Martindale Brightwood neighborhood are confronting stubbornly high rates of hypertension, and public health experts point to lead exposure as a likely contributor."