• Level of plastic waste in the ocean higher than previously thought

    Level of plastic waste in the ocean higher than previously thought

    Feb 12, 2015 11:07 PM EST

    ... fixing the problem is not by focusing on removing the plastic from the ocean, but by preventing plastic from leaving the coasts and entering the water in the first place, three of the study's researchers -- Dr. Jenna Jambeck from the University of Georgia, Dr. Kara Lavender Law from the ...

  • EPA decision not to classify coal ash as hazardous angers environmentalists

    EPA decision not to classify coal ash as hazardous angers environmentalists

    Dec 20, 2014 01:18 AM EST

    ... the story. JEFFREY BROWN: December 22, 2008, more than a billion gallons of coal ash, a by-product of coal-burning energy production, mixed with water, burst through the banks of a containment pond in Kingston, Tennessee. The coal ash slurry flooded homes, farmland and poured into the Emory River ...

  • 'We need the rain': Jobs, land languish as California drought endures

    'We need the rain': Jobs, land languish as California drought endures

    Dec 13, 2014 05:13 PM EST

    ... water storage facilities and water recycling projects. This escalating thirst for water has also led to some surprising partnerships. For example, 21 million gallons of water every day flow into the Cawelo Reservoir – water helping save 90 desperate farmers south of Delano. The water comes from of all places…here ...

  • Inspired by a plastic bag's potential, nonprofit trains mothers in Ghana

    Inspired by a plastic bag's potential, nonprofit trains mothers in Ghana

    May 19, 2014 01:21 PM EST

    Friends Rebecca Brandt and Callie Brauel quickly learned two things while they were studying and volunteering in Ghana’s capital Accra: Everyone drinks water out of disposable bags, which end up discarded in the streets, and tens of thousands of children were living on the streets. The women thought they ...

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    Getting Trashed on the Job: My Day in the Dump

    Jan 25, 2013 10:10 PM EST

    ... of Americans, especially in environmentally aware places like San Francisco. As I worked on a story for the PBS NewsHour, I visited landfills, composting centers, recycling facilities, garbage-as-art studios and curbside pickup sites, and talked with everyone from garbage men and sorters on the recycling line to executives ...

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    Climate in the Classroom: Teachers Share Their Stories

    May 01, 2012 09:01 PM EST

    ... in the Virginia Elementary Science Standards of Learning that relates directly to climate change. The closest that we have is in the kindergarten standards, (reusing, recycling and conserving), the first grade standards (resources are limited, air and water quality) and the third grade standards (human impact, conservation of natural resources ...

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    In Peru, Gold Rush Leads to Mercury Contamination Concerns

    Dec 27, 2011 11:25 PM EST

    In remote regions of the Peruvian Amazon, extensive gold-mining operations have stirred major environmental concerns over mercury contamination in fish, fish-eating wildlife and humans. In collaboration with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, special correspondent Steve Sapienza reports.

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    Tuesday: Oil Washes Ashore on Texas Beaches; Obama to Meet With Netanyahu

    Jul 06, 2010 01:19 PM EST

    Strong storms and rough water in the Gulf of Mexico kept oil skimming boats idle Tuesday morning, as BP's oil reached Texas beaches for the first time. The oil has now reached every Gulf state. About a dozen tar balls were found Saturday on Crystal Beach and about five gallons of oil were found Sunday...

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    New Solvents May Lead to Better Biofuels

    May 30, 2008 08:35 PM EST

    Molten salts used as solvents may provide a stepping stone toward cheaper, more environmentally friendly biofuels, researchers said this month.

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    Environmental Impact of Katrina

    Nov 08, 2005 05:00 AM EST

    A science unit report looks at the environmental cleanup in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina inundated the city with filthy floodwater. Federal and state officials are at odds with environmental groups over the danger posed by toxins found in and around houses in New Orleans.