Environment
President in stop at Pueblo wind tower factory touts ‘Bidenomics,’ blasts Boebert
Tony Salerno is a former steelworker who has worked at CS Wind’s sprawling wind tower factory outside of Pueblo for 10 years. Only a few years ago, he said Wednesday, the plant — the largest manufacturer of wind towers in the world — was struggling amid an uncertain outlook for the clean energy industry. “We […]
Ahead of climate conference, U.S. House panel tussles over curbs on emissions
Republicans on a U.S. House panel argued Wednesday against aggressive moves to meet carbon reduction goals, saying U.S. fossil fuel companies are working to make their products cleaner. Democrats on the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on the Environment, Manufacturing and Critical Minerals countered that to achieve further reductions, federal policies should be continued […]
Over 100 private water wells near Colorado military sites have dangerous PFAS levels, report finds
There are 105 private drinking water wells near Colorado military bases that are contaminated with so-called forever chemicals, but they are not dirty enough for the federal government to provide alternative drinking water to residents, says a advocacy organization. There are 101 wells near Peterson Space Force Base and four near Schriever Space Force Base […]
Some states act to protect residents from extreme heat — with a new focus on young people
This story originally appeared at Stateline. After two years of record-breaking heat that brought a surge of deaths and health emergencies, several states have enacted or are considering measures designed to protect residents — with a new focus on younger people whose vulnerability is rising with the temperatures. Nationally, heat-related deaths rose from about 1,000 […]
How bluegrass lawns became the default for homeowners associations
Between 50% and 60% of Coloradans live in housing governed by homeowners associations, commonly called HOAs. Squeezing water devoted to urban landscapes must necessarily involve these neighborhoods. It’s already happening but, so far, mostly on the edges. A case in point: a small HOA in Greeley called Bittersweet Pointe. “We keep saying that all the […]
New life for old coal: Minelands and power plants are hot renewable development spots
PETERSBURG, Ind. — AES Indiana’s Petersburg Generating Station, which towers over the White River here in southwest Indiana, has been burning coal to generate electricity since the late 1960s. That era, though, will come to an end soon. Two of the power plant’s four coal-burning units have already retired and the last is planning to […]
‘Out of compliance’ Utah oil facility could keep polluting during environmental review
A privately owned oil loading facility on public lands eight miles northwest of Price, Utah, has been operating out of compliance with state air-quality regulations for years, a state official recently confirmed to Colorado Newsline, and likely will continue to do so as it seeks approval from the federal government for a massive expansion to […]
Reliability v. sustainability: Inside the debate over the EPA’s proposed carbon rules
Electric reliability has been a hot topic lately — from congressional hearings to regulatory agencies and at the regional transmission organizations that run the electric grid in much of the country. The American electric grid is undergoing a major change, prodded by state and federal decarbonization policies, market forces pushing cheaper and cleaner forms of […]
At Colorado River’s headwaters, questions about whether there’s enough water for lawns
If you’ve ever slipped and spun your way across Vail Pass through a wet, heavy snowstorm, you can be excused for wondering how Eagle River Valley communities could ever have too little water. Vail and its neighbors do have that problem, though. It has become evident in the growing frequency of drought years in the […]
Boebert challengers diverge on best use of public lands in western Colorado
EAGLE COUNTY, Colo. – The top two Democrats vying to take on Republican U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert in the 2024 election have very different takes on her ardently pro-drilling battle with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. Boebert opposes the agency’s pending national conservation rule and its plan for restricting natural gas production on large […]
Nebraska plan to divert water could put destructive carp in Kansas lakes
This commentary originally appeared in the Kansas Reflector. Back in the 1970s, in an attempt to control algal blooms in wastewater treatment plants and aquafarming ponds, managers imported four species of Asian carp. Unfortunately — as with many well-intentioned plans that tamper with ecosystems — the carp were inadvertently released or escaped through flood events, […]
Was your family affected by radiation from the Manhattan Project? We want to hear your story
This story was originally published by the nonprofit newsroom MuckRock. It is republished under a Creative Commons (BY-ND 4.0) license. For thousands of families who lived and worked near top-secret nuclear testing sites or uranium processing facilities in the 1940s, 50s and 60s, the road to getting an official apology from the federal government — and […]