Environmental News

MPR News is your source for environment news from Minnesota and across the country.

Getting to Green: Minnesota’s energy future

Getting to Green is an MPR News series that shares stories about Minnesota’s clean energy transition, including what needs to be done to get there.

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Climate Cast

Listen to Climate Cast, the MPR News podcast all about our changing climate and its impact in Minnesota and worldwide.

Deteriorating ice creates dangerous conditions on Minnesota lakes
Ice conditions are deteriorating across the state because of warm temperatures and recent rainfall. Law enforcement officials and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources are urging caution when venturing onto frozen lakes.
Getting dirty: No snow means messy training for dog sled mushers
This season’s utter lack of snow is making for some tricky — and muddy — training for musher Erin Altemus, her husband and their 30 sled dogs. The couple is hoping to race in their first Iditarod in March.
As the Endangered Species Act turns 50, those who first enforced it reflect on its mixed legacy
On Dec. 28, 1973, President Richard Nixon signed the Endangered Species Act. The powerful law charged the federal government with saving every endangered plant and animal in America. It enjoyed nearly unanimous bipartisan support but soon became controversial. 
This oil company invests in pulling CO2 out of the sky — so it can keep selling crude
A technology that could help combat climate change is being championed by an unlikely proponent: Occidental Petroleum, a big oil company. And that's raising all kinds of knotty issues.
From roadkill to research: Collect dead wildlife to help science
A new statewide network is launching in Minnesota with a goal to create a large database to track ecosystem changes and monitor environmental health into the future.
Along the North Shore, sleepy Silver Bay embraces development to put itself 'on the map'
Construction is set to begin on a nearly $25 million development of townhomes and vacation rentals in Silver Bay, the first of several projects to reinvent the city originally built as a mining company town.