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.

Submit a question or story for Getting to Green here.

Climate Cast

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

DNR confirms new Line 3 aquifer breach in northern Minnesota
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources confirmed it’s investigating the rupture near Moose Lake, south of Hill City in Aitkin County in an area with complex wetlands and peat bogs. It’s the fourth confirmed breach of a groundwater aquifer along the Line 3 corridor.
How much is climate change fueling intense heat across the world?
The heat is on for Minnesota this week and heat waves are making news across the world. How can scientists gauge when heat events are normal and when they’re fueled by climate change?
On the structure that once supported enclosed monorail trains, the new open-air, at-your-own-pace Treetop Trail loops for more than a mile through the forest canopy at the 485-acre zoo in Apple Valley, Minn.
Fond du Lac Band sues 3M and other companies over PFAS pollution
The Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa alleges manufacturers and distributors of the chemicals, which were used to make firefighting foam that was used for decades near the Fond du Lac reservation, have threatened “the health, welfare and rights of the Band.”
Biden looks to provide relief from extreme heat as record temperatures persist across U.S.
President Joe Biden plans to announce new steps to address the extreme heat that has threatened millions of Americans, most recently in the Southwest. The White House says officials are working on worker protections, improved weather forecasts and more accessible drinking water.
22 attorneys general oppose 3M settlement over water systems contamination with 'forever chemicals'
Twenty-two attorneys general urged a federal court Wednesday to reject a proposed $10.3 billion settlement over contamination of U.S. public drinking water systems with potentially dangerous chemicals, saying it lets manufacturer 3M Co. off too easily.
With Florida ocean temperatures topping 100, experts warn of damage to marine life
The startling 101.1 reading was recorded in Manatee Bay, near Everglades National Park. The rising ocean temperatures, driven by climate change, are already endangering nearby coral, experts say.
Company building solar panels on the Iron Range plans to expand to the Twin Cities
A Canadian company operating one of the largest solar panel manufacturing plants in the country on Minnesota’s Iron Range plans to spend about $145 million to open another facility in the Twin Cities.