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.

There are now 8 billion people on Earth, according to a new U.N. report
The number of people on Earth reached 8 billion for the first time, according to the U.N. The world's population continues to grow, but it's slowing down as people live longer and have fewer kids.
DNR repeals ban of lead bullets on some state lands
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has temporarily repealed a requirement that hunters use non-toxic, lead-free ammunition in special hunts in state parks, because of an ongoing ammunition shortage.
Boil water advisory lifted for parts of Maplewood, eastern St. Paul
St. Paul Regional Water Services has lifted a boil-water advisory that had been in place for parts of Maplewood and parts of St. Paul’s east side, saying the water is safe to drink.
Record flock of sandhill cranes at Sherburne refuge
The graceful, vocal birds stop by the Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge before heading to warmer climes for the winter. This has proved a record year, although many have moved on due to the weekend cold weather.
'It could just sweep us away': This school is on the front lines of climate change
Climate change is an everyday reality for students and teachers living in the Himalayan mountains of Nepal. At one school, they are trying to learn more about the forces that could upend their lives.
Do wealthy countries owe poorer ones for climate change? One country wrote up a bill
At global climate negotiations, developing countries say they're being devastated by a problem they didn't cause. So they're looking for compensation for the losses and damage from climate change.
Dire warnings from world leaders at annual global climate conference
The United Nations’ COP27 global climate summit of world leaders takes place this week. And the need for global cooperation against climate change is more urgent than ever.
Why Lake Superior's legendary gales blow especially hard in November
Gale force winds and 20 foot tall waves are whipped across Lake Superior today, on the anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald. There are specific reasons why the wind and waves tend to whip up the same time of year around the Great Lakes.