Environment

The chloride in road salt corrodes vehicles and bridges and can be harmful to pets -- and it has an outsize impact on water quality in the rivers, lakes and streams that capture its runoff. So now, public works agencies and homeowners alike are on the lookout for safer alternatives. A single answer has proven elusive.

A biennial state report that assesses the greenhouse gases Minnesota emits now includes a newly understood source of the pollution that contributes to climate change.

Last summer, state utility regulators approved the controversial $2.6 billion pipeline replacement project. Former Gov. Mark Dayton's administration appealed that decision. Walz announced Tuesday his administration will file its own challenge.

State Rep. Jamie Becker-Finn says Minnesota needs to take comprehensive action this year to stop the spread of chronic wasting disease among the state's wild deer.

Several species of destructive tree-eating insects — some native to Minnesota, others not — actually are cold-hardy enough that they'll likely survive until spring.

There's growing evidence that long-term exposure to the perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl compounds, or PFAS, can be dangerous, even in tiny amounts.

In an environmentally historic vote, the European Parliament has moved to ban single-use plastic products across Europe. This ban outlaws plastic bags, straws, plates, cups, drink stirrers and cotton swabs.

An Intelligence Squared series debate about de-extinction.

Faith leaders gathered at the Capitol on Friday to urge Gov. Tim Walz to oppose Enbridge Energy's Line 3 crude oil pipeline replacement.

The cost of water has spiked in recent years, as cities around the country have raised rates to replace aging infrastructure. The issue is especially acute in some unexpected places: The Great Lakes' biggest cities, including Duluth.

The Green New Deal to address climate change is short on specifics and wildly ambitious. But even seasoned energy experts admire the enthusiasm it's generating.

MPR News chief meteorologist Paul Huttner visited Cuba last week and got a lesson on how climate change is affecting the country.

Americans are struggling to afford their rising water bills, and thousands of poor families have had their service shut off. This growing crisis has a dark irony: It's especially acute in a region where water is most abundant -- the Great Lakes.

The last five years are also the five hottest years on record for average global temperature, according to scientists from NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The plan is massively ambitious and faces political blockades. Proponents believe it's what's necessary to start saving the world from the threat of climate change and to reshape the U.S. economy.

Prosecutors in northern Minnesota have charged four protesters who allegedly tried to shut down an Enbridge oil pipeline, but brought the wrong tool.

A lone wolf went back to the mainland after wildlife officials brought her to Isle Royale in an attempt to restore the island's predator-prey habitat.

The famed explorer is back from his latest excursion and he told Climate Cast what he saw.

A bill that would supercharge Minnesota's renewable energy standard got its first hearing at the Capitol Tuesday.

If temperatures continue to rise, glaciers would begin to disappear, with a serious impact on the area's water resources.