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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.

Wisconsin wolf hunters well ahead of 2012 pace

Hunters killed 117 wolves last year, one over the quota. The DNR estimated that last winter's wolf population was as high as 834 animals, and the agency is trying to reduce the population to 350.

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That monstrous California oarfish is still turning heads

That monstrous California oarfish is still turning heads

The silvery carcasses of two giant oarfish were discovered along the Southern California coast last week, baffling scientists and gaining a growing online following who gawked at the bony, snake-like creatures.

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Zebra mussels move north to Lake Winnipeg

Zebra mussels move north to Lake Winnipeg

Manitoba officials are trying to determine the scope of an infestation discovered recently in Lake Winnipeg.
by Dan Gunderson

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U.S. carbon dioxide pollution down 3.8%

The United States cut its energy-related carbon dioxide pollution by 3.8 percent last year, the second biggest drop since 1990, the Department of Energy said Monday.

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5 x 8: The Airpocalypse

5 x 8: The Airpocalypse

When regulations are a good idea, the end of Miami is near, the passing of the last Minnesota survivor of the USS Indianapolis, helping Dusan Travica, and what sustainability looks like.
by Bob Collins

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Xcel Energy Sherco plant returns to service after repairs

Xcel Energy Sherco plant returns to service after repairs

Nearly two years after a failure of one of its units led to extensive damage, Xcel Energy's Sherburne County Generating Station is back to normal.
by Elizabeth Dunbar

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Boy Scouts remove 2 men who toppled ancient rock

Two Utah men already facing possible criminal charges for purposely toppling an ancient rock formation in a state park have now been removed from their posts as Boy Scout leaders and will no longer be allowed to lead scouting troops.

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Fighting erosion along Minnesota's river bluffs

Fighting erosion along Minnesota's river bluffs

When severe flooding this summer worsened erosion around many of the region's cold-water trout streams, environmentalists searched for ways to keep soil out of the water without breaking local government budgets. They decided to try walls of trees.
by Elizabeth Baier

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City threatens suit over building’s discharge of water into Chain of Lakes

The owners of a building near the Chain of Lakes in Minneapolis could face a lawsuit from the city for discharging thousands of gallons of water an hour into the nearby lakes through a storm sewer.
by Jon Collins

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A frugal wall of trees may save eroding Riceford Creek

A frugal wall of trees may save eroding Riceford Creek

Southeast Minnesota's high, sandy river bluffs make for some beautiful trout fishing, but that beauty comes at a cost: When it rains, the bluffs routinely send tons of sediment sliding into the cold-water streams, threatening the ecosystem. Severe flooding this summer worsened the erosion, challenging conservationists to find a remedy that wouldn't break the bank. They decided to try walls of trees. Here's what that effort looks like on Riceford Creek, near Spring Grove.

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