Water & Oceans

"Alaska’s wettest region is experiencing an extreme drought for the first time in recorded history, climate scientists say."

"An aggressive push by Congress to pass bipartisan legislation addressing cancer-causing chemicals that are leaching into the water supply is setting the stage for a fight with the Trump administration."

"EPA wants to allow perchlorate in drinking water to reach concentrations 10 times higher than standards set by states and three times higher than the agency's own reference level."

"Something happened to the population of North Atlantic right whales in the last decade, as their numbers shrank and fewer calves were born." "New evidence suggests that the endangered population lost much of a critical food source, but may be stabilizing slightly as it shifts territory to feed elsewhere."

"This year’s Atlantic hurricane season should be “near normal,” government forecasters announced on Thursday, with the likelihood of nine to 15 named storms, and two to four major Category 3 hurricanes with winds of 111 miles per hour or greater."

"The Chesapeake Bay’s recovery took a step back in 2018, but the estuary retained its “C” grade on an annual report card from the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science."

"Today’s children could see Miami and the Earth’s other low-lying cities swallowed by the rising ocean within 80 years if the fossil fuel pollution causing climate change continues unabated."

"Water is a currency in California, and the low-income farmworkers who pick the Central Valley’s crops know it better than anyone. They labor in the region’s endless orchards, made possible by sophisticated irrigation systems, but at home their faucets spew toxic water tainted by arsenic and fertilizer chemicals."

"DAVENPORT, Iowa — The Mississippi River, which gushed into downtown Davenport at record levels two weeks ago, has finally retreated toward its banks. Left behind: A truck-size hole in the temporary flood barrier, dead fish on mud-caked Pershing Avenue, and an urgent conversation about how to shield the city from the next flood."