Sustainability
Researchers: Acid Rain Success Story Shows Value Of Science Informing Public Policy
Remember acid rain? In the 1970s and ‘80s, scientists found that rain 100 times more acidic than normal was harming the mountain forests of New England and New York. The pollution was linked to fossil fuel plants in the Midwest. Now, a new study shows red spruce trees are recovering thanks to tighter pollution laws.
Read MorePlum Island Residents Weigh ‘Green’ Or ‘Gray’ Infrastructure In Struggle Against Erosion
On the northern tip of an island surrounded by river, marsh and sea, a few dozen volunteers sink shovels into a mound of sand, digging 10,000 holes to plant 20,000 stalks of beach grass.
Read MoreA Microgrid System On Isle au Haut Could One Day Be A Model For The Entire Nation
Now, tiny Isle au Haut is the laboratory with a big solution: islanders and engineers are using artificial intelligence, complex algorithms and a bootstrapping attitude in an urgent effort to design what they are calling the next, next electricity grid.
Read More‘Welter Of Jurisdictions’ Complicate Efforts To Clean Up Connecticut River
A very old sewer system is still in use at about 800 wastewater treatment plants in the U.S., including along the Connecticut River. It’s called “combined sewer overflow,” or CSO. What overflows into waterways is a mix of storm water, street runoff and raw sewage.
Read MoreDevils, Damselflies, And History: A Trip Down Connecticut’s ‘Wild And Scenic’ Eightmile River
The trees are dense, the path is narrow, and everywhere, there’s the sound of water. I hike to a clearing and hear a waterfall dashing against rocks below, sending clouds of mist wafting over my trail. This is my first stop on a journey down New England’s southernmost “wild and scenic” river, the Eightmile.
Read MoreSouth County Beach Community In Rhode Island Continues To Retreat As Ocean Creeps Inland
The cottages in these rows are in a prime oceanfront location, but they won’t be here for long. Within the next two years, they will be moved about a quarter mile inland, because the ocean is creeping in closer and closer every year.
Read MoreMassachusetts Residents Worry Time Is Running Out For Salt Marsh Islands
Salt marshes are coastal wetlands that span up and down the East Coast. They help protect coastal properties from strong waves during storms, absorb carbon from the atmosphere, and serve as nurseries for fish and critical habitat for birds, such as ospreys. However, residents and fishermen started noticing these marsh islands, especially in the west branch of the river, rapidly disappearing.
Read MoreCentral Maine Power Strikes $22M Deal On Transmission Project That Could Cross Kennebec River Gorge
Central Maine Power (CMP) and a group of stakeholders in the western region of Maine, where the company wants to build a major new transmission line, have struck a mitigation deal worth up to $22 million.
Read MoreDaytime Power Demand Dipped Below Night For A Moment — And New England Solar Advocates Are Cheering
Solar power’s emergence as an important feature of New England’s energy landscape just hit an important milestone.
Read MoreThe Vineyard Wind Project To Build A 800-Megawatt Wind Farm Off Of Martha’s Vineyard
Massachusetts has announced their pick for the first industrial-sized offshore wind project: the Vineyard Wind project, which will build an 800-megawatt wind farm off of the southern coast of Martha’s Vineyard.
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