Environment
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Nuclear power key to making US a 'powerhouse for clean energy,' Rep. Curtis says
Bridger Beal-Cvetko, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 28 - 3:05 p.m. | Save Story
Streamlining nuclear energy production could help the U.S. be a "powerhouse for clean energy," Utah Rep. John Curtis said.
What Salt Lake City's mayoral candidates have to say about Great Salt Lake's future
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 28 - 8:01 a.m. | Save Story
The Great Salt Lake Collaborative asked all three candidates in this year's Salt Lake mayoral race about their thoughts on the future of the struggling lake and why it matters.
With boil order still in effect, Apple Valley issues burn ban; mayor urges water conservation
E. George Goold, St. George News | Posted Sept. 27 - 9:24 p.m. | Save Story
Residents of Apple Valley are now under a full burn-ban and officials said on Tuesday that the current water crisis can be expected to go on for at least a couple more weeks.
Court rejects Utah's attempt to stop new EPA air pollution rule
Kyle Dunphey, Deseret News | Posted Sept. 27 - 8:53 p.m. | Save Story
A federal appeals court has sided with the Biden administration after Utah sued over the Environmental Protection Agency's "good neighbor" rule.
Why a world-renowned artist is painting a bee mural at Utah's Hogle Zoo
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 26 - 7:02 p.m. | Save Story
Utah's Hogle Zoo will feature some of the 50,000 individual bees that an artist is seeking to paint all over the world through a global art initiative.
Southwest Utah to house world's largest next-generation geothermal energy project
Logan Stefanich, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 26 - 4:05 p.m. | Save Story
Southwest Utah will soon be home to the world's largest next-generation geothermal energy project that the company says will deliver 400 megawatts of 24/7 carbon-free electricity.
Pilot program used to clear algal blooms in Mantua
Mike Anderson, KSL-TV | Posted Sept. 26 - 2:04 p.m. | Save Story
Scientists are working to clear algal blooms from Mantua Reservoir. They're studying a new approach that they say is safe for fish and wildlife and could end up costing taxpayers nothing.
'Fire Sense' receives national award. Here's how much Utah wildfires have dropped in 2 years
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 26 - 10:02 a.m. | Save Story
Utah is receiving national recognition for its "Fire Sense" campaign, which has drastically reduced human-caused wildfires since it launched in 2021.
An El Niño winter is coming. Here's what that could mean for the US
Mary Gilbert, CNN Meteorologist | Posted Sept. 25 - 9:46 a.m. | Save Story
Fall has only just begun, but it's not too soon to look ahead to winter, especially since this one may look drastically different than recent years because of El Niño.
Flamingos in Wisconsin? Tropical birds visit Lake Michigan beach in a first for the northern state
The Associated Press | Posted Sept. 24 - 7:52 a.m. | Save Story
Five flamingos that showed up in Wisconsin to wade along a Lake Michigan beach attracted a big crowd of onlookers eager to see the unusual visitors venturing far from their usual tropical setting.
Miles of Moab's desert roads could close. Is it needed conservation, or government overreach?
Kyle Dunphey, Deseret News | Posted Sept. 24 - 7:17 a.m. | Save Story
From several thousand feet above, the winding network of roads and trails that twist and divide sections of Gemini Bridges and Labyrinth Canyon in southern Utah are hard to miss. Roughly 98% of the area is within a half-mile of a designated road.
Coastal North Carolina hit by flooding as Tropical Storm Ophelia moves inland
Brian Witte and Jonathan Mattise, Associated Press | Posted Sept. 23 - 7:40 p.m. | Save Story
Residents in parts of coastal North Carolina and Virginia have experienced flooding after Tropical Storm Ophelia made landfall near a North Carolina barrier island, bringing rain, damaging winds and dangerous surges.
Lumen Bioscience wins $1.5M prize from U. to combat climate change by reducing cow farts
Kaigan Mears Bigler, KSL.com | Updated Sept. 22 - 5:18 p.m. | Save Story
Lumen Bioscience was announced Friday as the winner of the $1.5 million Wilkes Center Climate Prize from the University of Utah to expand its work on reducing methane emissions in the atmosphere — by reducing cow farts.
170 residences without water in Washington County town, others under boil order
Cassidy Wixom, KSL.com | Updated Sept. 21 - 10:58 p.m. | Save Story
Wells have run dry in Washington County's Apple Valley, leaving about 170 households without water. Those who do have water are being told to boil it before using it.
Why Cox isn't surprised with $1.5B price tag to mitigate Great Salt Lake dust
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 21 - 7:03 p.m. | Save Story
A new report that says mitigating Great Salt Lake dust would likely cost at least $1.5 billion. Gov. Spencer Cox said it underscores the importance of getting water to the lake instead.
Dude! Your illegal stash of weed is a buzzkill for the environment
Amy Joi O'Donoghue, Deseret News | Posted Sept. 21 - 6:20 a.m. | Save Story
Cannabis grown illegally in the United States is an environmental nightmare. Despite being the second most arid state in the nation, Utah was at one time a hot spot for illegal marijuana grows.
Crews thin out thousands of acres of forest to reduce wildfire danger
Mike Anderson, KSL-TV | Posted Sept. 20 - 10:28 p.m. | Save Story
Officials are working on thinning more than 140-thousand acres of national forests in Utah, all in order to protect against catastrophic wildfires.
Work begins to repair sections of Uinta Mountains years after beetle infestation
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 20 - 11:16 a.m. | Save Story
Federal foresters are working to remove trees from the Uinta Mountains that were killed off by massive beetle infestations starting in the early 2000s.
Can more canal trails connect Utah's transportation and water needs?
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 19 - 10:03 a.m. | Save Story
A Utah legislator says there might be a way to help save water as the state begins to roll out its trail connection system.
Why is this section of the Great Salt Lake still close to its record low?
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 18 - 9:08 p.m. | Save Story
Here's why the Great Salt Lake's northern arm didn't experience as many gains as its southern arm this year.
Desert shrimp? How a hurricane's remnants revived Joshua Tree National Park crustaceans
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 16 - 5:31 p.m. | Save Story
The remnants of Hurricane Hilary brought a threatened crustacean species back to life in Southern California's desert.
Romney, Lee, Curtis seek to amend Antiquities Act amid state's lawsuit appeal
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 15 - 8:55 p.m. | Save Story
Three members of Utah's congressional delegation helped introduce a pair of bills in Washington Thursday that seek to reform the Antiquities Act of 1906.
How impactful have this year's monsoons been for Utah's water supply?
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 15 - 6:26 a.m. | Save Story
Monsoonal rain doesn't boost Utah's reservoirs quite like the state's snowpack, but state water officials say recent monsoonal moisture still has major benefits.
Explosion at world's largest railyard in Nebraska prompts evacuations due to heavy toxic smoke
Josh Funk, Associated Press | Updated Sept. 14 - 6:54 p.m. | Save Story
An explosion inside a shipping container at the world's largest railyard prompted evacuations in western Nebraska Thursday because of the toxic smoke generated when one of the chemicals aboard caught fire.
'They're supposed to put it all back': How new Utah rules aim to protect Great Salt Lake's water
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 14 - 6:49 a.m. | Save Story
New mineral extractors will have to return all the Great Salt Lake water they use in operations.
EPA providing Logan with $4M grant to build green waste facility
Logan Stefanich, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 13 - 9:33 p.m. | Save Story
The Environmental Protection Agency this week announced that Cache County will be the beneficiary of $4 million to develop a Regional Green Waste Facility in Logan.
Utah considers Bear Lake legislation similar to what Idaho passed earlier this year
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 13 - 10:02 a.m. | Save Story
Utah lawmakers are working on a bill that would set up principles for future development in an effort to protect Bear Lake, essentially mirroring a law Idaho lawmakers approved earlier this year.
Utah's 14th wettest August on record propels state to above-average summer
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 11 - 7:59 p.m. | Save Story
Utah's wet August reversed trends from the first two-thirds of summer, and helped reduce the state's drought conditions and wildfire risks.
Utah data helps researchers highlight how urbanization impacts wildlife
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 11 - 6:50 a.m. | Save Story
North American cities, including the Salt Lake City area, are getting warmer, and researchers warn the heat is making it more difficult for native wildlife to adjust to the growing urbanization near their homes.
New lithium company wants billions of gallons from Great Salt Lake, but says it will put it all back
Leia Larsen, The Salt Lake Tribune | Posted Sept. 9 - 5:31 p.m. | Save Story
A new company says it wants to harvest lithium from the Great Salt Lake in a way that will use no evaporation ponds and deplete no water.
America's driest, hottest national park is still closed – but not for the reason you might think
Forrest Brown, CNN | Posted Sept. 8 - 2:05 p.m. | Save Story
Death Valley is the driest national park in the United States, receiving an average of about 2.2 inches of rain a year. It's also regarded as the hottest place on Earth.
Why is Wheeler Farm removing 120 trees?
Kaigan Mears Bigler, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 7 - 7:04 p.m. | Save Story
Wheeler Historic Farm is removing over 120 trees, but has plans to plant even more trees than are being removed.
Salt Lake City considers unique zoning measure as it deals with future of 'complex' neighborhood
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 7 - 8:05 a.m. | Save Story
Some parts of a Salt Lake City neighborhood could be temporarily zoned for agriculture to slow down development while the city comes up with a comprehensive plan for the area.
Environmental groups sue Utah, call state's Great Salt Lake efforts 'woefully inadequate'
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Updated Sept. 6 - 4:37 p.m. | Save Story
Five conservation groups are banding together in a lawsuit against Utah's natural resource leaders, arguing that they aren't doing enough to get water to the struggling Great Salt Lake.
Sandy coyote attacks on the rise; multiple owners lose pets
Shara Park, KSL-TV | Posted Sept. 5 - 7:37 p.m. | Save Story
A warning for residents on Sandy's east bench as wildlife officials see an increase in coyote activity.
Feds to send 'once-in-a-generation funding' to Utah, Western conservation projects
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Sept. 5 - 4:09 p.m. | Save Story
Federal land managers say they are sending $28 million to six groups working on land restoration projects across the West, including in Utah.
Burning Man organizers lift driving ban after heavy rains trapped thousands
Nouran Salahieh, Christina Maxouris, Holly Yan and Camila Bernal, CNN | Posted Sept. 4 - 9:06 p.m. | Save Story
Hundreds of vehicles are journeying out of the Burning Man festival grounds after heavy rains trapped tens of thousands and surrounded them with ankle-deep mud too thick to drive in.
The remarkable resilience of Utah's state crustacean
Robert Lawrence for KSL.com | Posted Sept. 3 - 2:26 p.m. | Save Story
Brine shrimp can survive extreme conditions, thanks to some sci-fi-like biological superpowers.
Paper straws are no better than plastic, research says
Mariah Maynes, KSL NewsRadio | Posted Sept. 3 - 9:07 a.m. | Save Story
Despite well-meaning attempts to cause less harm to the environment, researchers found that paper straws are just as bad as plastic straws.
Large algal bloom warning remains in place at Utah Lake ahead of Labor Day weekend
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Aug. 30 - 9:11 p.m. | Save Story
Utah County health officials are reminding people who plan to visit Utah Lake this Labor Day weekend that an algal bloom warning advisory is still in place.
Did you feel that? 3.7 magnitude earthquake hits Weber County
Sicily Stanton, KSL.com | Posted Aug. 30 - 7:23 p.m. | Save Story
An earthquake, measuring in at a 3.7 magnitude, was recorded near Huntsville in Weber County Wednesday evening.
Smoky skies return to Utah — but for how long?
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Aug. 30 - 12:08 p.m. | Save Story
A shift in weather patterns brought wildfire smoke back to Utah, but another shift is on the horizon.
Zion National Park to lift fire restrictions ahead of busy Labor Day weekend
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Aug. 29 - 6:29 p.m. | Save Story
Fire restrictions at Zion National Park are being lifted ahead of the Labor Day weekend because all the recent rainfall and improved fire conditions.
Why this Salt Lake group is trying to bring county's creeks back to surface
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Aug. 29 - 12:02 p.m. | Save Story
A plan to daylight a section of Emigration Creek at a Salt Lake City park is one of nearly two dozen a Utah group is proposing across the county. Here's why.
Texas grid operator appeals for conservation as heat wave persists
Katharine Jackson, Reuters | Posted Aug. 28 - 7:20 a.m. | Save Story
Texas' electric grid operator asked residents and businesses to conserve energy on Sunday as its reserves were expected to decrease during a scorching heat wave that has caused demand to surge.
Utah lawmakers plan to reevaluate water rights held by mineral companies on the Great Salt Lake
Adam Small, KSL Newsradio | Posted Aug. 27 - 9:38 p.m. | Save Story
In the coming months, Utah lawmakers will likely take another look at the annual water rights held by mineral companies along the Great Salt Lake.
Will climate change be a focus for GOP? Romney says yes; presidential candidate calls it a 'hoax'
Bridger Beal-Cvetko, KSL.com | Posted Aug. 24 - 12:02 p.m. | Save Story
Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, said the Republican Party will need to recognize the saliency of climate change as an issue.
A tropical storm and a rainy August have little impact on historically low Lake Powell
Kyle Dunphey, Deseret News | Posted Aug. 24 - 10:02 a.m. | Save Story
Parts of the West saw a year's worth of rain in a single day from Hurricane Hilary, with swaths of normally arid desert in Death Valley turning into lakes. But the rain is expected to have little effect on Lake Powell, the second-largest reservoir in the country
Illegal fish species found in 4 Utah reservoirs, wildlife biologists say
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Aug. 24 - 6:12 a.m. | Save Story
Utah wildlife officials are reminding people to not dump pet fish or any other fish that doesn't belong in a specific body of water after finding illegal species in four reservoirs this year.
Utah board approves 4th inland port location amid concerns from environmental groups
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Aug. 23 - 9:03 p.m. | Save Story
Utah's inland port system is officially growing, despite concerns raised about its newest project.
As Utah's meteorological summer closes on a wet note, what's in store for fall?
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Updated Aug. 22 - 6:34 p.m. | Save Story
The National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center's meteorological fall outlook, released last week, calls for a trend of uncertainty to continue in Utah when it comes to precipitation.
Did whales really live in the Great Salt Lake? New film explores the infamous legend
Grant Olsen for KSL.com | Posted Aug. 21 - 2:57 p.m. | Save Story
Australian expeditions, specially designed train cars and a wild business plan. It's truly a whale of a tale.
Why Gov. Cox says Utah's reservoirs may have a 'leg up' ahead of 2024
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Aug. 19 - 12:19 p.m. | Save Story
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox points to the state's strong soil saturation levels and the monsoonal rain in the immediate forecast for his optimism that next year's spring runoff will be as efficient as this year.
Appeals court strikes down Utah oil railroad approval, siding with environmentalists
Sam Metz, Associated Press | Posted Aug. 18 - 10:21 p.m. | Save Story
A U.S. Appeals Court has struck down a critical approval for a railroad project that would have allowed oil businesses in eastern Utah to significantly expand fossil fuel production and exports.
Will green energy kill coal mining? Why these industry leaders say it won't
Amy Joi O'Donoghue, Deseret News | Posted Aug. 18 - 2:04 p.m. | Save Story
Utah's coal country is in the midst of redefining itself.
'A terrible idea': Groups worry new inland port will harm Great Salt Lake refuge
Carter Williams, KSL.com | Posted Aug. 17 - 9:01 p.m. | Save Story
Environmental activists delivered a petition with about 1,200 signatures opposing the Utah Inland Port Authority's proposal to approve the Golden Spike Inland Port Project Area.
Killin' cousins: 'Murder hornet' kin found in US for first time
Art Raymond, Deseret News | Posted Aug. 17 - 5:32 p.m. | Save Story
Georgia agricultural officials report a close cousin of the notorious Asian "murder hornet" has been found in the U.S. for the first time and the newly discovered yellow-leg hornet, while much smaller than its well-known relative, poses an equally serious threat to honey bee populations and the crops that rely on bees for pollination.
Have You Seen This? Seahorse hotels created to conserve endangered species
Logan Stefanich, KSL.com | Posted Aug. 16 - 3:30 p.m. | Save Story
A collaborative project has created "seahorse hotels" to curb the loss of white seahorse habitat.
