FEMA Unprepared To Help Puerto Rico
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) now reports it was largely unprepared to help Puerto Rico in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, but experts say FEMA’s self analysis omits even more shortcomings. Peter Moyer, MD, discusses how FEMA’s failures led to unnecessary death and loss.
Repairing Puerto Rico’s Corals
Corals are a first line of defense against storm surges and a critical habitat for juvenile fish, but roughly 10 percent of Puerto Rico's corals were broken and damaged by Hurricane Maria. But Puerto Ricans are finding ways to help restore the corals.
Combat Divers Restore Ocean Health
For veterans of combat diving, life after the military can lack a sense of purpose. Now a nonprofit called FORCE BLUE is giving these military veterans a new mission, by employing their unique underwater skills to restore marine habitats.
Pruitt Out, Wheeler In
With the departure of Scott Pruitt, former coal lobbyist and Senate staffer Andrew Wheeler takes over as acting EPA Administrator with plans to keep rolling back regulations. Britt Erickson, a senior editor at Chemical and Engineering News talks about the high-stakes transition.
Hospital Farming For Better Health
Boston Medical Center is reimagining what it means to care for patients with a new rooftop agriculture project. Living on Earth's Jaime Kaiser visited this major teaching hospital to learn about the fresh produce that’s feeding hospital patrons.
Conservatives Join Climate Agenda
Recent federal efforts to address global warming have been hobbled by partisan gridlock and denial of human-induced climate disruption from the right. Now, Americans for Carbon Dividends, a coalition that spans both sides of the aisle, is planning a post-election push for a market-based approach to curb emissions. As Democratic Senator John Breaux of Louisiana explains, the plan has buy-in from a number of senior Republicans, major environmental groups and fossil fuel companies.
Australia May Scrap Carbon Tax
China is the world’s largest emitter, and much of its coal comes from Australia. With the election of a new Prime Minister, Australia looks set to revoke its carbon tax, leaving many environmentalists worried about their country’s contribution to climate change. (photo: Bigstockphoto.com)
Hummingbirds Citizen Science Project
The Rufous hummingbird follows the Rocky Mountains to migrate from Alaska to Mexico (Photo: Diana Douglas for Hummingbirds at Home).
Beyond the Headlines
Peter Dykstra of the Daily Climate and Environmental Health News brings us some far-flung environmental stories from this past week that didn’t make the headlines. This week: salt intrusion in Bangladesh and rare earth mining in Greenland.
FEMA Unprepared To Help Puerto Rico
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) now reports it was largely unprepared to help Puerto Rico in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, but experts say FEMA’s self analysis omits even more shortcomings. Peter Moyer, MD, discusses how FEMA’s failures led to unnecessary death and loss.
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Repairing Puerto Rico’s Corals
Corals are a first line of defense against storm surges and a critical habitat for juvenile fish, but roughly 10 percent of Puerto Rico's corals were broken and damaged by Hurricane Maria. But Puerto Ricans are finding ways to help restore the corals.
Combat Divers Restore Ocean Health
For veterans of combat diving, life after the military can lack a sense of purpose. Now a nonprofit called FORCE BLUE is giving these military veterans a new mission, by employing their unique underwater skills to restore marine habitats.
This Week’s Show
July 20, 2018
listen / download
FEMA Unprepared To Help Puerto Rico
listen / download
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) now reports it was largely unprepared to help Puerto Rico in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, but experts say FEMA’s self analysis omits even more shortcomings. Peter Moyer, MD, discusses how FEMA’s failures led to unnecessary death and loss.
Repairing Puerto Rico’s Corals
listen / download
Corals are a first line of defense against storm surges and a critical habitat for juvenile fish, but roughly 10 percent of Puerto Rico's corals were broken and damaged by Hurricane Maria. But Puerto Ricans are finding ways to help restore the corals.
Combat Divers Restore Ocean Health
listen / download
For veterans of combat diving, life after the military can lack a sense of purpose. Now a nonprofit called FORCE BLUE is giving these military veterans a new mission, by employing their unique underwater skills to restore marine habitats.
Beyond the Headlines
listen / download
On this week’s Beyond the Headlines, a discussion of President Donald Trump’s pardoning of the Hammond father-son duo. Then, a very determined Western Gull that hitched a ride across the Bay Area in search of food. Finally in the history lesson, a look back to the creation of the Korean Demilitarized Zone and how it has benefited wildlife.
CRISPR Gene Tool Could Pinpoint Resilient Corals
listen / download
Rising ocean temperatures are causing massive coral reef die-offs, leading to a worldwide call for action. One potential solution comes from a team at Stanford University that recently started using the CRISPR genetic editing tool to identify genes that make corals heat-tolerant.
Special Features
What the Osprey Overheard
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As new osprey parents feed and care for their young, even the faintest of sounds – like a distant plane – seem a threat to the youngsters. Living on Earth’s resident explorer Mark Seth Lender watches as the ospreys keep a watchful eye, and ear, on their surroundings, and muses on how loud our anthropogenic world must be to them.
Blog Series: Mark Seth Lender Field Notes
Field Note: Fishing Line Endangers Birds
Living on Earth's Explorer in Residence, Mark Seth Lender, reflects on his tangle with a tern and fishing line on the 4th of July.
Blog Series: Mark Seth Lender Field Notes
Lawmakers Call for Pruitt to Resign
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EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt is under heavy fire for alleged legal and ethical violations, and a record number of lawmakers say "enough is enough." Some 140 House members and 39 senators, all caucusing with Democrats, have signed on to a non-binding resolution introduced by Representative Kathy Castor of Florida and Senator Tom Udall of New Mexico calling for Mr. Pruitt’s resignation. Senator Tom Udall discusses with host Steve Curwood Pruitt's ethical red flags that have recently come to light, and the EPA rollbacks the Senator says are harmful to human health.
Blog Series: LOE Updates
...Ultimately, if we are going prevent large parts of this Earth from becoming not only inhospitable but uninhabitable in our lifetimes, we are going to have to keep some fossil fuels in the ground rather than burn them...
-- President Barack Obama, November 6, 2015 on why he declined to approve the Keystone XL Pipeline.
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