This publication describes the problem of extreme heat and outlines specific, actionable guidance for short-term emergency response and long-term risk reduction. From creating culturally-specific cooling centers, to increasing tree canopy and shade in certain urban areas, to improving protections for workers, the report highlights roles state and local governments, elected …
Reduced winds on Saturday helped firefighters gain the upper hand against a series of giant wildfires in north-central Washington that earlier left three firefighters dead. The Okanogan Complex of wildfires was measured at 355 square miles (920 square kilometers) on Saturday, about 100 miles larger than Friday, fire spokesman Rick …
SPOKANE: Big wildfires threatened the Lake Chelan resort region of central Washington on Monday after driving away tourists, destroying a warehouse filled with nearly 2 million pounds of apples and forcing thousands of residents to flee. The several large fires burning near the town of Chelan have scorched more than …
Twenty local governments, representing areas producing 5 percent of global climate-changing emissions, have committed to targets to cut those emissions, with the majority also setting goals for renewable energy, a platform uniting them said on Thursday. The Compact of States and Regions, launched last September, said more local governments would …
A wildfire burning unchecked in Washington state has destroyed at least 23 homes and three commercial buildings near the eastern foothills of the Cascades, state police and emergency management officials said on Monday. The so-called Sleepy Hollow fire has scorched an estimated 3,000 acres (1,200 hectares) of rolling grasslands and …
SAN FRANCISCO—More than 143 million Americans living in the 48 contiguous states are exposed to potentially damaging ground shaking from earthquakes, with as many as 28 million people likely to experience strong shaking during their lifetime, according to research discussed at the annual meeting of Seismological Society of America. The …
It's March. It's freezing. And there's half a foot of snow on the ground. When is this winter going to end? Many scientists think that climate change might be one cause of this year's "snowpocalypse" in Boston and bitter cold snaps in New York and Washington. But physicists at NASA's …
As much as 1,500 gallons of used motor oil leaked from an above-ground storage tank in Washington state into a creek that flows into the Yakima River, vital to the apple-growing state's agricultural hub, officials said on Monday. The cause of the spill on Sunday from the tank at a …
SPOKANE, Wash. — A federal judge has ruled that a large industrial dairy in eastern Washington has polluted drinking water through its application, storage and management of manure, in a case that could set precedents across the nation. U.S. District Judge Thomas O. Rice of Spokane ruled Wednesday that the …
Washington and Northern Californian shores have been seeing a very alarming (and rather smelly) sight over the last few months. The carcasses of thousands of small birds have been washing ashore, and scientists along the Pacific Coast are scrambling to understand why. The annual Audubon Bird Count: it happens every …
An unusual burst of heavy rainfall in western Washington state caused landslides and flooding early on Monday, knocking three homes off foundations and forcing the evacuation of a nursing home, officials said. Several landslides in rain-soaked coastal Grays Harbor County pushed muddy floodwater and debris across key state highways, county …
Washington state's attorney general said on Wednesday he intends to sue the U.S. government for not adequately protecting workers involved in the decades-long cleanup of a decommissioned nuclear site, saying dozens have been sickened by toxic vapors. The Hanford Nuclear Reservation, a World War Two-era nuclear weapons site in southeastern …
Pressure is growing on regulators in California and Washington, D.C., to crack down on methane, a greenhouse gas that's 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide and is accelerating the warming of the planet. Methane, the main component of natural gas, escapes into the atmosphere through leaks in drilling operations …
A tornado warning briefly rattled the U.S. capital on Wednesday as a severe storm swept through the Washington area. The storm prompted the midday alert by the National Weather Service, saying it could affect the U.S. Capitol and nearby Ronald Reagan National Airport. It later canceled the warning as the …
Federal wildlife refuges in the Northwest and Hawaii will phase out a class of pesticides that are chemically similar to nicotine because they pose a threat to bees and other pollinators key to crop growth. The region covering Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Hawaii is the first in the agency to …
The report says that logging in the area may have played a role. The most detailed published scientific account of the mudslide, which was the deadliest in U.S. history, suggests that the disaster was years in the making in a valley with a history of huge landslides dating back thousands …
Washington DC is giving foam carry-out containers the boot in an effort to make the city more sustainable. The DC Council on Monday approved the ban as part of a broader environmental package introduced by Mayor Vincent Gray. The provision bans restaurants, cafés, grocery stores and food trucks from using …
An Iowa Supreme Court ruling may spur the growth of solar energy in the state, accord to an industry group. The decision, “clears the air,” Ken Johnson, a spokesman for the Washington-based Solar Energy Industries Association, said in an interview today. “It’s going to make Iowa a more viable market …
Washington state awarded $14.3 million in matching grants to three utilities to develop battery systems to store power from intermittent, renewable sources. The projects received funding from the state’s Clean Energy Fund, Governor Jay Inslee said Tuesday in a statement. The goal of the fund is to promote clean energy …
Pesticides may be linked to a spike in cases involving breathing difficulties and skin rashes in central Washington state, health officials said on Monday. Washington health department spokeswoman Kelly Stowe said the illnesses could be tied to 15 separate incidents of spraying pesticides in commercial orchards. Roughly 60 people have …
Vermont became the first state in the US on Thursday to adopt a law requiring labels for foods containing genetically modified ingredients. The state's governor, Peter Shumlin, announced on his Twitter feed that he would hold a signing ceremony on Thursday afternoon to sign the new measure into law. The …
