Environment

Help biologists monitor, conserve Kentucky’s wild turkey population by reporting sightings online

BY: - July 10, 2024

State fish and wildlife agencies are conducting scientific research to shed more light on the status of turkey populations — and need the public’s help, according to a news release from the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. The department is encouraging anyone who observes wild turkeys in Kentucky during July or August to […]

Will the lightning bug show go on?

BY: - July 4, 2024

This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, independent news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. It is republished with permission. Sign up for their newsletter here.? Every year in late June, Peggy Butler and her husband, Ken, welcome visitors to rural northwestern Pennsylvania for the chance to glimpse the rare […]

Kent Chandler wearing a black suit with a green tie.

Consumer advocates mourn departure of Kentucky’s top utility regulator

BY: - July 1, 2024

The chair of Kentucky’s utility regulator is leaving the post after almost three years to the disappointment of some consumer advocates.? Kentucky Public Service Commission Chair Kent Chandler’s term on the three-person commission expired on June 30. Crystal Staley, a spokesperson for Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, said Chandler had resigned and that the governor appreciated […]

Federal regulators approve controversial Louisiana gas terminal project

BY: - June 27, 2024

A massive and contentious liquefied natural gas export project in coastal Louisiana and an associated pipeline got a key approval from federal regulators Thursday. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued an order granting permission for Venture Global to build and operate the CP2 terminal in Cameron Parish along the Gulf Coast and construct and operate […]

Sun, water, federal dollars power new energy projects in Kentucky

BY: - June 26, 2024

Jonathan Moore sees potential for reliable, durable electric power in Kentucky’s hundreds of miles of waterways, more navigable water than many states can boast. The Kentucky River is a prime example, says Moore, a partner in the company Appalachian Hydro Associates. Taking advantage of a system of locks and dams dating back to the 19th […]

States, citizens suing plastics industry, alleging greenwashing, misleading claims about recycling

BY: - June 19, 2024

This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, independent news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. It is republished with permission. Sign up for their newsletter here. The plastic pellets washing up on beaches and in marshes around Charleston, South Carolina, became very obvious about five years ago. Called nurdles, these […]

Memorial Day storms death total updated

BY: - June 13, 2024

The storms that swept through Kentucky over Memorial Day weekend killed at least 6 people, Gov. Andy Beshear said Thursday.? The previous known death total was 5. The sixth death was a 99-year-old woman in Laurel County, Beshear said.? Previous deaths were reported in Hopkins, Caldwell, Hardin, Mercer and Jefferson Counties.? The late May storms […]

U.S. Senate Republicans outline their farm bill framework

BY: - June 11, 2024

WASHINGTON — Republicans on the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry on Tuesday released their framework for a new five-year farm bill that will set the policy and funding levels for key food, agriculture and conservation programs. The top Republican on the committee, Arkansas Sen. John Boozman, laid out?GOP priorities?with reporters during a […]

Louisville moves toward cleaning up ‘Gully of the Drums’ after more than four decades

BY: - June 11, 2024

This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, independent news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. It is republished with permission. Sign up for their newsletter here. LOUISVILLE — City officials are taking their first public step toward cleaning up hazardous waste in a popular park after a local graduate student […]

‘Rewarding:’ Kentucky Lantern staff honored with 6 regional awards

BY: - June 6, 2024

The Kentucky Lantern’s three full time reporters took home six awards Thursday from the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) Louisville chapter.? Politics reporter McKenna Horsley won two second place awards — one in the education category and one in politics. The winning stories included her coverage of what Kentucky schools can teach students about sex […]

House Speaker Johnson opposes radiation compensation for Missouri, New Mexico

BY: - May 29, 2024

Offering compensation to thousands of Americans across nine states exposed to radiation from the nation’s nuclear weapons program would be too expensive, U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson’s office said Wednesday. With less than two weeks until the existing Radiation Exposure Compensation Act expires, a spokesperson in Johnson’s office said the speaker supports renewing the program […]

21 states join Biden administration in bid to modernize nation’s aging grid

BY: - May 29, 2024

Twenty-one states, including Kentucky, are joining a push by the Biden administration to modernize America’s aging electric grid, which is under pressure from growing demand, a changing power generation mix that includes lots of wind and solar and severe weather. The administration, which has set a goal of a carbon-free power sector by 2035, announced […]