Episodes

The scope of waters covered by the federal Clean Water Act - called Waters of the U.S. - is one of the most complex, controversial, and contentious issues in environmental policy. Waters of the U.S. has been the focus of Supreme Court rulings,

Brewers are seeing the impacts of climate change on essential ingredients for beer. Unusual temperatures and precipitation are damaging crops like barley and hops while water resources are stressed by drought or polluted by algae blooms and wildfires,

As the world’s largest freshwater ecosystem, the Great Lakes benefit from massive financial investment in restoration and protection activities each year. Yet one unique entity acts as a force multiplier, not by contributing the most dollars,

Water management has long been an essential part of operations for beverage companies, but in an increasingly water-stressed world the industry is focused on finding ways to reduce risk, help at the community level, and benefit the bottom line.

Intense rainfall driven by climate change, impervious surfaces like concrete and asphalt, and aging water infrastructure are part of the formula causing communities across the country to face increased flooding and stormwater runoff.

There have been lofty expectations for how sensors, remote monitoring, data, and the Internet of Things would impact the operation of water infrastructure. In many ways the digital tools are beginning to live up to the hype and allowing water managers ...

As farms in California face another extreme drought this summer, the hope is that lessons learned and policies and tools developed from the last drought can help with water management this time. During drought farms significantly increase use of ground...

Philadelphia has embraced the use of arts and culture - from murals and music to superheroes - as a way to communicate with the community about water. The effort has especially focused on educating African-American, Latino, a...

With climate change putting the West into a permanent drought and water levels in Lake Mead dropping to the lowest levels since Hoover Dam was built in the 1930s, the time is right for the oasis in the desert known as Las Vegas to take a big step towar...

Advancements in technology and computers have allowed scientists to develop a detailed look at the coastal land margin, the dynamic area where the land and ocean interface. The high resolution models are used to better understand the coastal environmen...

When water quality tests are conducted at the beach to determine safety for swimming it typically takes 24 hours for results, which isn’t helpful for protecting public health in real-time. But a rapid method of testing can provide information about bac...

Many environmental problems stem from behavior problems. So over the past decade the environmental field has intensified its use of psychology, neuroscience, and behavioral science to understand how people’s brains operate and how to design programs to...

- During the past year of challenges and upheaval in society, many people turned to nature and water in particular for exercise, adventure, escape, and healing. The unique ability for water to elevate well-being - physically, mentally, emotionally,

With the ocean and coastal waters under a variety of stressors including pollution and climate change it is vital to gather more scientific data. Rapid advancements in technology have led to a proliferation of sensors for studying the coast and made th...

Historically the relationship between the agriculture sector and conservation community could be described as unproductive, tense, and even adversarial. But a significant shift toward cooperation during the last 20 years was ...

Religion is a very prevalent part of life in New Orleans and southern Louisiana, leading conservation organizations to build relationships with local faith leaders and to educate them on environmental issues.

A plan to route an oil pipeline through predominantly black neighborhoods in Memphis is an example of how minority communities across the country are overburdened by pollution and subjected to environmental racism, say Chandra Taylor,

In the Chesapeake Bay watershed, cutting-edge technology is powering the practice of precision conservation, the use of advanced data and imagery for efficient decision making in environmental management. Tools like aerial imagery, LiDAR elevation data,

For five generations Paul Bruchez’s family has ranched in Colorado, giving him an intimate understanding of water and the Colorado River. As climate change and development strain water resources to the breaking point,

During last decade’s severe drought the State of California passed the Open and Transparent Water Data Act in recognition of the critical role of data in water management. That led to the formation of the California Water Data Consortium,

The greatest challenge facing the ocean is climate change, which is raising water temperatures, altering chemistry, and shifting major currents. But simultaneously there are opportunities to make progress in ocean health thro...

Four dams on the Snake River in Washington State have pushed salmon to the brink of extinction, threatening not just the species but the broader ecosystem, the culture of Native American tribes, and the region’s economy. This...

For the Colorado River to have a sustainable future, it’s vital to understand its past and present. Blood of the West is an in-development documentary series about the Colorado River that will take viewers on a journey from headwaters to delta and expl...

The Salton Sea is a unique waterbody that has suffered from high salinity levels, agricultural runoff, and water consumption by cities in Southern California, pushing the ecosystem to the brink and threatening the health of surrounding communities.