News

Dual-use solar farms welcome nature back to the land

June 10, 2020

Most ground-mount solar projects built in the United States are on gravel, turf or dirt. And therein lies the Catch-22 of solar projects. The draw of solar is its ability to provide clean power that preserves beautiful landscapes that are in danger from coal mines, oil wells and fracking.

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Partnership Provides Crucial Firewood to Hopi and Navajo Homes

June 10, 2020

Closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic have made it difficult for tribal members to collect and transport firewood from nearby forests for cooking, boiling water and heating.

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The Curious Case of the Giant Boole

June 8, 2020

One of the biggest trees in the world—the Boole—is thriving despite a devastating logging in Converse Basin, a massive sequoia grove 60 miles east of Fresno. The bigger mystery is why it was named for the man who supervised the forest’s destruction.

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Bighorn Fire nearly out but ecological trouble lies ahead

June 8, 2020

Firefighters have mostly contained the Bighorn Fire, which has consumed more than 119,000 acres of the Santa Catalina Mountains since a bolt of lightning set the blaze off on the night of Friday, June 5.

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Agrivoltaics works better with leafy greens, root crops

June 8, 2020

U.S. researchers have created a new model to assess the overlap between solar potential and underlying land use. The areas with the largest potential are the western United States, southern Africa, and the Middle East. The researchers concluded that croplands, grasslands, and wetlands are the top three land classes for PV projects linked to agricultural activities, while barren terrain, traditionally prioritized for solar PV system installation, ranked fifth.

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No end in sight for Asarco copper strike, but critical ruling lies ahead

June 6, 2020

The strike against Tucson-based copper producer Asarco by unions representing about 1,800 workers in Arizona and Texas is in its eighth month, with no talks underway or planned.

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Black Birdwatchers Face Racism Too

June 5, 2020

The day that George Floyd died in police custody in Minneapolis, Minnesota, a white woman called the police on an African American man birdwatching in New York's Central Park.

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Extreme heat and the covid-19 pandemic: global heat health information network launches comprehensive online resource

June 3, 2020

Heat and COVID-19, a new resource from the Global Heat Health Information Network (GHHIN) that launched in May, provides an array of science-based resources on coping with heat during the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

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Extreme heat and the covid-19 pandemic: Global Heat Health Information Network launches comprehensive online resource

June 3, 2020

Heat and COVID-19, a new resource from the Global Heat Health Information Network (GHHIN) that launched in May, provides an array of science-based resources on coping with heat during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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people wearing face coverings

Guide to the Arizona monsoon: Dust storms, lightning and safety tips for first-timers

June 3, 2020

You breezed through your first winter — we know, 75 degrees and sunny in January was tough — but you did it. You really liked spring, when you were able to get outside, and even though it's starting to get a little toasty now you're thinking you can handle summer. Because, really, how much hotter can it get?

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