by Kristen Axtman and Kunjal Bastola | Dec 7, 2023 | Environment, Featured
WASHINGTON – Congress believed it delayed fights over funding the wide-ranging Farm Bill by working in a one-year extension in the temporary budget deal in November. In reality, the debate over the biggest component of the bill – providing money for food and nutrition...
by Khadija Ahmed | Nov 30, 2023 | Environment, Featured
WASHINGTON — The United States Botanic Garden’s annual holiday exhibit is now open, spotlighting model trains and D.C. landmarks made from plant materials. Upholding the tradition requires a large undertaking. “We close the holiday show every year on January 1, and we...
by Kunjal Bastola and Jessica Ma | Nov 1, 2023 | Environment, Featured, Topics
WASHINGTON – Climate experts warned lawmakers about the effect of climate change on extreme weather during the first-ever congressional hearing on extreme event attribution, a field of climate science. They offered solutions to help Congress navigate more frequent and...
by Khadija Ahmed and Kunjal Bastola | Oct 26, 2023 | Environment, Featured
WASHINGTON – “I’ll show you what I dug out of one [camel] skeleton,” said marine scientist Marcus Eriksen as he unearthed a roughly 40-pound mass that he estimated held 2,000 plastic bags. Eriksen’s display came as he and other experts testified on potential...
by Khadija Ahmed and Kunjal Bastola | Oct 26, 2023 | Environment, Featured
WASHINGTON — Native leaders expressed frustration with the implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), citing a lack of communication and technical assistance from the federal government. A roundtable held by...
by Kunjal Bastola | Oct 19, 2023 | Environment, Featured
WASHINGTON – A House oversight hearing on Wednesday became a lightning rod for partisan criticism on immigration, with Republicans using the forum to ostensibly showcasing their concern for how the Biden administration border policies have led to environmental...
by Khadija Ahmed | Oct 18, 2023 | Environment, Featured
WASHINGTON – Partisan discord over the federal government’s regulatory powers was on full display Wednesday during a Senate committee hearing on the implications of a Supreme Court ruling in May that drastically scaled back wetland protections and forced the Biden...
by Jessica Ma | Oct 13, 2023 | Environment, Featured
WASHINGTON — The White House announced plans to fund $7 billion in seven hydrogen hubs across 16 states on Friday — one of its largest investments in clean manufacturing. The hydrogen hubs are estimated to bring public and private investments of almost $50 billion. ...
by Cate Bikales | Oct 11, 2023 | Environment, Featured
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration has been touting the success of the Inflation Reduction Act since its passage one year ago, but whether it has reduced the country’s reliance on China has been hotly debated. The law, which passed solely with Democratic votes,...
by Khadija Ahmed | Sep 29, 2023 | Environment, Featured, Topics
WASHINGTON – Senator Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) led a subcommittee hearing on Thursday that explored the need for a national policy on deposit return for beverage containers to help decrease packaging waste, such as plastic. “More and more, it makes that blue bin in my...
by Kunjal Bastola | Sep 28, 2023 | Environment, Featured
WASHINGTON – Native American communities are still woefully behind in reliable access to water, a public health problem that is exposing populations to an array of issues, from personal hygiene to respiratory illness. In an effort to ensure that the federal government...
by Saul Pink | Mar 1, 2023 | Environment, Featured
WASHINGTON – Members of the Senate Budget Committee heard from climate experts and stakeholders at a hearing Wednesday about the economic costs of climate change on coastal communities, continuing the debate over how – and whether – to distribute funds to...
