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Keyword search: Environment

By MADISON SCHOFIELD

A new conservation agent has been hired to serve the towns of Williamsburg, Whately, Ashfield, Buckland and Hawley.Greenfield resident Kelly Kowal was chosen out of 27 applicants. A hiring committee consisting of representatives from each town...

By DOMENIC POLI

The Source to Sea Cleanup has provided a valuable service to the Connecticut River Valley since its 1997 inception. And it can provide receipts.Nearly 40,000 volunteers have removed 1,100 tons of trash, almost 14,000 tires and 144,000 beverage...

By CHRIS LARABEE

DEERFIELD — With a scope of work laid out, the Select Board has approved a remediation plan for wetlands violations that occurred in the wake of emergency work done in July 2023.Speaking at a recent Select Board meeting, Police Chief and Emergency...

By CHRIS LARABEE

DEERFIELD — Deerfield is working with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection to address a Wetlands Protection Act violation stemming from emergency work done in the aftermath of the July 2023 flooding.MassDEP issued a notice of...

By BILL DANIELSON

One of the most remarkable things about birding in September is the number of strangers that you see. Having spent so much time observing the birds during the summer months, I have a very clear roster in my head of who the “regulars” are. Not only...

By BILLY SPITZER

We are all experiencing the impacts of climate change more each day, in our own communities and around the world. Recent data from the Yale Project on Climate Change Communication shows that 72% of Americans understand that climate change is real,...

By DOMENIC POLI

For Shutesbury resident Bert Fernandez, climate change “may be the most important issue of our time.”“We’re seeing all these disasters happening all around the country,” Fernandez said. “Storms are different than they used to be. The ocean waters are...

By CHRIS LARABEE

With an emphasis on connection across partner organizations and challenges facing the environment, the Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game has released a five-year strategic plan to guide the agency’s work through 2030.Titled “Connections:...

By ALEXA LEWIS

Nature has served as an artistic muse for centuries, so it’s no surprise that music and environmental activism have historic connections.Two music festivals returning to Easthampton this summer embody the relationship between the natural and musical...

By EMILEE KLEIN

WHATLEY — John Berryhill and Jesse Bellemare wade through a sea of herbaceous plants, leaves and goldenrod flowers brushing against their waist, until their keen eyes spot three 6-inch tree seedlings, barely visible through the thicket of grasses and...

By DOMENIC POLI

WENDELL — A Lowell-based developer of renewable energy and energy storage projects has pulled the plug on a controversial facility proposed for 68 Wendell Depot Road, citing changes in the interconnection process and the state Legislature’s failure to...

By DAVID SPECTOR

In summer, many New England roads are lined with clouds of magenta flowers atop the tall stems of several species of Joe Pye weed, especially where the roads are bordered by damp ditches. Who was Joe Pye? A perusal of popular botanical sources reveals...

By STEVE LeBLANC

Rescuers who helped free more than a hundred dolphins from the Cape Cod shoreline say they’ve confirmed that the mass stranding that began June 28 was the largest involving dolphins in U.S. history.There were two previous events on record in Hawaii...

By ERIN-LEIGH HOFFMAN

ORANGE — State Sen. Jo Comerford met with area residents on Monday to answer questions and provide updates pertaining to bills that she and state Rep. Aaron Saunders have put forward to study the feasibility of giving western Massachusetts...

NORTHAMPTON — Environmental officials have issued an air quality alert for Tuesday in Hampshire County and several other parts of Massachusetts due to expected elevated levels of ozone. The Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) has issued...

By MATTHEW BROWN

To save the imperiled spotted owl from potential extinction, U.S. wildlife officials are embracing a contentious plan to deploy trained shooters into dense West Coast forests to kill almost a half-million barred owls that are crowding out their...

By CHRIS LARABEE

DEERFIELD — With the execution of two separate conservation restrictions by Historic Deerfield and the Antonellis family, more than 200 acres of land in Deerfield will remain permanently accessible for agriculture.In early May, Historic Deerfield...

By EMILEE KLEIN

Regional planning groups and local municipalities remain wary of the looming implications on municipal jurisdiction should the state’s massive climate bill move ahead in the coming weeks with promises to reform the slow process of siting and...

By CHRISTINE HATCH

Swamps are great story villains. They are notoriously difficult to navigate due to their sinking sticky mud, spiked vines and dense vegetation; they are neither fully land nor water, negating boats and footwear as helpful vessels for traversing them;...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HADLEY — The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection is investigating the legality of a makeshift riverbank and retaining wall using dozens of carefully arranged shopping carts alongside the Connecticut River behind a home on Honey Pot...