Climate

‘Rusty’ batteries could hold key to Minnesota's carbon-free power future
Two Minnesota utilities plan to install iron-air battery storage systems as they transition to clean energy sources. The batteries are made of iron, an element that’s abundant around the world — including in Minnesota.
Hendra virus rarely spills from animals to us. Climate change makes it a bigger threat
It's not often that this pathogen jumps from bats to horses, then humans. When it does, the result is brutal. New research points to a surprising way to stop spillovers.
5 fast facts about the lack of ice on Lake Superior this year
There’s not much ice on Lake Superior this winter and total ice cover has been decreasing in the last few decades. What’s the outlook for the rest of this winter and what’s behind the change?
Minnesota's carbon-free electricity bill: 8 questions, answered
The measure that sets ambitious standards for clean energy in Minnesota over the next 17 years cleared its final legislative hurdle late Thursday night, and is headed to Gov. Tim Walz for his signature.
Minnesota makes progress in cutting emissions from electricity, more work to do in agriculture and home heating
The state had not met its greenhouse gas reduction targets since the legislature created them in 2007. So what’s different this time?
Report: Minnesota’s greenhouse gas emissions dropped, but work still needed
Transportation remains Minnesota’s biggest source of greenhouse gases, followed by agriculture. Emissions from electricity generation continued to fall as utilities shuttered coal plants and relied more on wind and solar energy.
The polar bear capital of the world is losing its bears
A Canadian government study shows the polar bear population around the Hudson Bay has dropped 27% in the past 5 years. How much is climate change driving the decline?
Feds slap 20-year mining ban on land near Boundary Waters
The U.S. Department of the Interior issued a 20-year ban Thursday on new mining projects on 225,000 acres of federal land near the Boundary Waters, dealing a huge blow to the proposed Twin Metals mine near Ely, Minn.