Environment

KUOW's environment beat brings you stories on the ongoing cleanup of the Hanford Nuclear Reservation, alternative energy, the health of the Puget Sound, coal transportation and more. We're also partnered with several stations across the Northwest to bring you environmental news via EarthFix.

Some Hanford Water Cleanup Exceeds Expectations

Credit CH2M HILL Plateau Remediation Company

By Anna King

Originally published on Mon May 13, 2013 5:02 pm

Cleanup of a hazardous chemical called hexavalent chromium in the groundwater at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation in southeast Washington is going faster than expected.

Hexavalent chromium is the nasty stuff that made Erin Brockovich famous down in California. The chemical was used to inhibit rust in coolant water in Hanford’s reactors. But that water was dumped into the desert, and now the cancer-causer is making its way toward the Columbia River in large groundwater plumes.

10:44 am

Tue May 14, 2013

Time To Speak Is Now On $305 Million Duwamish Cleanup Plan

Credit Earthfix / Ashley Ahearn

People in communities along Seattle's Lower Duwamish River, a superfund site, came together to learn about the EPA's proposed cleanup plan, open for public comment until June 13.

By Ashley Ahearn

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A century’s worth of contamination in Seattle's only river is about to get a $305 million cleanup. Before finalizing a decision on the proposed plan, the Environmental Protection Agency is asking the public to weigh in.

7:25 am

Thu May 9, 2013

In Largest Dam Removal In US History, Which Fish Get To Recolonize?

Credit Earthfix / Ashley Ahearn

Field technicians with the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe catch steelhead in a murky side channel near the mouth of the Elwha and prepare them to be transferred into pristine habitat above the former site of the lower dam.

By Ashley Ahearn

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From where Mike McHenry stands he can see several gray, torpedo-shaped bodies moving slowly through the brown water of this side channel of the Elwha River, not too far from the site of the largest dam removal project in US history.

9:12 am

Wed May 8, 2013

Elwha River: Recovery Proceeds Despite Sediment Setbacks

Credit Earthfix / Ashley Ahearn

The largest dam removal in US history has changed the face of Washington's Elwha River and scientists are trying to get a handle on what creatures are using the newly available habitat.

By Ashley Ahearn

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One of the two dams on the Elwha River has been completely removed and there are about 50 feet of the remaining Glines Canyon dam left. Already so much sediment has been released that it's clogged up and shut down one of the water treatment plants in nearby Port Angeles, temporarily halting the largest dam removal project in US history.

12:12 pm

Mon May 6, 2013

Making Seattle Carbon Neutral By 2050

Credit Flickr photo/Neal Jennings

Transportation is a key element in Mike O'Brien's plan for a carbon-neutral Seattle by 2050.

By The Conversation with Ross Reynolds

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Seattle City Councilmember Mike O’Brien wants Seattle carbon neutral by 2050. The plan to make Seattle carbon neutral is bound to be expensive, but O’Brien says carbon neutrality has benefits beyond just reducing greenhouse-gas emissions. Mike O’Brien joins Ross Reynolds today to talk about this proposal.

Battling Algae Blooms

8:57 am

Thu April 25, 2013

Lake Managers Get New Tool To Combat Algae

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Credit Tom Banse / Northwest News Network

Credit Google Earth

By Tom Banse

Originally published on Thu April 25, 2013 11:40 am

Nothing spoils a summer swim in your favorite lake like an algae bloom. These become more common as the weather warms up. A lake in Federal Way, Washington -- near Seattle -- is serving as a proving ground for a possible new tool to combat toxic blooms.

Almost every summer until last summer, Lake Lorene would turn pea soup green.