Environment

Week in Review: trees, jail, ferries

Bill Radke discusses the week’s news with Seattle Times Amanda Zhou, Seattle Met’s Allison Williams, and South Seattle Emerald/Seattle Times Marcus Harrison Green.

Struggling Northwest kelp forests sending out an SOS. Help is coming

There's a rallying cry at various bays and beaches up and down the West Coast; it's "Help the kelp!" The towering brown seaweed with the floating bulb on top is in steep decline. That's alarming because underwater kelp forests provide shelter and food for a wide variety of sea life. The crew answering the call runs the gamut from seaweed farmers to hammer-wielding scuba divers and might some day include sea otters and octopuses.

Business

REI to stop selling clothes, cookware with 'forever chemicals'

PFAS, which stands for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are known as "forever chemicals" because they don't break down over time. They are present in most of the waterproof clothing and cookware sold in the U.S., including at REI stores.

Food

Tacoma tests program to turn food waste into chicken feed

For Tacoma residents who don’t want to deal with smells and fruit flies, there’s a new alternative to composting. The city is testing a pilot program that aims to reduce food waste going into landfills by turning it into food for chickens.

Fire trucks are going electric, too. Portland and Redmond, WA, getting there first

You probably no longer blink an eye when an electric car passes by on the road. More novel battery-powered vehicles are soon joining the parade to help operators achieve their sustainability goals. Electric ferries are coming to Puget Sound and hybrid electric airplanes are being tested in Washington. Now, several Pacific Northwest fire departments have ordered their first electric fire trucks.

Government

Resale market for cannabis waste? WA lawmakers consider it

Washington lawmakers are considering a brand-new type of cannabis market: resale of the plant waste.

Arts & Life

An expedition to the top of the world is documented in 'Exposure'

At the top of the world sits what feels like a whole other realm. It’s a place built solely of sea ice — of fissures and endless fields of white.

Environment

WA will need more clean energy from other states by 2050

Washington state aspires to be a leader in clean energy, but its wind, solar and other renewable energy sources can only produce so much. With the state's power needs expected to double by 2050, the state may have to rely on energy from our neighbors.