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Keyword search: CLIMATE CHANGE

By EMILEE KLEIN

AMHERST — The past few weeks have been tough for climate activism, and longtime climate activist Bill McKibben, who makes his home in Vermont, is feeling the heat.This year will be the hottest year on record, breaking the record-setting temperatures...

By CHRIS LARABEE

With bodies of water receding and brush fires throughout the state, it was clearly a dry fall for the Pioneer Valley and new data analysis confirms the season was historically dry for western Massachusetts.Preliminary National Weather Service data for...

By MADISON SCHOFIELD

ASHFIELD — A local nonprofit is helping convert a Kentucky coal mine into a farm and teach Hawaiian farmers how to run prosperous, resilient businesses in the face of climate change.Regenerative Farms, founded by Ashfield resident Mary Johnson in...

By CHRIS LARABEE

SUNDERLAND — Two local farms opened their doors to Climate Chief Melissa Hoffer on Monday morning to talk about the challenges brought on by climate change, as well as opportunities for future investments in the industry.The state’s first-ever climate...

By JACOB NELSON

CHESTERFIELD — Three people. Two businesses. One piece of farmland. Countless ways that climate change is making farming harder.And yet, plenty of hope, because these farmers have a plan. With support from peers, nonprofits and even Uncle Sam, they’re...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — More than 37% of annual global greenhouse gas emissions are produced by the billions of tons of concrete, asphalt, steel, glass and other construction materials used in buildings and other infrastructure projects, according to U.S....

By SCOTT MERZBACH

A Senate-passed bill featuring a streamlined approach to permitting and siting solar and energy storage projects in Massachusetts, with a consolidated permit for approving clean energy infrastructure instead of multiple local, regional and state...

By CHRIS LARABEE and ALEXA LEWIS

With Massachusetts experiencing its seventh-wettest year on record in 2023 as torrential rainstorms ravaged roads, farms and homes, the federal government, the state and those here in the Pioneer Valley are turning their eyes toward future flood...

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 SAM DRYSDALE

BOSTON — The base of a late-session climate bill that has been promised by top Democrats in both branches is being drafted by Gov. Maura Healey’s administration, which says that reform to the siting and permitting of clean energy infrastructure is...

By ABNER ROJAS

GREENFIELD — Whether it be wildfires or flooding, the effects of climate change can be felt across the country. Now, a new organization is asking what the people of Greenfield can do on the local level to be ready to combat those growing...

By TANISHA BHAT

Ben Clark, the owner of Clarkdale Fruit Farms in Deerfield, received $120,000 from the $20 million Natural Disaster Recovery Program created last year after he lost the entirety of his peach crop and 70% of his apples and pears due to sudden cold...

By SAM DRYSDALE

BOSTON — Signaling the potential for more change in the transportation and energy sectors, Senate President Karen Spilka revealed Monday that the Senate plans to tackle a major climate bill within the next three months.The Ashland Democrat said at a...

By DOMENIC POLI

ASHFIELD — About 35 people turned out to Town Hall on Wednesday for a forum about the possibility of getting Ashfield a “Climate Leader” designation from the state and what that would entail.The Energy Committee hosted Chris Mason from the state...

By DOMENIC POLI

GREENFIELD — William Moomaw is accustomed to giving lectures on the effects of climate change, but not from the pulpit of a place of worship.That is set to change on Sunday morning, when the retired Tufts University professor will visit Greenfield to...

By CHRIS LARABEE

Take a drive down Routes 5 and 10 and count the number of electric or hybrid vehicles you see. Compare those numbers to what you saw two years, five years or 10 years ago and you’re likely looking at a significant increase.Data from the Massachusetts...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HADLEY — During a summer in which area farms dealt with significant rainfall and flooded fields, keeping agricultural drainage ditches cleared became essential to protecting crops by ensuring excess water could be removed.Often, though, farmers found...

By EMILEE KLEIN

Massachusetts’ solar development just had its worst year in more than a decade in terms of new installations, but Greenfield Solar partner Claire Chang says her firm that does jobs throughout the Pioneer Valley hasn’t experienced the same downturn.As...

By DOMENIC POLI

Residents have until Friday to submit their input regarding the process by which clean energy projects are permitted in Massachusetts.An online survey is soliciting public comment on how the state should protect health, safety and community livability...

By CHRIS LARABEE

DEERFIELD — With the help of a $50,000 grant, the town will explore the feasibility of a geothermal heating and cooling system for the proposed town campus project.Over the next year, Deerfield will explore the possibility of using the earth below...

By EMILEE KLEIN

AMHERST — Before acclaimed environmental activist Catherine Coleman Flowers said one word about herself at the outset of a talk at the University of Massachusetts Amherst on Thursday night, she expressed gratitude to marginalized communities across...