The Allegheny Front

New documents reveal the decrepit conditions at the Clairton Coke Works that led to a massive fire in 2018. A coach for activists says it's normal to have anxiety over environmental destruction. Aspiring Pennsylvania farmers are struggling to find land. Plus, a new vegan cookbook for regional comfort food.

For those new to Pittsburgh, the realization that the air isn’t always healthy to breathe can come as a shock. That’s what happened to producer Susan Scott Peterson and her family.

An investigation into the mental health impacts of air and water pollution and climate change in western Pennsylvania found alarming evidence that residents are likely suffering changes to their brains due to pollution. Reporting uncovered the growing gap in mental health care as more people are anxious about climate change.

Some people along the coast of New Jersey are saying no to offshore wind power. They worry about preserving the character and natural beauty of NJ beaches. We talk with the new leader of a clean air watchdog group in Pittsburgh. A professor wants to create a corridor throughout the Appalachians for elk. Our reporter escapes to the Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail.

Climate change is making it harder to hunt and fish. An advocacy group wants hunters and anglers to speak out. Taking down dams to create a free-flowing Mahoning River is not without controversy. Consumer choices are hard when you want to do good for the environment. One expert says don't sweat the small stuff.

Metalico, a metal recycler on Neville Island in Allegheny County, is now the target of EPA. It has been a nuisance to the community for years. Pittsburgh has a new light pollution ordinance. An astronomer advocates for dark skies. Criminal charges against a pipeline company do little to spark action in the Pa. legislature.

Researchers say too many deer and invasive plants are threatening the long-term survival of Pa.'s forests. A filmmaker of a new documentary about a massive effort to clean up a Western Pa. river says it's a hopeful story. The author of a book about individual liberty and private property rights argues that signing a gas lease shouldn't be one of those rights.

More wind turbines in the ocean mean more renewable energy on the grid. But what's the impact on fisheries? Pennsylvania's attorney general files criminal charges for the Mariner East pipeline.  A new group is encouraging people to retire their lawnmowers and leaf blowers and plant native species. 

Transmission lines are key to more renewable energy, but some don't want them on their land. Students take to the streets for a climate strike. We get reaction to Pa.'s new Climate Action Plan. Volunteers clean up tons of trash along Pittsburgh's hillsides.