Full Episode

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. This is a special episode about the air we breathe, the risks we live with, and what it means to become a citizen of a place.

A new study finds children living near fracking sites in Pa. are at an increased risk of leukemia. Meanwhile, Energy Transfer is held criminally responsible for the damage done during the construction of its Mariner East pipeline. And, a small group of workers is getting rid of the invasive plants in a Pittsburgh park…and they have four legs. Plus, a landmark climate law was signed by President Biden this week. A high school student says we should thank the activists, not the politicians. 

This week, we explore how tourism impacts local communities and their natural resources like the Canaan Valley in West Virginia. It's become a trendy tourist destination, which is good for business, but it's straining the resources of a county with just 7,000 year-round residents. We take a trip to Appalachia's Ice Mountain, where rare plants have existed since the Ice Age, and cool air seeps out of ice vents deep in the rocks. Plus, a conversation with Pennsylvania's first director of outdoor recreation.

We have a special show about Indigenous people, land, water, and culture. We look at how the pawpaw, a fruit that grows in the eastern US, continues to live in the memories and language of Indigenous people forced to move west. Then, we talk with an Indigenous scientist about her book that contrasts conservation science with Indigenous knowledge about the natural world. Plus, a paddler from the Seneca Nation takes a journey down the Allegheny River to draw attention to protecting waterways. 

We talk with three families who are leaving or have left Beaver County because of Shell's ethane cracker, fearing pollution, and looking for better opportunities.  Pennsylvania is looking at bringing American martens, a small weasel, back to the state's forests. Plus, we visit a one-of-a-kind prairie habitat in Pennsylvania, home to an endangered rattlesnake and wildflowers.

Greene County residents who say their water has been contaminated from a fracking incident want action. We'll also hear about a PR campaign by natural gas companies that targets people of color. A farmer says a gas well is as loud as a jet engine. But the noise isn’t from fracking. It’s from supercomputers mining cryptocurrency.

Residents of a tiny coal town in West Virginia went without clean water for a decade until a California nonprofit stepped in. We revisit the story of a volunteer who tried to restore a stream until Sunoco began building the Mariner East pipeline. A new study finds urban woodlands are filled with invasive plants. Plus, how to spot poison hemlock, and news about a fracking incident.

We talk with one reporter who says the Supreme Court EPA decision could result in more expensive regulations for power plants. We also take a closer look at why Pennsylvania and other states are suing the US Postal Service over a lack of electric vehicles in its plan to replace its fleet. And, researchers are using a program trained to identify bird species from hours of birdsong recorded in the forest to help with conservation.

Pennsylvania environment and energy leaders react to the Supreme Court’s EPA climate ruling. Plus, we revisit our stories in the series Farmers Wanted, which examines the challenges of cultivating a new generation of farmers in Pennsylvania. We also replay our conversation with the author of a speculative novel about survival after climate disaster and plastic pollution.

Will a new regulation that curbs air pollution in the Mon Valley give residents more clean air days? And, a new study shows black lung disease in younger coal miners is caused by silica dust. A discussion on the catastrophe that coal has left behind. Plus, a look at what could make agriculture a more sustainable job choice in the future.