This week on The Allegheny Front, as fracking moves west, so do the concerns from residents. And researchers are trying to learn more about an aquatic species that could help us clean up rivers, if only it wasn’t so misunderstood. Plus, how well do you know your spring wildflowers?(Photo: Brad Larrison/WHYY )
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Stories in this episode
A Clear Divide as Ohio Residents Testify About Ethane Pipeline - Shell’s Falcon Pipeline would run through Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, transporting the ethane necessary to fuel the cracker plant its building in Western, PA. The cracker creates ethylene, which is used in manufacturing plastics.
Betting Millions that Mussels can Improve Water Quality - This "underdog" of aquatic animals can filter up to 600 gallons of water per month. Working together, mussels can dramatically clean the rivers where they live. Now, Philadelphia is banking on just that. 
Penn State Researchers Join International Effort to Study Antarctic ‘Doomsday’ Glacier - The Thwaites Glacier on the West Antarctic Ice Sheet is about the size of Pennsylvania. Reasonable modeling suggests it could lead to three feet of global sea level rise in the next century so its threatening nickname may not be far off.
Four Energy Stories You Might Have Missed This Week - A moratorium on wind energy on state game lands, a review of the grid, a severance tax on natural gas and a vote to gut regulations for conventional drillers. Don't miss this week's energy news. 
Gearing Up for Fight, Ohio Residents Turn to PA Experts - Ohioans are concerned about the impact that all the new well pads, pipelines, compressor stations and diesel truck traffic are having on the environment and the quality of life in their rural communities. What can they learn from what has happened in southwestern Pennsylvania?
Pittsburgh Competes in International Nature Challenge. Science Wins - Cities from Miami to Mumbai participated in the City Nature Challenge. Pittsburgh placed 26th -- not too shabby for its first year as a competitor. 
How Well Do You Know Your Pennsylvania Spring Wildflowers? - If you want to impress your friends on your next hike through the woods, there's a guy at Raccoon Creek State Park that can make you a guru of spring wildflower identification.
