Episodios

  • Episode for March 14, 2025: Nuclear microreactors, EPA rollbacks and coal ash
    Mar 14 2025

    Sign up for our newsletter!

    The future of nuclear energy might be microreactors. With new air monitors, an environmental group is publishing real-time pollution data for people who live near the ethane cracker and other industries in Beaver County. How bird flu and the price of eggs are influencing Pennsylvania consumers.

    And, the new head of the EPA announced sweeping plans to roll back 31 separate environmental protections. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and a crypto mining company have agreed to speed the cleanup of the company’s unpermitted coal ash dumping.

    We’re independent and non-profit, and we don’t get money from WESA, WPSU or any other radio station. So we must turn to you, our listeners, for support.

    Take action today so we can continue to keep you informed.

    Donate today.

    Or send us a check to: The Allegheny Front, 67 Bedford Square, Pittsburgh, 15203.

    And thanks!

    Más Menos
    30 m
  • Episode for March 7, 2025: Solar, hazardous waste and flying squirrels
    Mar 7 2025

    Sign up for our newsletter!

    Provisions in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law made it easier for churches and schools to install solar panels. How will the Trump administration impact the growth of solar in Pennsylvania? A hazardous waste landfill in Westmoreland County has been a thorn in the side of nearby residents for decades. To fight plastic pollution in the Great Lakes, scientists are calling for a more unified effort in the region.

    Residents living within a mile of a U.S. Steel plant in Braddock, near Pittsburgh, have until March 17 to opt out of a class action settlement over alleged air pollution. Pennsylvania’s Department of Conservation and Natural Resources wants forest owners to help fight spongy moths. Conservationists look for Northern flying squirrels in the Poconos.

    We’re independent and non-profit, and we don’t get money from WESA, WPSU or any other radio station. So we must turn to you, our listeners, for support.

    Take action today so we can continue to keep you informed.

    Donate today.

    Or send us a check to: The Allegheny Front, 67 Bedford Square, Pittsburgh, 15203.

    And thanks!

    Más Menos
    30 m
  • Episode for February 28, 2025: Funding freeze, federal workers, and farmers
    Feb 28 2025

    How word of a federal funding freeze disrupted efforts to clean up a century’s worth of abandoned mine pollution in Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro announced the state again has access to more than $2 billion of federal money that had been frozen by the Trump administration. While some federal funding to Pennsylvania has been restored, other monies, like aid for farmers, are still in limbo. The Trump administration's recent firings of staff at the U.S. Forest Service and the National Park Service have conservation organizations concerned.

    Faith leaders, environmental advocates, and community organizers met for Pittsburgh’s first-ever Multi-Faith Community Forestry Summit. A unique partnership between a botanical garden and a bird rescue uses plant waste that would be composted to help injured birds.

    We’re independent and non-profit, and we don’t get money from WESA, WPSU or any other radio station. So we must turn to you, our listeners, for support.

    Take action today so we can continue to keep you informed.

    Donate today.

    Or send us a check to: The Allegheny Front, 67 Bedford Square, Pittsburgh, 15203.

    And thanks!

    Más Menos
    30 m
  • Episode for February 21, 2025: Solar program in jeopardy
    Feb 21 2025

    Many people want to install solar panels on their homes to reduce costs and carbon pollution. Now a government program that makes solar more affordable is at risk. Environmental advocates applaud Governor Shapiro’s lawsuit against the Trump administration for freezing funds for infrastructure and climate programs. While it was very cold in much of the U.S., January was the hottest on Earth. An environmental education center in Northwestern Pennsylvania includes a distillery that makes alcohol from an unusual local product: sunflowers.

    Also, new research from Drexel University finds kids in Philadelphia continue to have elevated levels of lead in their blood. More than $15 million were awarded to projects across the state that protect land and restore local watersheds, and the Delaware River is the 2025 Pennsylvania River of the Year.

    We’re independent and non-profit, and we don’t get money from WESA, WPSU or any other radio station. So we must turn to you, our listeners, for support.

    Take action today so we can continue to keep you informed.

    Donate today.

    Or send us a check to: The Allegheny Front, 67 Bedford Square, Pittsburgh, 15203.

    And thanks!

    Más Menos
    30 m
  • Episode for February 14, 2025: Trump executive orders, funding freeze and bird flu
    Feb 14 2025

    Pennsylvania has been expecting $171 million over 5 years to build electric vehicle charging stations across the state. However, the Trump administration has abruptly cut off the funds. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro filed a federal lawsuit to challenge the Trump Administration’s effort to freeze federal grants. The administration is also reassigning Department of Justice employees from environmental programs.

    Plus, bird flu is spreading to mammals. A new report finds since the construction of Shell's ethane cracker Beaver County’s economy and population continue to decline. Pittsburgh rallies for climate action, and Pennsylvania could get its first underground state park.

    We’re independent and non-profit, and we don’t get money from WESA, WPSU or any other radio station. So we must turn to you, our listeners, for support.

    Take action today so we can continue to keep you informed.

    Donate today.

    Or send us a check to: The Allegheny Front, 67 Bedford Square, Pittsburgh, 15203.

    And thanks!

    Más Menos
    30 m
  • Episode for February 7, 2025: Future of green energy projects
    Feb 7 2025

    Several clean energy projects are already underway across the county, including a hydrogen hub that's moving forward in western Pennsylvania. But will it survive President Trump’s campaign to undo Joe Biden’s climate legacy? At the second anniversary of the East Palestine train derailment, some residents were unimpressed with the parade of politicians who made an official visit. A new campaign hopes to bring more voices to the fight against air pollution.

    Also, in his budget address, Governor Josh Shapiro said he plans to lower energy costs for families. Owners of the Mountain Valley Pipeline have asked federal regulators to approve a new, modified plan for an extension of the pipeline to take natural gas further south into North Carolina. A new lawsuit claims for the first time that people died because of the derailment and chemical contamination in East Palestine.

    We’re independent and non-profit, and we don’t get money from WESA, WPSU or any other radio station. So we must turn to you, our listeners, for support.

    Take action today so we can continue to keep you informed.

    Donate today.

    Or send us a check to: The Allegheny Front, 67 Bedford Square, Pittsburgh, 15203.

    And thanks!

    Más Menos
    30 m
  • Episode for January 31, 2024: Two years after the East Palestine disaster
    Jan 31 2025

    This week on The Allegheny Front, a special report. It's been two years since the the Norfolk Southern train derailed near the Pennsylvania-Ohio border. Researchers have been looking at how the toxic chemicals released in the disaster could impact people's health, and many who lived nearby still have health questions. A Western Pennsylvania Congressman is calling on leaders in Washington to pass rail safety legislation.

    Also, Gov. Josh Shapiro touts an agreement to prevent spike in electricity bills. Fifteen environmental justice communities in Allegheny County are now eligible to receive funds to address climate change. A festival in central Pennsylvania celebrates the American chestnut, while educating about its conservation struggles.

    We’re independent and non-profit, and we don’t get money from WESA, WPSU or any other radio station. So we must turn to you, our listeners, for support.

    Take action today so we can continue to keep you informed.

    Donate today.

    Or send us a check to: The Allegheny Front, 67 Bedford Square, Pittsburgh, 15203.

    And thanks!

    Más Menos
    30 m
  • Episode for January 24, 2025: Green manufacturing, jobs and President Trump
    Jan 24 2025

    Manufacturing is cleaner and more automated than when it peaked in the Pittsburgh area in the 1950s. Federal dollars and clean energy have revolutionized manufacturing, but what happens now that President Trump is back in office? Jobs in clean energy are expanding faster in Pennsylvania than the state’s overall economy, according to a new report. A climate journalist looks at the potential consequences of President Trump's first executive orders dealing with energy development.

    In its last days, the Biden Administration awarded Pennsylvania money to launch rebate programs for electric appliances like heat pumps and home improvements that conserve energy.

    We’re independent and non-profit, and we don’t get money from WESA, WPSU or any other radio station. So we must turn to you, our listeners, for support.

    Take action today so we can continue to keep you informed.

    Donate today.

    Or send us a check to: The Allegheny Front, 67 Bedford Square, Pittsburgh, 15203.

    And thanks!

    Más Menos
    30 m