Pines and Plains Libraries

A lifelong environmentalist, Annie Proulx brings her witness and research to the subject of wetlands and the vitally important yet little understood role they play in preserving the environment--by storing the carbon emissions that accelerate climate change. Fens, bogs, swamps, and marine estuaries are the earth's most desirable and dependable resources, and in four stunning parts, Proulx documents the long-misunderstood role of these wetlands in...

The current El Niño event is very strong, and is expected to affect weather around the globe, and in Colorado, through next spring. The impacts of El Niño are more complex over Colorado than other parts of the West. Strong El Niño conditions improve the odds for wetter-than-normal conditions in most parts of Colorado, especially in fall and spring. However, strong El Niño conditions also tend to bring dry mid-winters to our North-Central mountains....

We all know the effects that climate change is having on our planet - but what about the strange, and creative ways that scientists are working to find practical and imaginative answers to these big problems? Following a day in the life of a child, we see how new green inventions could fit into everyday life, from brushing your teeth with biodegradable algae, to eating beetle burgers for lunch and coming home to do your homework with a pen with ink...

Of the most costly natural hazards for which federal, state and local planners must prepare (like earthquakes, hurricanes, and floods), the impacts of drought have been the least well measured. Yet drought vulnerability and impacts drive drought response policy and there are weaknesses in our ability to judge vulnerability and impacts.

Compared to river basins such as the Colorado River, the Missouri River Basin has received relatively minimal federal engagement in terms of the provision of climate services. In order to effectively begin a coordinated, multi-agency effort to meet the climate-related needs of stakeholders throughout the basin, it is critical to identify those needs, catalog research and service capacities, map needs to capacities, and use social network analysis...

"Bill Gates shares what he's learned in more than a decade of studying climate change and investing in innovations to address the problems, and sets out a vision for how the world can build the tools it needs to get to zero greenhouse gas emissions. Bill Gates explains why he cares so deeply about climate change and what makes him optimistic that the world can avoid the most dire effects of the climate crisis. Gates says, "We can work on a local,...