A "cap-and-trade" climate-change proposal is stalled in Washington. But a similar program has been up and running in ten states from Maine to Delaware for two years
From east of the Hudson River and up through New England, efforts are under way to save what’s become a rare species of rabbit – the New England cottontail.
States farther north
have launched educational programs to try to reduce moose collisions. New Hampshire may have something to teach the rest of the region.
In Colonial times,
making hard cider – the kind with alcohol in it – was a way to preserve the
apple crop. It was even used as currency. In recent decades,
there’s been a quiet resurgence of craft cider making in New England and New
York.
Many Republicans in
the region once backed climate change legislation, and embraced a policy known
as "cap-and-trade" to reduce greenhouse gases. But a lot of
Republican candidates in the Northeast are now campaigning aggressively against
cap-and-trade.
Across the Northeast,
people have been cooling off wherever they can. On Cape Cod, it’s the National Seashore. In
Vermont, it’s backwoods swimming holes or Lake Champlain. And in New York City this month, people are taking a dip right on the
street. In special pools made out of Dumpsters.
Some farmers in the Northeast are in the midst of an experiment in energy independence. They’re
growing crops that produce the fuel to run their tractors and equipment.
A century ago, raising your own chickens wasn’t unusual. Now, even in Vermont, most people get their eggs in cartons, and their chicken
wings wrapped in plastic. But there are a growing number of people nationwide
who are reviving the art of chicken rearing.
These days,
companies are more likely to be cutting employee benefits than adding any
perks. But even in this
down economy, some businesses are offering an unusual new benefit that doesn’t
cost a lot, but that some employees are really "digging".
As the oil
disaster in the Gulf of Mexico continues, scientists and wildlife conservationists
are warning that large numbers of birds could be lost, and
there are concerns about other shorebirds nesting in
and around the northeast. Efforts are underway to track
these birds and to mitigate for a far-reaching disaster.