The Trump administration argues that rescinding the 2001 Roadless Rule will help wildland firefighters. Fire researchers warn that more roads could exacerbate the problem.

(Image credit: Benjamin Hanson/Middle East Images)

Drought in the middle of the country has opened the door for pests and pathogens that can kill trees. That's particularly true of a fungus that's decimating bur oak trees once known as the "King of the Great Plains."

The Trump administration is citing wildfire suppression as the reason it's seeking to undo the Roadless Rule. Science suggests more roads will cause more fires.

Without Congressionally-approved funding, public media stations say communities will be left with aging infrastructure amid growing risks from extreme weather.

(Image credit: U.S. Coast Guard via AP)

The Southern Nevada Water Authority has investigators who patrol Las Vegas neighborhoods in search of wasted water.

(Image credit: RJ Sangosti/MediaNews Group)

The government's colossal failure to respond after Hurricane Katrina led to major reforms at the nation's top disaster agency. Now, the Trump administration has reversed some of those changes.

(Image credit: Win McNamee)

Hurricane forecasts are now much more accurate, 20 years on — largely because of federal government research.

(Image credit: David J. Phillip)

Hawaii's Kilauea volcano resumed erupting Friday by shooting an arc of lava 100 feet into the air and across a section of its summit crater floor.

(Image credit: M. Zoeller/AP)

A federal EV tax credit worth up to $7,500 ends Sept. 30. But the IRS has just clarified that shoppers don't need to actually have the keys in hand by the deadline to get the credit.

(Image credit: Charles Krupa)

Millions of audio recordings of hundreds of bird species have revealed that artificial light is making the birds wake up earlier and go to bed later.

(Image credit: Rasit Aydogan)

One of the goals of controversial wolf hunts in the Western U.S. is to help reduce the burden on ranchers, who lose livestock to wolves every year. A new study finds that those hunts have had a measurable, but small effect on livestock depredations.

(Image credit: Raimund Linke)

Air conditioning has become a hot debate in France in a summer of heatwaves.

(Image credit: Dimitar Dilkoff)

Health departments struggle to adequately survey for ticks to warn doctors about new species and the diseases they carry.  

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A lot of companies want the EPA in charge of setting national climate regulations because it helps shield them from lawsuits and creates a predictable environment in which to make investments.

(Image credit: Brandon Bell)

In small town Washington — where hydropower is plentiful — data centers are creating jobs and funding amenities. But water and energy aren't unlimited — and some worry about long-term sustainability.

(Image credit: Megan Farmer)

Giant dams built to conserve the Colorado River have nearly wiped out nearby native cottonwood trees, causing big ecosystem disruption. Tiny dams built to mimic those built by beavers could bring them back.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy says he doesn't agree with federal subsidies for high-speed EV chargers, but that his department "will respect Congress' will" and release the funds.

(Image credit: Patrick T. Fallon)

For three years in a row, Juneau has had unprecedented flooding in August from a melting glacier. This year, officials built a levee to protect the city. It seems to have helped, but it's temporary.

A lawsuit challenging construction and operations of an immigration detention center in the Florida Everglades known as 'Alligator Alley' has wrapped up with several key questions unanswered.

(Image credit: Rebecca Blackwell)

Scientists have long wondered about how the potato's genetic lineage came to be. Now they know: The plants are a cross between tomatoes and a plant known as Etuberosum.

(Image credit: Natural History Museum, London)