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Nov. 19, 2024

Publisher's note: You may have read The Guardian's recent announcement that it will no longer be posting to X (formerly Twitter). The Guardian's reasons included "content on the platform about which it had longstanding concerns included far-right conspiracy theories and racism." It added that X’s coverage of the U.S. presidential election had "crystallized its decision." The relationship between news and social media has been unraveling for a while. In Canada, Meta, the parent company of Facebook, banned Canadian news sites from its platforms after the country passed a bill in 2023 that mandates tech giants pay news outlets for their content. While ecoRI News hasn't made a decision yet about our X account (we left Facebook in 2020), we're looking for a little blue sky these days, and that is why ecoRI News has opened an account on the new(ish) social platform Bluesky. You can find us here. — Joanna Detz

State and Local Officials Look to Protect Conanicut Island from Worsening Storms

With storms becoming supercharged by climate change, it’s a matter of when, not if, Jamestown is hit by a big one. Data shows that a 100-year storm would result in 16 feet of flooding in many of the town’s coastal areas and coves.

TNC Seminar Outlines Need for Ongoing Research into Wind Turbines' Effects on Fish

Before the talk began, The Nature Conservancy's offshore wind policy manager acknowledged that the presidential election has raised uncertainty about offshore wind’s future.

Ashawaug Farm, a Place Where Narragansett Tribe's Food, Farming History Comes Alive

On their 6 acres, Cassius and Dawn Spears grow traditional crops such as Narragansett flint corn, crookneck squash, and strawberries. Some of their produce makes its way to local restaurants, but they also use what they grow for Narragansett celebrations, like the strawberry and corn harvests.

OPINION | JEFFREY C. HALL

After the Election: 'We Are All Green'

Protecting the nature of Rhode Island, building climate-resilient communities, and preserving biodiversity falls squarely on our shoulders. If we don’t step up, who will?

Rhode Island Food Council 2025 Priorities: Boosting Local Farms, Reducing Food Waste

Recent years have seen modest improvements and gains for farms and food in Rhode Island. The Green Bond included millions for farmland preservation. But more progress is required.

News in Brief

Report: R.I. Lags Behind in Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions

FROM THE ARCHIVES | 2019

Real Journalism Keeps Public Properly Informed During Troubling Times

"Lots of things scare me about the world we live in. The climate crisis is at the top. This is quickly followed by the collapse of the Western Alliance — thanks to the shortsightedness (or is it simply stupidity?) of the current administration. But it’s the lack of trust in the media that worries me the most."

A new report from the United Nation's Food and Agriculture Organization says the world has little hope of reaching global climate targets without quickly lowering emissions of nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas that’s nearly 300 times more powerful at warming the atmosphere than carbon dioxide. Nitrous oxide emissions, which come mostly from agricultural fertilizers, are often overlooked in climate negotiations, which tend to focus on carbon dioxide and methane.

2025 Rhode Island Nature Video Festival

The Rhode Island Nature Video Festival is back again in 2025 and organizers are planning for an in-person event. The seventh annual festival will be hosted by Rhode Island College on Sunday, Feb. 23, at 2 p.m. — the weather date is Sunday, March 2, at 2 p.m. The event is being organized and curated by the Rhode Island Natural History Survey, the RIC Environmental Club and Film Studies Program, and the Ocean State Film Society. All video submissions meeting inclusion criteria will be part of the online YouTube show. From among all qualifying videos, curators will select up to 75 minutes of videos for inclusion in the show reel to be shown at the festival. All styles of nature video are welcome, from a single encounter to edited and narrated storytelling and documentation. All amateurs and professionals should send their submissions to Greg Gerritt at gerritt@mindspring.com by 8 p.m. Jan. 15. Email Greg or call him at 401-374-5186 with questions.

To keep covering the local environmental issues that matter to you, we have to raise $101,000 by Dec. 31 during our Most Audacious Year-End Campaign, our biggest fundraising campaign ever. If you've been thinking about donating to ecoRI News, now is the time to support a media organization that matches your values, because right now, your gift is matched.