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Environment

These solar shingles are from Dow Powerhouse. PHOTO BY TAI VIINIKKA/FLICKR

Earth Talk: Considering solar shingles in the Northeast

Friday, May 17, 2013

Dear EarthTalk: I’m getting my roof redone and have heard about solar shingles. Are they practical for the Northeast? — John Denson, Glastonbury, Conn. Solar shingles are photovoltaic cells designed to look like and integrate with conventional asphalt roof shingles. First commercially available in 2005, solar shingles were much more costly than traditional “bolt-on” photovoltaic panels, and thus were used … 0

A least sandpiper U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE

Bird Sightings: Some birds staying, others heading north

Friday, May 17, 2013

The Audubon Society has reported a variety of recent bird sightings in western Massachusetts. Less common nesting species reported in small numbers this week were American bitterns, green herons, Virginia rails, whip-poor-wills, fish crows, brown thrashers, northern waterthrushes, worm-eating warblers, Canada warblers, grasshopper sparrows, indigo buntings, eastern meadowlarks and orchard orioles. Regular migrating … 0

Heading Outdoors

Friday, May 17, 2013

∎  Cycling for Seniors — All Out Adventures and Mass. Dept of Conservation and Recreation offer program on the Norwottuck Rail Trail in Hadley for ages 60 and up Saturdays, Mondays and Wednesdays. Fee: $5. For information call 584-2052, or email info@alloutadventures. ∎ e_STnS Washington Mountain Meadow Trail Hike — Arcadia Wildlife Sanctuary sponsors hike in the Washington Mountain Lake area of October … 0

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Northampton High School junior Anna Moore, left, runs Saturday in the 4x800 meter relay event during the Western Massachusetts Division I Track Championship at Holyoke High School. Northampton High School freshman Sierra Loomis runs of the track after passing the baton, at right. SARAH CROSBY Northampton wins girls track title; Amherst rallies to second
Taj-Amir Torres of Amherst Regional High School, left, leads Saturday during the 100 meter dash event at the Western Massachusetts Division I Track Championship at Holyoke High School. Oushane Lewis of Central High School, center, and John Ferrera of Ludlow follow behind. SARAH CROSBY Chicopee Comp overtakes Amherst to win boys track title
Hampshire College student Esther Dane celebrates during the graduation ceremony Saturday in Amherst. Dane's Division III, Portraits of Wellness, combines art with science research. SARAH CROSBY Hampshire’s 300 graduates urged to confront challenges
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Justice for Jonas coalition calls police ‘malicious’ in arrest of Amherst man which was videotaped
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Northampton wins girls track title; Amherst rallies to second
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Chicopee Comp overtakes Amherst to win boys track title
From Sports »
Editorial: Lessons of the Kermit Gosnell murder case
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Art People: Julia Mintz | filmmaker
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Tuned in
From Arts & Entertainment »

Study suggests honeybee collapse has many culprits

Thursday, May 16, 2013

WASHINGTON — It’s one of the most perplexing environmental mysteries of recent years: Why are honeybees dying, and what can be done to stop a catastrophic agricultural disaster with far-reaching economic and environmental consequences in the United States and beyond? Scientists don’t yet have a definitive answer. But … 0

FILE - In this undated photo supplied by International Fund For Animal Welafre (IFAW), orphaned black rhinos square up after their release into a holding boma at Addo National Park, 50 miles north-east of Port Elizabeth, South Africa after each was abandoned at birth. Mozambique's rhinoceros population was wiped out more than a century ago by big game hunters. Reconstituted several years ago, it has again been driven to extinction, or to the brink of extinction, by poachers seeking their horns for sale in Asia. (AP Photo/Jon Hrusa, IFAW, File)

Expert says rhinoceros population wiped out in Mozambique by poachers

Thursday, May 16, 2013

JOHANNESBURG — Mozambique’s rhinoceros population was wiped out more than a century ago by big game hunters. Reconstituted several years ago, the beasts again are on the brink of vanishing from the country by poachers seeking their horns … 0

Earth’s greenhouse gas approaches milestone

Thursday, May 16, 2013

LOS ANGELES — The ratio of carbon dioxide in Earth’s atmosphere is flirting with 400 parts per million, a level last seen about 2.5 million to 5 million years ago, according to the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego. The institution this week … 0

AP FILE PHOTO The smog-covered skyline of New Jersey is seen in the background as pedestrians enjoy a shady spot along the Hudson River in New York in July 2007. Western Massachusetts has received poor marks for ozone pollution in a report released last week by the American Lung Association.

Report gives Hampshire County failing smog grade

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

It turns out the pristine Pioneer Valley has something unpleasantly in common with Los Angeles and other far-off cities throughout the world — smog. Western Massachusetts once again received poor marks for ozone pollution in a report released … 0

Debate over Keystone pipeline heats up

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

KEYSTONE PIPELINE — Whether the proposed Keystone XL pipeline would boost American energy independence is in debate. Keystone promoters say the $7 billion project is vital for the nation — but som maintain much of its oil would be exported. The United States increasingly exports refined petroleum products … 0

The hermit thrush.

Spotlight: Hampshire Bird Club

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Hampshire Bird Club EDITOR’S NOTE: In “Spotlight,” we provide short profiles of Valley environmental groups. To suggest a group, email editor@gazettenet.com. VERBATIM: “Birds are probably the most visible connection that any human anywhere has to nature” – Geoff … 0

DEP enforcement actions for March

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

The following is a selection of state Department of Environmental Protection orders for March, the most recent period for which reports are available: WATER VIOLATIONS, Becket, March 18: Entered into a consent order with Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival Inc. for water supply violations in Becket. The facility repeatedly … 0

Deerfield picks Lowell firm to install solar farm

Monday, April 29, 2013

DEERFIELD — The town has picked American Capital Energy of Lowell to install a 2-megawatt solar farm at the former landfill near the trash transfer station. The Energy Committee recommended the company based on its extensive experience constructing arrays on landfills similar to the town’s Lee Road site. … 0

In this photo provided by the Littleton Area Historical Society, Edward Geddes sits on the top of the Old Man of the Mountain profile in this early 1900s photo in Franconia, N.H. Geddes, a stone quarry superintendent from Quincy, Massachusetts, was the first man to do repair work on New Hampshire's iconic figure, which fell nearly ten years ago. (AP Photo/Littleton Area Historical Society)

NH honors Old Man of the Mountain 10 years after fall

Monday, April 29, 2013

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — Edward Geddes already had spent two long days on the mountain when the weather turned. Battered by wind and soaked by rain — “like shower baths of ice water” — he clung to a … 0

Colorful pots by Amy Creates are displayed, Saturday, at the annual Sustainability Festival in Amherst center. SARAH CROSBY

Sustainability Festival in Amherst

Thursday, May 16, 2013

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