Environment & Science

As cleanup continues from Monday’s severe weather, the Lehigh Valley will see a period of rain Thursday that could bring localized flooding to some areas.

The National Weather Service determined damages during a severe thunderstorm Monday night were from straight-line winds as high as 100 mph, but no tornadoes touched down there.

The National Weather Service rated the tornado as an EF-1 — the second-weakest on the scale. It hit the Midway Manor neighborhood of Allentown and crossed into Bethlehem briefly, according to a weather service statement.

A National Weather Service survey team confirmed a tornado touched down in Allentown’s Midway Manor neighborhood Monday night on the east side, but the twister was unwarned.

Starting at 9 a.m., officials from Princeton Hydro, a New Jersey-based engineering consultant, will treat the lake’s shoreline via airboat to tamp down invasive Phragmites, a genus of four species of large perennial reed grasses.

The ordinance adjustments approved Monday night would align the township with the state model for stormwater management guidance.

Neighbors in the Midway Manor neighborhood of Allentown reported seeing a twister as the storm tore through the city's East Side on Monday night. There were no reports of serious injuries, but property damage was extensive.

A severe storm knocked out power to thousands in Lehigh County and sent Musikfest revelers searching for cover Monday night. As of 6 a.m. Tuesday, 16,000 customers have lost power.

The National Weather Service has issued a tornado watch for the Lehigh Valley and much of the Mid-Atlantic region.

WLVR’s Brad Klein speaks with Environment & Science Reporter, Molly Bilinski about the start later this month of the annual Bake Oven Knob Hawk Watch.

The plan uses the sale of credits for solar projects to plug oil and gas wells.

Drillers are expected to pay about $234M -- $90 million more than the year before.

Grants will go toward replacing gasoline- or diesel-fueled vehicles.

The 3-state panel is tasked with protecting resources of the Chesapeake Bay.

They don't bite or contain toxins, but they still don't have many friends in Pennsylvania.

Meeko is on a mission to save the planet from single-use plastic.

Opponents say joining RGGI will be an economic hardship on the state's energy sector.

Rep. Daryl Metcalfe has boosted fossil fuels and denied climate change.

The program is back for the start of 2022 after being canceled last year due to the pandemic.

After all but vanishing by the 1960s, the species is now self-sustaining in Pennsylvania.

Game Commission biologist Art McMorris has spent 18 years working on behalf of the winged predators.

Environmental justice areas include neighborhoods that shoulder more than a typical share of climate and environmental risks.