Environment & Science

WLVR's Megan Frank talks with Ryan Gaylor and Molly Bilinski.

The severe storms and flash flooding of July 16 overwhelmed parts of the Slate Belt, Forks and Palmer townships and led seven Northampton County municipalities to declare disasters of their own.

The Martin OM Biosphere guitar, which costs $2,299, received the Preferred by Nature Sustainability Framework certification, officials said Thursday. The Nazareth guitar maker is the first company to achieve the certification in the U.S., and only the second worldwide.

Hurricanes in the U.S. the last few decades killed thousands more people than meteorologists traditionally calculate, according to a new study.

Hoping or wishing that an item is recyclable, without actually confirming it, can do more harm than good, and it’s an increasing issue for Lehigh Valley haulers, as well as the recovery facilities where those items are sorted.

Last year, Bethlehem Area and Allentown school districts were waitlisted to get rebate funding through the Clean School Bus program. Another round of applications for this fiscal year is open until later this month.

A local consortium of tech companies, local government and politicians and other organizations have submitted an application for the Lehigh Valley to land $75 million to boost the Lehigh Valley's production of semiconductors as part of the CHIPS and Science Act.

State Representative Robert Freeman joined officials from Northampton County and Easton to promote a transition to electric vehicles, which they say will yield substantial environmental, economic and health impacts.

Following assessments throughout Northampton County, officials are warning federal assistance for damage due to the July flooding is not guaranteed.

Thousands of raptors — from vultures, eagles and kites to hawks, kestrels and falcons — are expected to make their annual trek through the region over the next three months, and researchers at the Lehigh Gap Nature Center are in need of volunteers.

Even with temperatures set to surge next week, experts say Mid-March could see a pool of cold air spilling into the Lower 48, potentially unleashing cold, stormy conditions.

A bright meteor raced across the skies around 6:50 p.m. Wednesday, with people near the Lehigh Valley reporting the sighting.

More than 100 businesses, officials, organizations and environmental advocates statewide — including two from the Lehigh Valley — signed a letter to Shapiro arguing his economic development plan, “Pennsylvania Gets It Done,” fails to prioritize sustainable industries and instead doubles down on fossil fuels.

LANTA and UGI Energy Services have signed a three-year deal that will provide the transportation authority with compressed natural gas collected from landfills in eastern Pennsylvania.

The Lehigh Valley stands alone as the only major climate site in the area with above-average snowfall this winter, but the pattern says winter could be just about over.

Brad Klein reviews the week’s astronomical highlights with Bethlehem’s "Backyard Astronomy Guy," Marty McGuire.

The Lehigh Valley Planning Commission last week released a draft of its Priority Climate Action Plan, a document almost a year in the making aimed at tamping down the region’s carbon emissions and mitigating the effects of climate change.

The National Weather Service issued the warning Saturday afternoon for parts of Lehigh and Northampton counties, extending into Carbon County.

Take a look at stories that ran throughout the week of which we are most proud, had a profound impact on readers or that you might want to look at again.

Five farms, three in Lehigh County and two in Northampton County, were the latest to be included in the commonwealth’s Farmland Preservation Program, along with more than a dozen others across the state.

Some areas reported almost 14 inches of snow, with flakes the size of cotton balls. Other areas got just a few inches. Said a National Weather Service meteorologist: 'I completely understand the shock factor.'

The Lehigh Valley is under a winter weather advisory in effect from 10 p.m. Friday to 10 a.m. Saturday, with a chance the snowfall that could overperform in parts of the region.