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Eastern hellbender salamander, native to NC, could soon gain federal protections
Eastern hellbenders are cold and slick to the touch, but are also very muscular. (Photo: Lisa Sorg)The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service last Thursday announced its plan to add the eastern hellbender...
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Huge spending bill unveiled in Congress provides more than $100 billion in...
Congressional leaders unveiled a catch-all, year-end package Tuesday night that would provide disaster aid along with stopgap funding to keep the government running through mid-March. Heavy rains from...
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First severe case of bird flu in a human in the U.S. reported in Louisiana
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday a Louisiana resident is believed to have been infected with a severe case of bird flu through sick or dead birds on their property that...
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States to lose out on billions if GOP spurns disaster aid in spending bill,...
Some kind of spending bill must become law before Friday at midnight, otherwise a partial government shutdown would begin. Shown is the U.S. Capitol on Nov. 26, 2024. (Photo by Shauneen Miranda/States...
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‘Hard times on top of hard times’: families and child care providers in the...
Verner Center for Early Learning student Casper Stone plays with a toy chainsaw at a “Reopen House” on Nov. 1. The toy is an example of trauma-informed play the center introduced to help children...
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Three of the biggest NC government and politics storylines of 2024 — and what...
An aerial view of people standing near destroyed and damaged buildings in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene flooding on Oct. 8, 2024 in Bat Cave, North Carolina. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)When...
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Hurricane Helene’s devastation dominates 2024 housing news in North Carolina
The entrance to Hendersonville Mobile Estates. The mobile home community was flooded during Hurricane Helene. One tenant lost her life. (Photo: Greg Childress)In recent months, Hurricane Helene and the...
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NC needs to build on environmental policy accomplishments in 2025
The author says that it's imperative for North Carolina to build on recent environmental policy successes like the expansion of clean energy in 2025. (Photo: Robert Zullo/ States Newsroom)Working...
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NC’s new governor signs five executive orders to expedite Helene recovery
Gov. Josh Stein signed five executive orders Thursday to speed recovery in Helene impacted counties. (Photo courtesy of the Governor's Office.) In his first full day on the job Thursday, North Carolina...
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Biden to ban future offshore drilling across more than 600 million acres
Cleanup workers search for contaminated sand and seaweed in front of drilling platforms and container ships about one week after an oil spill from an offshore oil platform on Oct. 9, 2021, in...
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North Carolina’s climate activists brace for Trump’s return
Sherri White-Williamson of Clinton, in Sampson County, co-founded EJCAN, which advocates for environmental justice in low-income neighborhoods and communities of color where pollution sources are...
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New team in governor’s office will spearhead Helene recovery, led by ex-Wake...
Flooding in western North Carolina from Hurricane Helene. (Photo: David Davis, County Extension Director, N.C. Cooperative Extension)A new team within Gov. Josh Stein’s office will be tasked with...
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Western North Carolina to receive $1.65B in federal disaster grants
Gov. Josh Stein (right) inspects a trailer on visit to western North Carolina. (Photo courtesy of the governor's office.)Western North Carolina received good news Tuesday in its struggle to recover...
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Democrats say U.S. Senate Republicans rushing confirmation of Interior...
Gov. Doug Burgum, at the time the governor of North Dakota and now President-elect Donald Trump's pick for secretary of the Interior, presents his budget recommendations before a joint session of the...
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California infernos in January? Why wildfire season keeps getting longer and...
A person uses a garden hose in an effort to save a neighboring home from catching fire during the Eaton Fire on Jan. 8, 2025 in Altadena, California. As of Wednesday, over 1,000 structures have burned,...
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U.S. House speaker pitches conditions on disaster aid, upending long-standing...
A person uses a garden hose in an effort to save a neighboring home from catching fire during the Eaton Fire on Jan. 8, 2025, in Altadena, California. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)WASHINGTON —...
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To reduce its carbon footprint, UNC could burn pellets composed of paper and...
A view of the cogeneration plant operated by the University of North Carolina, located a half-mile from the UNC-Chapel Hill campus. (Photo: Lisa Sorg/Inside Climate News)This report was first published...
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California fires show states’ ‘last resort’ insurance plans could be overwhelmed
The Palisades Fire destroyed thousands of homes in Los Angeles as high winds stoked wildfires throughout the city. Many private insurers recently dropped coverage in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood,...
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Gov. Josh Stein calls on FEMA to extend hotel vouchers for Helene victims in...
An aerial view of people standing near destroyed and damaged buildings in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene flooding on Oct. 8, 2024 in Bat Cave, North Carolina. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)Gov....
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Trump orders withdrawal from Paris climate agreement, erases actions on...
President Donald Trump holds up an executive order after signing it during an indoor inauguration parade at the Capital One Arena on Jan. 20, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty...
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GOP congressional leaders and Trump stalled on how best to pass big policy...
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and wife Melania Trump arrive at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 8, 2025 in Washington, D.C. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., walks in back of them. (Photo by...
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Trump puts DEI staff on paid leave, guts environmental justice offices across...
President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House on Jan. 20, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)WASHINGTON — All federal employees in...
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In times of crisis, states have few tools to fight misinformation
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, tours the downtown business district of Pacific Palisades as the Los Angeles fires still rage. Newsom launched a website to combat rampant misinformation about...
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Trump executive orders cause concern for North Carolina environmental community
An aerial view of flood damage wrought by Hurricane Helene along the Swannanoa River on Oct. 4, 2024 in Asheville. Environmental advocates are worried that President Donald Trump's recent executive...
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Trump floats ‘getting rid’ of FEMA as he visits North Carolina to survey...
President Donald Trump discusses Helene recovery during a visit to Western North Carolina on January 24, 2025. (Photo credit: CSPAN)President Donald Trump floated “getting rid” of the Federal Emergency...
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Get rid of FEMA? Trump-appointed group to look at shifting disaster response...
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, right, tours the downtown business district of Pacific Palisades as the Palisades Fire continued to burn on Jan. 8, 2025, in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Eric...
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Trump freeze on federal aid may ensnare billions in funding to North Carolina
Gov. Josh Stein (center) discusses Hurricane Helene recovery during visit to Asheville. HUD Secretary Adrianne Todman (left) and Asheville Mayor Esther Manheimer (right) and other officials look on. A...
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Why Is ReBuild NC involved in disaster management in western North Carolina?
Residents of Swannanoa live in campers and tents as their homes remain destroyed or uninhabitable from Hurricane Helene in western North Carolina. (Photo: Lisa Sorg/Inside Climate News)This article...
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NC’s hurricane homebuilding program asks for $217M as lawmakers continue...
Pryor Gibson, interim director of ReBuild NC, testifies in front of North Carolina lawmakers on the state of the hurricane homebuilding program on Jan. 30, 2025. (Photo: Galen Bacharier/NC...
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Bipartisan bill in Congress would fund repairs to private roads damaged by...
Repair vehicles from the North Carolina Department of Transportation repair a partially cratered road in western North Carolina amid the recovery from Hurricane Helene. (Photo: NCDOT)A bipartisan group...
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Western NC small businesses can now apply for new $30M grant program
Low-lying areas of Hendersonville Mobile Estate flooded during Hurricane Helene. (Photo: Greg Childress)Small businesses in western North Carolina impacted by Hurricane Helene can now apply for grants...
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Duke Energy promised to limit emissions at four new gas plants. It’s already...
Duke Energy’s STAR facility burns coal ash to be reused in cement in Goldsboro (Photo: Lisa Sorg/Inside Climate News)This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, non-partisan...
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Verizon, ForgiveCo get assist from Roy Williams to announce debt forgiveness...
Retired UNC basketball coach Roy Williams (Photo: UNC.edu)More than 6,500 people in storm-ravaged western North Carolina had more than $10 million in consumer debt wiped out, thanks to Verizon and...
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Gov. Josh Stein asks NC lawmakers for another billion in Hurricane Helene aid
North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein delivers his inaugural address at the Capitol Building in Raleigh on Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo: Galen Bacharier/NC Newsline)Gov. Josh Stein is asking North Carolina lawmakers...
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Lessons learned: Lawmakers hope to avoid mistakes from the past as they...
Pryor Gibson, interim director of ReBuild NC, says western North Carolina would benefit from a more streamlined process than the one used by NCORR. (Photo: Screengrab from NCGA video)“I want them to...
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NC lawmakers weigh new aid for Hurricane Helene, drafting up $500 million in...
Repair vehicles from the North Carolina Department of Transportation repair a partially cratered road in western North Carolina amid the recovery from Hurricane Helene. (Photo: NCDOT)State lawmakers...
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Fires and floods are eviscerating US communities, intensifying the housing...
The sun rises above homes that burned in the Eaton Fire in January in Altadena, Calif. More than 12,000 structures burned in the Palisades and Eaton fires last month. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)After...
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NC House adds rental assistance, crop loss program to Helene aid bill as new...
Flooding in western North Carolina from Hurricane Helene. (Photo: David Davis, County Extension Director, N.C. Cooperative Extension)North Carolina House lawmakers added money to fund assistance for...
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House to advance Helene aid this week, with questions looming on Senate’s...
Mangled railroad tracks and damaged buildings wrought by Hurricane Helene can be seen along the French Broad River on October 3, 2024 in Marshall, North Carolina. Helene caused more than $59 billion in...
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Climate and environmental justice programs stalled by Trump freeze, despite...
U.S. President Donald Trump holds up an executive order after signing it during an indoor inauguration parade at Capital One Arena on Jan. 20, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty...
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Trump’s cuts to federal wildfire crews could have ‘scary’ consequences
A firefighter tends to a backfire set to battle the Windy Fire on Sept. 26, 2021, south of California Hot Springs, Calif. Wildland fire officials say preparations for this year’s fire season have been...
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Months after Helene, some western NC businesses reopen — with new debt and...
Second Gear, an outdoor gear shop in Asheville, North Carolina. The store's previous building on the riverfront was destroyed during Hurricane Helene. (Photo: Courtesy of Russ Towers/Second Gear)After...
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Environmental advocates challenge FERC on MVP Southgate gas pipeline project
Workers began laying portions of the Mountain Valley Pipeline in Roanoke County, Virginia near the Blue Ridge Parkway. (Photo: Ned Oliver/Virginia Mercury)The long-simmering controversy surrounding the...
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Stein asks feds for another $19B in Helene aid, as White House plans major...
Gov. Josh Stein (right) inspects a trailer on a recent visit to western North Carolina. (Photo courtesy of the governor's office.)Gov. Josh Stein is asking President Donald Trump and Congress for...
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Massive cuts to a HUD office would slow disaster aid to hard-hit NC communities
Flood debris piles left in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in Bat Cave, North Carolina. (Photo by Sean Rayford/Getty Images)This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit,...
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Local NC governments begin receiving Helene loans through new state program
Mangled railroad tracks and damaged buildings wrought by Hurricane Helene can be seen along the French Broad River on October 3, 2024 in Marshall, North Carolina. Helene caused more than $59 billion in...
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NC House passes $500M in Helene aid, $100 boost to weekly unemployment checks
North Carolina Rep. Dudley Greene (R-Avery) urges the House to support a bill sending $500 million in aid to western North Carolina after Hurricane Helene on Feb. 25, 2025. (Photo: Galen Bacharier/NC...
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GOP lawmakers move to fund final stretch of ReBuild NC, after years of...
Laura Hogshead (bottom left), now the former director of ReBuild NC, and Pryor Gibson (bottom right), advisor to Gov. Roy Cooper, testify in front of lawmakers about North Carolina's hurricane recovery...
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DMV departure, school cellphone ban, farm loss proposal highlight busy...
North Carolina DMV Commissioner Wayne Goodwin (Photo: NCGA video stream) DMV commissioner Wayne Goodwin announces plans to leave beleaguered agency North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles...
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Duke Energy reviews Helene damage and repairs, MVP pipeline for NC House panel
Helene caused extensive repair work for Duke Energy. (Photo: Duke Energy)Duke Energy restored services to 1.4 million customers in North Carolina in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, a company...
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