Richard Harp couldn’t believe his ears when he learned the massive underground landfill fire near Moody, just a football field away from his home, is still burning and may never be extinguished. Read more.
The normal winter flu season is in full swing in Alabama, but this year COVID and RSV are joining the mix. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ranks the state among seven others with the highest rates for respiratory disease. Alabama health officials say there has been a 3.2% increase in hospital admissions statewide for the three viral diseases, but there is no shortage of treatment facilities or hospital beds across the state. But they warn that, with the workplace and schools opened after the holidays, the numbers could climb. Read more.
Nearby residents and environmental activists complained to state regulators without redress about an unlicensed sandstone quarry along Rock Creek. Alabama officials initially fined the company, but now it has signaled a green light ahead. Read more.
A resolution moved to the agenda of Thursday’s Jefferson County Commission meeting would forgive more than $1 million owed to the county from Jefferson County Economic and Industrial Development Authority. The county would also execute a purchase agreement with JCEIDA for land in the Lakeshore Jeffmet Park for the new office space of the Jefferson County Coroner/Medical Examiner. The purchase agreement for the land, valued at $700,000, would not be a cash transaction but would help offset the remaining JCEIDA debt being forgiven. County Manager Cal Markert called the authority “one of the most successful economic development groups in the state, if not the most.” Read more.
Though the creek water at Turkey Creek Nature Preserve in northeast Jefferson County is crystal clear, and thousands visit the preserve each year, it’s highly unlikely most will see three unique fish species that swim alongside them. They are the endangered watercress, rush and vermilion darters “This is kind of like a ‘Where’s Waldo,’” said preserve manager Charles Yeager, wading through the center of Turkey Creek, looking for the darter. Read more.
Around Thanksgiving a year ago, a landfill near Moody caught fire, blanketing the surrounding area with smoke. The fire burned for months before the Environmental Protection Agency covered the landfill with dirt to extinguish the flames, but there have been flare ups since. To understand what things are like now, WBHM talked with one nearby resident. Read more.
Extreme temperatures; worsening wildfires, hurricanes and floods; infrastructure problems; agricultural impacts: The way you experience climate change will depend on where you live. Read more.
Cool Green Trees, a project of Cawaco RC&D, plants trees in under-resourced communities in the Birmingham area to help mitigate climate change and advance environmental justice initiatives. Read more.
Some Southern towns have been erased by environmental disasters — whether natural or man-made. One Alabama town offers lessons on the hidden cost of progress. Read more.
In West Jefferson, everything happens in the shadow of Alabama Power. Fewer than 500 people live in the town of less than one square mile, located just a 20-minute drive northwest of Birmingham. There’s little in the way of excess. Modest homes dot the landscape, with residents waving as cars pass by. There’s a Dollar General, a Baptist church and an elementary school — the staples of a small Southern community. But in this town, a plant looms large. Read more.
