Environment

COVID-19 has put pressure on Indiana’s already struggling coal mining industry. Coal production dropped by nearly 37 percent last year — more than any of the other top coal mining states. Experts said it’s unlikely coal production in the U.S. will recover to what it was before the pandemic.

A controversial zinc oxide manufacturing plant can now start operating in Cass County. The state approved an air permit for Waelz Sustainable Products last week. Concerned residents said they’re disappointed.

More than 100 groups are asking the governor to veto a bill that would remove protections for many of the state’s wetlands. They delivered a letter to Holcomb on Monday. The signatures include city leaders as well as groups representing environmentalists, wildlife advocates, hunters, and more.

There are a number of ways the Environmental Protection Agency under President Joe Biden can help reduce pollution in Indiana. That was one takeaway from the Hoosier Environmental Council’s Earth Day panel discussion with two former EPA employees.

The U.S. has not only met targets set by the Clean Power Plan to reduce carbon emissions at power plants — it’s exceeded them. That’s according to a new report by the Environmental Integrity Project which looked at data from the Environmental Protection Agency.

The Indiana NAACP is speaking out against a state Senate resolution that urges Indiana to support a carbon tax plan. The Baker-Shultz Carbon Dividends Plan proposes taxing companies that emit greenhouse gases and returning that money to U.S. households.

Lawmakers want to study a way to reduce costs for utility customers when coal plants retire early.

It may get easier for underserved communities with failing septic tanks to get water and sewer systems. A state House bill addressing that issue passed out of committee by a unanimous vote on Tuesday. But the bill doesn’t cover everyone who needs help.

The city of Muncie is buying the former GM factory property on the city’s Southside.  As IPR’s Stephanie Wiechmann reports, officials wants to turn it into a solar panel farm to generate power.