5 Environmental Stories You Don't Want To Miss

By Robin Walter

November 5, 2015

Illicit marijuana threatens weasels, and salt has a secret ingredient (so do the guts of mealworms).

Photo by iStock/tru168

KEYSTONE XL THWARTED: The Obama administration rejected the Keystone XL Pipeline project, ending the seven-year long review of the controversial project that became central to the debate over U.S. energy and climate policy.

POT GOES THE WEASEL: A recent study linked the decline in the threatened Sierra-Nevada fisher population with exposure to rat poison—a toxin used by illicit marijuana growers in California forests.

WORMS NOM ON FOAM: A new study found that gut bacteria in common mealworms can break down styrofoam, which could mark a first step in addressing the proliferation of plastics in the environment.

JE’TAIME, PARIS: The mayor of Paris introduced emergency traffic bans for when air pollution hits dangerous levels.

PASS THE PLASTIC. I MEAN SALT: Recent research has shown that sea salt contains almost double the amount of microplastics as lake salt and up to triple the amount found in rock salt.