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When rural Kansas loses a foster family

Being a foster parent is hard enough, but being one in rural Kansas presents its own struggles. Plus, the wind energy industry is now facing a new challenge: what to do with old wind turbine blades when it’s time to replace them.

More than half the counties in Kansas have fewer than 10 licensed foster families. That means that losing just one foster parent can have big effects, and many children are unlikely to be placed near home. Blaise Mesa of the Kansas News Service reports on the unique difficulties of the foster system in rural Kansas.

The small community of Louisiana, Missouri has become a hub for an unusual commodity: used wind turbine blades. With the wind energy industry growing at a record pace, parts are bound to need replacing. St. Louis Public Radio's Shahla Farzanreports what happens to these giant blades when they can't be used anymore.

Kansas City Today is hosted today by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love, Trevor Grandin and KCUR Studios and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

As a newscaster and a host of a daily news podcast, I want to deliver the most important and interesting news of the day in an engaging and easily understandable way. No matter where you live in the metro or what you’re interested in, I want you to learn something from each newscast or podcast – and maybe even give you something to talk about at the dinner table.
Trevor Grandin is a contributing producer for KCUR Studios.
KCUR serves the Kansas City region with breaking news and award-winning podcasts.
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