Climate Change

After spending six years as the mayor of Roeland Park, Kansas, Mike Kelly was elected in November to be the next chairman of the Johnson County Commission. Just three months into the job, he's set to give his first State of the County address next week.

Since Roe v. Wade was overturned, abortion rights groups have been resorting to increasingly scrappy tactics in their quest to keep abortion accessible across the country. Thanks to volunteer pilots, some are flying into Kansas by plane. Plus: Midwest farmers have tripled their use of cover crops, and a new farm bill might make them even more popular.

A new study shows a threefold increase in Midwest farm acres using the offseason crops to help protect the soil and reduce runoff, but it still makes up less than 8% of all farmland.

The ordinance aims to prevent unnecessary tree removal by requiring developers to maintain existing trees or pay a fine. But some tree experts say the fine doesn’t cover the cost to replace a tree.

Climate change is making some birds migrate sooner than others to match peak insect populations

Enrollment in Medicaid hit a record high in Missouri in part because states weren’t allowed to kick people off during the coronavirus pandemic — but that changes soon, threatening health insurance for hundreds of thousands of residents. Plus: Across the Midwest, statewide weather monitors that provide critical weather data are threatened by a lack of stable funding.

Accurate weather information is important for farmers, emergency responders and researchers managing extreme conditions. But many monitoring networks are limited by unstable, patchwork funding.

A Missouri House committee heard testimony on legislation that would require cities and counties to pay for electric vehicle chargers in order to mandate businesses install them. The proposal is backed by fossil fuel interests and groups like the Missouri Retailers Association.

A new study from Kansas State University researchers is the first to measure how a changing climate is hurting wheat production in the Great Plains. And it points to a future with more extreme heat, drought and wind.

The CleanAirNow Coalition was one of many environmental groups that, along with 16 U.S. states, sued the U.S. Postal Service over their plan to purchase heavily-polluting gasoline trucks. Now the USPS will electrify its fleet of mail delivery vehicles.

Missouri saw flooding, drought, extreme heat and bitter cold in 2022. Meanwhile, in Kansas, drought-fueled wildfires are exhausting resources and adding importance to the fight to conserve water. We'll take a look at the biggest climate stories of the year.

Lack of rainfall and water restrictions are two early signs of the future that are causing water worries to bubble up in Lincoln. As drought plagues the state, and with climate change promising more of the same, there is a plan to have a second water supply in place by 2048.