60 episodes

MPR News meteorologist Paul Huttner with the latest research on our changing climate.

Climate Cast Minnesota Public Radio

    • News
    • 4.6 • 78 Ratings

MPR News meteorologist Paul Huttner with the latest research on our changing climate.

    The growing climate concern of water vapor

    The growing climate concern of water vapor

    An increase in water vapor in the atmosphere is driving more extreme weather around the world.

    How is that playing out here in Minnesota?

    John Abraham, Thermal Sciences Professor and Mechanical Engineering Program Director at University of St. Thomas, shared more about the little known but growing climate concern.

    • 4 min
    United Nations calls for urgent action to protect children's rights

    United Nations calls for urgent action to protect children's rights

    The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is expanding its electric school bus program using three million dollars from the state’s settlement with Volkswagen over exaggerated fuel efficiency claims.

    This round of funding will cover the costs for eight more school buses and there will be future rounds in the near future. In addition, the Minnesota Department of Commerce and the Environmental Protection Agency will run separate pools of funding for electric school buses.

    Brian Timerson, who oversees the program for Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, shared more about the opportunities available to switch to electric school buses.

    • 4 min
    Farmers drained jaw-dropping amounts of water from Minnesota aquifers in 2021

    Farmers drained jaw-dropping amounts of water from Minnesota aquifers in 2021

    Drought and the nation’s hunger for mouth-watering french fries led large farms to pump significantly more groundwater than they’re allowed.

    • 4 min
    Some yellow school buses are turning green this school year

    Some yellow school buses are turning green this school year

    The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is expanding its electric school bus program using three million dollars from the state’s settlement with Volkswagen over exaggerated fuel efficiency claims.

    This round of funding will cover the costs for eight more school buses and there will be future rounds in the near future. In addition, the Minnesota Department of Commerce and the Environmental Protection Agency will run separate pools of funding for electric school buses.

    Brian Timerson, who oversees the program for Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, shared more about the opportunities available to switch to electric school buses.

    • 4 min
    Cargo ship sets sail with 'WindWings' created by Minnesota's Cargill

    Cargo ship sets sail with 'WindWings' created by Minnesota's Cargill

    Minnesota-based Cargill has developed modern sails they’re calling ‘WindWings’ that allow giant cargo ships to harness wind energy.

    Last week, the first ever vessel outfitted with the giant 123-foot sails embarked on a test journey from China to Brazil. It’s said the sails could help the ship dramatically slash its fuel costs and greenhouse gas emissions.

    Andrew Freedman from Axios shared more about the innovation and what it’ll take to decarbonize the marine shipping industry.

    • 4 min
    Federal commission takes steps to speed up grid interconnection process

    Federal commission takes steps to speed up grid interconnection process

    For the U.S. to meet its climate goals, we need more clean energy projects — projects that require space on the electrical grid.

    The trouble is: there’s a massive backlog. Some wind and solar projects have been waiting for years to be connected to electric grids. Now the Federal Electric Regulatory Commission (FERC) is taking action to speed up the connection process.

    Jeff St. John wrote about the changes for Canary Media, a newsletter focused on solutions to the climate crisis.

    • 4 min

Customer Reviews

4.6 out of 5
78 Ratings

78 Ratings

cjtannu ,

Great podcast

Thanks for the variety of content

Caran Quinn ,

My Favorite Climate Podcast

Excellent topics. Impactful, but brief. Always interesting guests who leave an imprint and reinforce what I’m doing to reduce CO2. Thanks for all that you do!

Musing by Me ,

Climate matters

Plus: your broadcast, points to the effects of CC locally with great effect.
Negative: your broadcast, fails miserably at pointing fingers at the causes of CC. My quote: “fossil fuels are our destruction”!
Neutral: people want/need hope. I grew up knowing our world would end in nuclear winter. Now I “believe” our end is a CO2 summer. I was wrong the first time; let’s keep our fingers crossed! I recommend a podcast called “Drilled”. Because!

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