Michigan Environment Watch

The season starts Friday. You asked, we answered: Why isn’t year-round hunting? Why are deer so numerous even with so many hunters? What about a commercial hunt?

The incoming president is expected to resume the environmental rollbacks that were a signature of his first term in office, while prioritizing oil and gas and dismantling Biden-era electric vehicle and climate policies.

Residents who want to avoid raking their leaves this fall may do so with peace of mind. Experts say leaving the leaves can be beneficial for insects and other critters that rely on them.

With the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecasting “warmer-than-average” temperatures for parts of the Great Lakes, winter festivals from Metro Detroit to the Western Upper Peninsula are preparing to adapt.

A $2 billion plan to clean up century-old mining waste illustrates how tribes have been uniquely impacted by mining pollution, and why some are skeptical of new mine proposals.

A mining rush is on for minerals used for electric batteries, as the United States undergoes an energy transition. Photos show how the process works.

Decades after the bust, prospectors again descend on Michigan’s northwoods for minerals to make electric batteries. Communities are desperate for jobs. But at what cost?

The western Upper Peninsula is ‘at the end of the road,’ desperately needs help and should welcome mining with open arms, a retired miner says.

An artist is leading the fight against expanding mining in the western UP. She says society needs a reckoning about consumption, not more heavy extraction.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources awarded $3 million in grants to Michigan communities and organizations to plant over 2,000 trees.

With lots of domestic well users and plenty of polluting industries, Michiganders are among the nation’s most likely to have ‘forever chemicals’ in their well water, according to a landmark federal study.

Unseasonably warm temperatures in Michigan this year will continue through winter. But it will be wet, too, according to the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration.

A fire spreads in the McCormick Wilderness in the Upper Peninsula, as dry conditions increase risks of blazes statewide.

Several wildfires occurred over the weekend including a 100-acre fire in Baraga County in the Upper Peninsula due to dry conditions.

Michigan’s deer populations have soared to 2 million, so the state is tweaking regulations to encourage hunters to shoot more females.

As regulators review DTE Energy's $456.4 million rate hike request, businesses' comments appear to be written by the utility itself.

Water levels in the Great Lakes drop as the region experiences drier conditions due to a lack of precipitation.

In September, the school gave personal AI assistants to the more than 50,000 students at the University of Michigan.

Researchers have identified the plants and animals that pose the greatest threat to the Great Lakes' region's delicate ecosystems, fisheries and recreational waters. Leading the list are zebra mussels, followed by quagga mussels.

The National Weather Service issued freeze warnings for over a dozen Michigan counties as overnight temperatures are forecast to fall into the high 20s and low 30s, prompting gardeners to bring their plants inside for the season.