U.S. Department of Agriculture 8 results

One out of ten Bloomington residents struggles with food insecurity. A patchwork system of food banks, community kitchens, food-assistance programs, and other initiatives helps people get healthful food, but experts say it doesn’t address the root of the problem: poverty. | Photo by Olivia Bianco

‘Patchwork’ of Aid for Food Insecurity Doesn’t Address Its Cause Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate Food Insecurity, Part 2

Christina Avery and Haley Miller

One out of ten Bloomington residents struggles with food insecurity — having limited or uncertain access to food. A patchwork system of food banks, community kitchens, food-assistance programs, and other initiatives helps people get healthful food, but experts say it doesn’t address the root of the problem: poverty. Read part 2 of our Deep Dive into food insecurity.

March 11, 2024

The Work of Beth Edwards, Award-Winning Environmental Reporter

Beth Edwards

Beth Edwards was an award-winning environmental reporter who, along with Enrique Saenz, developed the Indiana Environmental Reporter at Indiana University into a source for environmental news that was respected statewide and nationally. Limestone Post looks at four of her reporting projects: on coal ash, confined animal feeding operations, Martinsville’s drinking water, and a controversial coal-to-diesel plant. Read Beth Edwards’s work here.

February 15, 2024

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Legislation recently introduced by Sen. Mike Braun would double the size of Indiana’s official wilderness area, making places like Nebo Ridge (above), Browning Mountain, Bad Hollow, and Panther Creek off-limits to logging, among other restrictions. The bill would also create the Benjamin Harrison National Recreation Area, Indiana’s only NRA. | Photo by Steven Higgs

New Legislation Would Double Size of Deam Wilderness Bill would also establish a new national recreation area by Lake Monroe

Steven Higgs

Legislation recently introduced by Sen. Mike Braun would add 15,300 acres to the Charles C. Deam Wilderness Area’s 12,953 acres, making places like Nebo Ridge, Browning Mountain, Bad Hollow, and Panther Creek off-limits to logging. The bill would also create the 29,000-acre Benjamin Harrison National Recreation Area, Indiana’s only national recreation area. Click here for details about the bill.

October 6, 2023

The primary reason Salt Creek was dammed in the 1960s was to control floodwaters downstream. While the Monroe Lake Control Tower (above) regulates water flow from the reservoir through the dam, the rest of Lake Monroe has become a valuable resource for drinking water, recreation, industry, wild habitat, and other uses well beyond its watershed. | Photo by Anna Powell Denton

How Healthy Is Lake Monroe — and How Long Will It Survive? Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate

Michael G. Glab, Anna Powell Denton

“Lake Monroe is a reservoir, and all reservoirs eventually fill up,” says Michelle Cohen, executive director of Lake Monroe Water Fund. But, she adds, those who rely on the lake for drinking water, recreation, and other uses have the power to extend its life as long as possible. Writer Michael G. Glab takes a deep dive into the health of Lake Monroe. Click here for his report for Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate.

August 16, 2023

The U.S. electrical grid is a complicated network of wires that traverse the continent and connect with regional private operators who then transmit and distribute power. Some call it “a patchwork of operators with competing interests,” writes Rebecca Hill. Indiana’s electricity comes primarily from coal, natural gas, and a growing renewables market, but the transition to renewables is not without problems. | Photo by Benedict Jones

The Power Struggle in Indiana’s Changing Energy Landscape Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate

Rebecca Hill, Benedict Jones

Indiana’s electricity comes primarily from coal, natural gas, and a growing renewables market. The transition to renewables, though, is not without problems, and the grid operators, regulators, and Indiana legislators are at odds with how to handle it. Rebecca Hill takes an in-depth look at Indiana’s power structure, as part of Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate. Click here to read about the transition of Indiana's energy landscape.

June 21, 2023

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Local Beekeepers Labor with Love as Honey Bees Decline Worldwide

Erin Hollinden

Honey bee populations in the U.S. have declined from 6 million in the 1940s to 2.5 million today. Pesticides, drought, and habitat destruction, are just a few reasons the bees are dying. But more than 200,000 hobbyist beekeepers, like writer Erin Hollinden, are trying to keep them (and ultimately us) alive. Click here to read Erin’s article.

April 29, 2023

Resilient Gardens Bend to the Will of Mother Nature

Jami Scholl

How to create a garden that is resilient to the vagaries of Indiana weather? Jami Scholl, a writer and gardener who was active in the early stages of the urban agriculture movement in Bloomington, says we must work with the forces of nature and “the basic environmental limiting factors of sunlight, water, and soil.” Click here for Jami’s tips on creating a resilient garden.

March 31, 2023

New People’s Open Pantry Offers Access to Healthy Food

Ellen Wu

Building equity and supporting community access to healthy food are at the heart of the People’s Open Pantry, a new initiative under the aegis of the People’s Market, writes Ellen Wu. But starting a pantry during a pandemic takes dedication and planning. Wu talked to several of the people involved in the effort. Click here to read the story.