Salt Marsh Diary writer Mark Seth Lender heads to the marshes of the Connecticut River to witness an extraordinary event: a funnel of migrating tree swallows.

Two years ago hopes were high for tough legislation on climate change in this Congress. But a Senate bill failed this summer and left the policy mechanism "cap-and-trade" battered and bruised. Now green lobbyists are swinging behind a modest approach to reduce greenhouse gas emissions: a federal renewable electricity standard. Living on Earth's Mitra Taj reports this could be the 111th Congress's last chance to move the country toward a low-carbon economy.

A photographer was one of this year’s Heinz environmental award winners. James Balog’s project -- the Extreme Ice Survey -- documents the rapid melting of glacial ice through time-lapse photgraphs from cameras in some of the world’s most remote areas. Host Bruce Gellerman talks with James Balog about the Extreme Ice Survey.

Host Bruce Gellerman dips into the mailbag to give Living on Earth listeners a chance to sound-off.

Millions of women and children in developing countries breathe in dirty smoke from stoves every time they cook. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton just announced a public/private partnership to help fund and distribute safer cookstoves around the world. Host Bruce Gellerman talks with Leslie Cordes, the Director of Partnership Development at the UN Foundation, a partner on this project.

Chemists from China have discovered the formula of a durable ancient mortar made of sticky rice and limestone, which will help archaeologists restore ancient tombs and palaces. Living on Earth’s Meghan Miner brings us this science note.

A Senate proposal to cap emissions has been on shaky ground since BP's oilrig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico. Encouraging an expansion of offshore oil drilling was central to securing broad support for the legislation, but now some coastal Senators are vowing to kill the compromise bill. Living on Earth’s Mitra Taj reports on how one of the biggest oil spills in U.S. history could end up derailing legislation to address climate change.

The Hoover Dam was dedicated 75 years ago on September 30, 1935. The following years saw the Western US transformed from uninhabitable desert to cities and farmland. Pulitzer prize winning journalist Michael Hiltzik wrote the new book “Colossus”, which documents the history and impact of the Hoover Dam, and spoke with Jeff Young.

A conceptual artist in Cambridge Massachusetts has come up with a novel way to curb canine waste while illuminating a large and growing problem. Host Bruce Gellerman tells the tale.

California’s Mojave Desert may soon house the world’s largest solar power plant, after The Blythe Solar project won clearance from the California Energy Commission. The plant would pump renewable energy right into southern California’s central artery, but some environmentalists are concnerned. Host Bruce Gellerman talks with Matthew Nordan, Vice President of Venrock, a venture capital firm specializing in clean energy.

The Senate isn't taking up a climate change bill this summer, despite years of efforts to legislate a solution. But other plans to cap greenhouse gas emissions are beginning to grind into gear. Living on Earth host Steve Curwood talks with Washington correspondent Mitra Taj about two alternative paths to a low-carbon future: EPA regulation, and state action.