An explosion at a chemical fertilizer plant in West, Texas earlier this year killed 15 people and injured more than 150. Daniel Lathrop, a staff reporter for the Dallas Morning News, tells host Steve Curwood that no one really knows how often accidents like the one in Texas occur, because nobody's keeping track.

Since 2010, Representative Henry Waxman (D-CA) has been asking the Representatives to take on climate change . Now the GOP House majority have finally set climate hearings for September 18. But Representative Waxman tells host Steve Curwood that the Republican hearings are not exactly what he hoped for.

Reporter Jeff Young learns the history of one of his favorite tomatoes: Radiator Charlie's Mortgage Lifter. The man who developed the famed tomato had a life as colorful as the plant that bears his name.

In the Pacific north-west, stocks of pink salmon have rebounded strongly. But on the White River, thanks to tight federal budgets, many fish get stuck at an old dam, and are dying in the attempt. From the public media collaborative EarthFix, Ashley Ahearn reports.

The House of Representatives is gridlocked on climate change, with Republicans skeptical of the science. The Heritage Foundation's climate, energy and economics analyst David Kreutzer tells host Steve Curwood that despite their decision to hold hearings, Republicans aren’t changing their position on climate, and question government spending .

Getting to know your neighbors is a pleasure of life in the South of the US. But as commentator Pat Priest of Athens Georgia observes, some neighbors can both charm and repulse us.

Japanese authorities are unable to control the radioactive water leaking out of the damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant. Now the government plans to install a wall of ice around the facility to contain the contaminated water. Ed Lyman, from the Union of Concerned Scientists, tells host Steve Curwood that the new ice wall plan is likely an act of desperation, and that some American reactors are at risk for the same kind of flooding disaster.

Deep sea fish tend to accumulate more mercury than those that swim in shallower waters. A recent study from the University of Michigan explains that sunlight plays a major role in detoxifying the mercury found in fish tissue. Lead author Joel Blum joins host Steve Curwood to discuss how he traced mercury from the atmosphere into Pacific fish.