WFHB Local News Features

Over the last year, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources logged several state forests areas. During the process, they also clear-cut countless old growth trees. WFHB correspondent Jonah Chester sat down with Dr. Rae Schnapp, Conservation Director with the Indiana Forest Alliance, to discuss how these logging efforts are impacting Indiana’s woodland ecosystem.

A federal judge is blocking a new program that would allow state officials to purge voter data from Indiana’s election rolls. The ruling, issued Friday by U.S. District Court Hon. Judge Tanya Walton Pratt, temporarily bars the Interstate Voter Registration Crosscheck Program from going into effect. The Crosscheck Program is meant to prevent elections fraud and double voting- where voters …

Local residents are heading to Washington DC this weekend to lobby members of congress for a solution to climate change. The group, Citizens Climate Lobby, is purporting a solution to global climate change by implementing a carbon fee and dividend. In this conversation with Macia Veldman, with the Citizen’s Climate Lobby, WFHB Correspondent Jonah Chester learns that the group aims …

The town of Spencer resisted being named a Superfund site by the EPA. According to EPA documents obtained by WFHB, Spencer officials pushed back on the EPA’s designation, due to fears that being named a Superfund site would negatively affect property values. The town’s aquifer was named a Superfund site by the EPA last month. Superfund sites are eligible for …

Indiana wildlife groups are pushing for recognition of Indiana’s Lake Sturgeons as a federally endangered species. The fish-which can grow up to 8 feet in length and live to over 100 years old- have seen a 99% population reduction in the last century. In today’s feature report, WFHB correspondent Jonah Chester discusses the importance of the sturgeon with Hoosier Environmental …

Deer tick populations are increasing and showing up in places they’ve never been before. That’s according to a new study from Indiana University researchers. As WFHB Correspondent Jonah Chester reports, the increased prevalence of ticks throughout the state also increases the chances of residents contracting diseases, including the incurable Lyme Disease.

The dry cleaning chemical tetrachloroethene, or PCE, has leached into the groundwater aquifer in Spencer over the years. Last week, the Environmental Protection Agency added downtown Spencer to the Superfund National Priorities List. Dr. Diane Henshel, at IU’s School of Public and Environmental Affairs, is an environmental toxicology expert. She speaks with WFHB News Director Wes Martin, about what the …

The U.S. House of Representatives struck down the first draft of the Federal Farm bill, yesterday. The bill, which is rewritten every four years, provides subsidies and insurance to farmers and agricultural businesses. It also serves as the regulatory legislation for SNAP benefits, formerly called food stamps. The failed congressional draft would have expanded work requirements for SNAP beneficiaries. The …

The Marion County Health Department, which serves Indianapolis, announced a Hepatitis C Health emergency today. The Health Department is looking at putting in place a syringe exchange program to combat the spread of Hepatitis C, which kills more americans than any other infectious disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Monroe County’s syringe exchange program is operated by the …

A groundwater plume contaminated with the chlorinated solvent tetrachloroethene, or PCE, has led the EPA to designate the city of Spencer’s municipal well field – which provides water to approximately 9,900 residents- a Superfund Site. The water is blended and treated before distribution to residents. According to the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, the municipal water supply in Spencer meets …