On this week's This Green Earth, hosts Chris Cherniak and Nell Larson speak with Department of Wildlife Resource’s Bruce Johnson. He comes on to discuss invasive quagga mussels in Utah waters, and what is being done at a State level to protect our lakes, and how you can help mitigate the contamination.

This Green Earth | July 12, 2022

On this week's This Green Earth, hosts Nell Larson and Chris Cherniak speak with special guests including: (01:41) Michelle De Haan, Park City's water Quality and Treatment Manager and Mike Luers, General Manager of the Synderville Basin Water Reclamation District. They join the show to discuss the Annual Water Quality Consumer Confidence Report and water testing. Then (32:20) Kayli Yardley, Statewide Prevention and Fire Communications Coordinator, joins the show to discuss Utah's current wildfire season.

This Green Earth | July 5, 2022

Dr. David Stoner, Research Assistant Professor for Wildland Resources at Utah State University, joins the show to talk about encounters with wildlife. Now that summer is here and more people are hiking and camping, Stoner gives us the facts about mountain lions, shares why drought and warming have the potential to increase human encounters, and tells us the best way to handle an encounter.

How to handle wildlife encounters with David Stoner

Nicholas Mallos, senior director of Ocean Conservancy’s Trash Free Seas Program joins the show to discuss the recent ban on single-use plastics in National Parks and the positive outcomes this could have on the health of our oceans, as well as the good example it can set for conservation efforts moving forward.

Nicholas Mallos and the new single-use plastics ban in National Parks

On today's This Green Earth, hosts Claire Wiley and Chris Cherniak speak with Jordan Clayton (1:42), Supervisor with the Utah Snow Survey and Natural Resources Conservation Service about snowfall, rainfall, soil moisture and water storage levels throughout Utah.Then (24:49), we speak with Andy Davis, research scientist at the University of Georgia, about this data and the life of a Monarch. For years, scientists have warned that monarch butterflies are dying off in droves. New research coming from the University of Georgia suggests that the population of monarchs has remained relatively stable over the past 25 years.Published in Global Change Biology, the study states that population growth during the summer compensates for butterfly losses duet to migration, winter weather and changing environmental factors.

This Green Earth | June 21, 2022

On today's This Green Earth, hosts Nell Larson and Chris Cherniak will be speaking with (01:50) Peter Wilf, a Professor of Geosciences at Pennsylvania State University. He will be discussing the findings of a leaf fossil study that unveiled a prehistoric forest in Brunei. They will uncover how this study relates to investigations in climate change. Then, the hosts discuss (28:21) monarch butterfly populations and how microplastics are impacting pathogens in our oceans. Chris and Nell end the show with (36:07) Mike Sargent to discuss his work as a lobsterman and the future of Maine's lobster industry.

This Green Earth | June 14, 2022

On today's This Green Earth, Nell and Chris speak with (02:45) Mike Luers from the Snyderville Basin Water Reclamation District. They take a deep dive into the re-use of advanced treated wastewater on private and public properties. Learn what it is, how it works, and the challenges associated with it.Then, (27:17) author Jenny Price comes on the show to talk about her new book, Stop Saving the Planet! The book is described as a short, fun, fierce manifesto for environmentalism that is more fair and less righteous.They end the show speaking about (48:38) how Utah's Division of Wildlife Resources is accepting applications for positions on a regional advisory council.

This Green Earth | Jun. 7, 2022

On today's This Green Earth, host Chris Cherniak and guest host Claire Wiley will be speaking with (02:46) biologist turned perfumer, Elise Vernon Pearlstine, who turns our human centered perception of fragrance on its head and investigates plant evolutionary reasons for creating aromatic molecules. Her new book is called Scent: A Natural History of Fragrance. Then, (29:38) Chris and Claire will replay a recent favorite interview: Professor Emeritus William Lowry on National Parks in the Era of Climate Change.They conclude the show discussing Utah's drought.

This Green Earth | May 24, 2022

On today's This Green Earth, Nell and Chris speak with (01:44) New York Times Best Selling Author and naturalist Scott Weidensaul. On the heels of birding week and world migration bird day, Weidensaul will be talking about how climate change is affecting bird migratory patterns and what that means for the birds and the ecosystems they encounter.Then, (30:00) Brandy Smith from Utah Clean Energy will come on the show to discuss the growth of clean energy in Utah and the organization’s 20-year anniversary.

This Green Earth | May 17, 2022

On today's This Green Earth, hosts Nell Larsen and Chris Cherniak (02:12) take us into the world of garlic mustard and Trout friendly landscapes with Ecologist Sara Jo Dickens. Ecology Bridge is hosting its second annual Garlic Mustard games and, this year along with weed pulling, there will be prizes and a food truck party. Last year nearly 2 tons of weeds were pulled.Then, (28:29) Dr. Kelly Kopp, a professor at Utah State University in the Department of Plants, Soils &amp; Climate, joins to discuss her work and the resources the University makes available to our community.

This Green Earth | May 10, 2022

This Green Earth is a weekly, hour-long program that focuses on the environment and environmentalism. Co-hosts Christopher Cherniak and Nell Larson explore the science, politics, economics and ethics behind the environment, natural resources and sustainability. The program includes interviews with local and national experts in the fields of water resources, air quality, environmental policy, fossil and renewable fuels, climate, conservation, ecosystems, agriculture, aquaculture and sustainability.

On today's This Green Earth, Nell and Chris speak with: (01:52) author and historian Elena Conis about her new book, How to Sell a Poison: The Rise, Fall and Toxic Return of DDT. This deeply researched book provides a well-articulated explanation of how DDT was sold, mis-regulated and resold. Then, (29:28) Dr. Brian Moench with Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment comes on to talk about the EPA’s recent rejection of a request by the Utah Division of Air Quality to allow a higher ozone.If the EPA would have agreed to the request, then Utahns would have been subjected to higher levels of ozone air pollution.

This Green Earth | May 3, 2022

Nell Larson and Chris Cherniak are the hosts of This Green Earth. This week, (01:58) in celebration of International Dark Sky Week, Paul Ricketts, director of University of Utah's South Physics Observatory, will come on to speak about Utah's upcoming Dark Sky Week events, including telescope workshops and a Star party.Then, they will be speaking with (24:21) Yale University lecturer Wake Smith, who teaches a world-leading course on the topic of Climate Mitigation. The course syllabus forms the basis of his new book, Pandora's Toolbox: The Hopes and Hazards of Climate Intervention.

This Green Earth | Apr. 26, 2022

On today's episode of This Green Earth, Chris Cherniak hosts with Claire Wiley, covering for Nell Larson. In honor of "Earth Week" and the local events happening in our community to celebrate, their guests on the show include, (01:13) Rhea Cone, conservation coordinator at the Swaner Preserve and Ecocenter, (21:12) Kelsey Christiansen, Storm Water Manager of Summit County and (33:52) Kate Mapp of Park City Library on their new Sustainability Resource Center. Chris and Claire have some round table discussion moments with all the guests throughout the show as well.

This Green Earth | Apr. 19, 2022

On this episode of This Green Earth, Nell and Chris first speak with (00:17) Walt Meier, a Senior Scientist with the National Snow and Ice Data Center located in Boulder, CO. Walt brings the latest news and observations on Artic Sea Ice. Then, (23:41) Emily Murphy, author of the new book Grow Now - How We Can See Our Health, Communities and Planet - One Garden at a Time, joins the show. Murphy shares easy-to-follow principles for regenerative gardening.

This Green Earth | Apr. 12, 2022

This Green Earth airs on KPCW at 9am following NPR news and the Local News Hour. Today, Nell and Chris's guests include: (02:23) Professor Emeritus William Lowry, who discusses Requiem for America's Best Idea: National Parks in the Era of Climate Change; a book about our National Parks written by Michael Yochim. Yochim worked as a park ranger for 22 years at Yellowstone National Park, as well as Yosemite, Grand Canyon and Sequoia before he was diagnosed with ALS. While Yochim wrote this book, he used just his eyes and an eye-tracking machine. The book establishes a parallel between the author's terminal illness and the state of the National Parks, and Lowry wrote the forward to the book. (20:59) Jordan Clayton from Utah Snow Survey then joins This Green Earth to speak about the March water report and projections as we head into our warmer months.Nell and Chris end the hour discussing (44:24) Charles Darwin's missing notebooks, taken from Cambridge Library, have been returned more than 20 years later, (46:30) one of their favorite interviews of the past about stolen feathers from the British Natural History Museum, (47:14) the National Weather Service cutting back weather balloon launches, and (48:22) Swaner Ecocenter's event tonight from 7-9pm called Lights Out.

This Green Earth | Apr. 5, 2022 

On today's This Green Earth, (04:52) Senior Scientist Charles Paull comes on the show to discuss a new study from Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute that documents how the thawing of permafrost, submerged underwater at the edge of the Arctic Ocean, is affecting the seafloor. Then in the second half of the show, (22:15) Chris and Carolyn replay an interview with Dan Saladino about the world's rarest foods, and why we need to save them.

This Green Earth | Mar. 29, 2022

In this episode of This Green Earth Nell and Chris are joined by award winning science writer (01:41) Nancy Castaldo. She has a new book out called When the World Runs Dry: Earth's Water in Crisis. Water is essential for life on this planet, but not every community has the safe, clean water it needs. Castaldo takes readers from Flint, Michigan to Cape Town, South Africa, to explore the various ways in which water around the world is in danger, and why we must act now. Then, (20:22) Kim Hersey from the Department of Wildlife Resources comes on to talk about the recent capture and release of a wolverine in Utah. This is just the eighth confirmed wolverine sighting in Utah since 1979, and the first capture and release. (47:02) Chris and Nell end the hour talking about Swaner's event Climate Change and Utah's Ski Resorts, a free virtual event on March 22 from 6:30 to 8:30PM.

This Green Earth | Mar. 22, 2022

Guests: Conservationist and Author John W. Reid and Planting Coordinator for Tree Utah, Ian Peisner

This Green Earth | March 15, 2022

Guests: Food Journalist and BBC Contributor, Dan Saladino and Author Robin Metcalfe

This Green Earth | Feb. 15, 2022

This Green Earth

The best podcasts about ourselves as well as the world through the lense of Science. Specific topics include things about our brain, emotions to biology, physics and more!

Best Episodes on Science, Humans & The World

The best philosophy podcast episodes. Asking questions about how to live a better life, what it means to be and do good, to the idea of God. This topic includes episodes that bring about important questions that everyone should be asking themselves. Add episodes you're interested into your queue below!