Environment

Mountain Waterfall

Friday Eye Candy: Mapping a World of Water Words

Cultures and geography have created a dictionary's worth of words for water. A new video from Vox maps (most of) them out.

October 20, 2017 - Vox

Wine Country Fires

Wildfire Destroys Santa Rosa Neighborhood Outside of Fire Hazard Zone

The Wine Country wildfires destroyed Coffey Park, a subdivision within the urban boundaries of the Bay Area's fifth largest city, and outside of the state's severe fire hazard zones. But the cause wasn't a mystery to wildland fire scientists.

October 20, 2017 - Los Angeles Times

Chicago Extreme Weather

Chicago to Use Vacant Lots to Capture Stormwater

Chicago's Planning Department is putting eight city lots to work as "Stormwater Parks."

October 20, 2017 - Chicago Cityscape

Berkeley Hills Bay Area

The Cost of a Well-Maintained Urban Tree Canopy Is Actually Pretty Cheap

In terms of its public health benefits, a flourishing tree canopy is practically priceless.

October 14, 2017 - ASLA The Dirt

Electric Car Charging Station

A Dozen New Laws to Spur Sales of Zero Emission Vehicles in California

Gov. Jerry Brown signed 12 bills on Oct. 10 to facilitate the transition from oil-powered light and heavy duty vehicles to electric power in California, and thus meet his goal of putting 1.5 million zero-emission vehicles on the road by 2025.

October 13, 2017 - NGT News

Ivy Covered Green Building

Comparing the Environmental Impact of Building vs. Buying a Home

Which is better for the environment: buying an existing home, inefficiencies and all, or paying to build a new home with all the bells and whistles of green building technology?

October 13, 2017 - Kayla Matthews

California from Space

Wine Country Wildfires Put Focus on Wildland-Urban Interface

The fires in Northern California have caused at least 21 deaths, with over 500 people missing in Sonoma County. Wired science editor, Adam Rogers, looks at the problems posed when urban development encroaches wildlands.

October 12, 2017 - Wired

National Monument

Communities Debate Potential Mine Near Mt. St. Helens

Fishermen, former loggers, and conservationists are just some of the groups with a stake in whether a mining operation takes root in Washington state.

October 12, 2017 - Northwest Public Radio

San Francisco Coast

San Francisco Planning to Remove the Great Highway as Coastal Erosion Takes its Toll

In the 1920s, the city of San Francisco extended the shoreline of south Ocean Beach by some 200 feet. Now the coast there is eroding as a result of that action, and the Great Highway is on shaky ground.

October 12, 2017 - San Francisco Examiner

Sacramento River

Southern California's Largest Water District Approves $4.3 Billion for Delta Project

Two steps back, one step forward so far for the $17.7 billion California WaterFix tunneling project.

October 12, 2017 - Pasadena Star News

Fort Point Channel

Boston Plans Park Network for Resilience and Revitalization

The city hopes to accelerate development and mitigate flood risk along the industrial Fort Point Channel with a string of new parks.

October 11, 2017 - The Boston Globe

Nebraska

New Research Methods Help Nebraska's Water Management Plan

Researchers at the University of Nebraska have been working with the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources to develop best practices for predicting and planning for the future water needs of urban developments.

October 11, 2017 - University of Nebraska College of Architecture

Indoor Grow Room

Washington's Not-So-Green Marijuana Industry

After Washington legalized marijuana in 2012, an indoor cultivation industry has grown to a sizable presence in the state's environmental footprint.

October 9, 2017 - Crosscut

Navajo Generating Station, a coal-fired steam plant near Page, Arizona.

Trump Administration to Repeal Obama's Clean Power Plan

"The war on coal is over," says EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt.

October 9, 2017 - The Washington Post

An Island of 3.4 Million Living Off the Grid

Living off the grid usually refers to a lifestyle choice to live far from power lines and other basic infrastructure that most of civilization takes for granted—until a natural disaster wipes it all out.

October 9, 2017 - The New York Times

Pumping Station 2

Hurricane Nate to Test New Orlean's Drainage System

Nate will make landfall southeast of New Orleans on Saturday night as possibly a category 2 hurricane after leaving at least 22 dead in Central America. It's not so much the levees but the pumps and generators that have city officials worried.

October 8, 2017 - The New York Times

What Will It Take to Green Puerto Rico Again?

Not only did Hurricane Maria destroy most of Puerto Rico's man-made infrastructure, it also defoliated the island's vast tropical forests, upsetting the forest ecology—in the short term.

October 6, 2017 - NPR

D.C. Metro Station

CNU Climate Summit Highlights

Growing set of tools measures the impact of urban form on climate. Hazel Borys reviews highlights of the CNU Climate Summit held last weekend near Washington, D.C.

October 4, 2017 - PlaceShakers

Maumee River

Lake Erie Algae Bloom Growing Again

The algae bloom in Lake Erie has spread to cover much of the edge of Lake Eerie near Toledo, but toxins remain low where local communities draw drinking water supply.

October 4, 2017 - The New York Times

4-Wheeling

Can I Have a Diet Coke With That Ice Cream Sundae?

Essentially that's what UC Davis, Yale, and MIT researchers found among California families who purchase very fuel efficient vehicles—they also pair them with gas hogs. If your family owns two vehicles, do you meet the profile?

October 3, 2017 - San Francisco Chronicle

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

Associate/Senior Planner

Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development

Senior Planner

Heyer Gruel & Associates PA

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.