Hoosier Environmental Council

AES Indiana converted its Eagle Valley plant from coal to natural gas seven years ago. But there is still coal ash at the site and monitoring data shows it’s leaching toxic heavy metals into the groundwater — like arsenic, boron, lithium, mercury and molybdenum.

Sam Carpenter said his work will focus on making connections to address those issues and more.

A National Audubon Society survey shows most Hoosiers aren’t in favor of weakening wetland protections — regardless of their political party.

The project aims to improve the health of the forest but environmental groups and some nearby residents have concerns about the clear cutting, burning and herbicide use.

The Indiana Forest Alliance has come up with a strategy for how to better protect urban forests in Indianapolis. The group said urban forests help cool cities, capture stormwater, improve air quality and trap greenhouse gas emissions.

The strategy report said while there has been a big effort to plant trees in Indianapolis, there needs to be more of effort to protect and maintain them.

The Hoosier Environmental Council has outlined its priorities for the upcoming legislative session. The group will talk about some of those at their virtual Greening the Statehouse event this Friday and Saturday.

The leaders of the largest statewide environmental group and one of the oldest environmental groups both announced they’re stepping down this week.