Michigan Energy & Environment

How parents are dealing with the closure of four schools in the Detroit Public Schools Community District. Plus, understanding the civil engineering and community collaboration behind The Border to Border Trail.

The massive oil spill in the Kalamazoo River 15 years ago polluted the water and shoreline and left oil-coated wildlife. More than a million gallons of oil was recovered along a more than 35 mile stretch of the river.

The National Wildlife Federation says Michigan's environment department should fully review what damage drilling the tunnel for a new pipeline segment might cause.

The transition to cleaner energy in Michigan could get an assist through transmission lines to renewable energy from solar and wind in the Great Plains states.

Solar and wind energy are sporadic sources of power. Even with enough production to power the entire state of Michigan, storage is needed to keep supply steady with demand. Batteries alone won't suffice.

The National Audubon Society's annual Christmas Bird Count is underway until Jan. 5. Coordinated visits to hundreds of sites in the U.S. and Canada to count birds depends on volunteers. There are about 80 sites in Michigan and more than 70 in Ohio.

Doctors in Michigan say the pending Supreme Court ruling on the abortion medication mifepristone is causing confusion and uncertainty.

Eleven total congregations across the state are each getting around $100,000 from the program to become more energy-efficient.

Researchers found diverse habitat can draw bees, but that gathering makes it easier to spread viral infections among bees. But strategies, including the planting of lots of wildflowers, can reduce the spread of bee pathogens.

For more than 120 years, volunteers have taken a day to count and identify birds for the Audubon Christmas Bird Count.