KCMC

John Hooker and Mike Loesch begin installation of solar panels on the roof of a Columbia, Missouri, home.

Inflation, Energy Prices Complicate Consumer Calculus Regarding Renewables

The decision to embrace renewable energy amid a changing climate has become more complex in recent months, complicated by rampant inflation, soaring energy prices and a volatile economy.

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Sofia Gillespie likes to take the bus when meeting up with friends.

If More Kansas Citians Rode the Bus by Choice, it Could Shift the Whole City’s Mindset

Despite long wait times between buses, confusing route changes and other inconveniences, these Kansas Citians use public transit not because they have to, but because they want to. Here’s why that matters.

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Graphic illustrating use of air sensors.

Here’s How Residents Along Troost Avenue Can Help Measure Kansas City Air Quality

KC Digital Drive and The Kansas City Beacon are co-hosting an event April 30 to discuss air quality sensors that measure climate, temperature and particulate matter in the air.

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Richard Heimer takes his seat on the RideKC bus that takes him to work every morning.

Not Everyone in Kansas City Drives a Car. This Man has Been Riding the Bus for 45 Years

Despite being designed for cars, Kansas City is home to people who rely on the bus every day. We spent a day riding along with Richard Heimer to learn what’s working and what’s not in our public transit system.

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Smithville Mayor Damien Boley on a bike path.

‘Ten Years to Save the Planet’: Kansas City Metro’s Small-town Mayors Take Up Climate Fight

Mayors and local officials founded Climate Action KC, and are taking measurable steps to reduce emissions and create healthier communities throughout the Kansas City metro.

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Man in a hat and glasses stands in front of rural l

Price of Progress: Grain Belt Express Pits Public Benefit and Private Property Rights in Race Against Climate Change

The Grain Belt Express, an 800-mile transmission line that would connect renewable wind energy in Kansas with customers in several states to the east, is facing opposition from landowners in its path.

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A row of police line up in the middle of the street on the Country Club Plaza, flanked by demonstrators on the left and right.

Imagine That: What If Police Unconditionally Respected the Community?

Two former Kansas City Police Department officers are now training people in how to use “unconditional respect” to help reform law enforcement.

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Center pivot irrigation systems like this one in Finney County pump water up from the Ogallala aquifer to spray on crops. This part of southwest Kansas experienced some of the state's worst aquifer declines last year as drought pushed farmers to pump more water from underground.

How Kansas Could Lose Billions in Land Values as its Underground Water Runs Dry

The water in the Ogallala aquifer is worth billions of dollars to western Kansas, but it’s rapidly disappearing. And it’s been a challenge to find ways to slow the depletion.

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Former Haviland mayor Robert Ellis stands between pipes inside the small town's multimillion-dollar water treatment plant.

As Fertilizer Pollutes Tap Water in Small Towns, Rural Kansans Pay the Price

For towns with only a few hundred residents, keeping tap water clean and safe can pose a crippling expense. The predicament is likely to become more common in western Kansas as farm chemicals seep into dwindling water supplies.

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