Stories by Jane Braxton Little

From stray bullets to power companies, humans spark almost all of California’s wildfires

Hundreds of communities across the U.S.—many in unexpected places—are at risk from an urban wildfire like the one that tore through the Hawaiian town of Lahaina

Both independent and remote-controlled machines can save lives

A prediction system undergoes testing as the U.S. West braces for another potentially devastating wildfire season

Rising nighttime temperatures stymie traditional firefighting methods

As flames once again rage across the state, officials embrace a counterintuitive firefighting approach

Eight years after the nuclear meltdown, wary citizens are moving back to contaminated homesteads—some not by choice

An unusual research project is determining whether restoring California’s meadows can reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide

A dismissed lawsuit to strengthen the dam because of climate change effects predicted catastrophic flooding

Hydrologists experiment with a groundwater-banking technique that could ease drought pains

For 26 years forests around Chernobyl have been absorbing radioactive elements, but a fire would send them skyward again--a concern as summers grow longer, hotter and drier

Once on the verge of extinction, North America's largest land birds have made a dramatic comeback. To ensure their continued survival, biologists are relying on high-tech gadgets and unusual interventions

California cities are pumping their treated wastewater underground to create electricity

The massive underground water source feeds the middle third of the country but is disappearing fast. Can it be conserved?

To save orangutans, scientist Willie Smits is restoring a rain forest—and creating new livelihoods for the Indonesian families who help him