Great Plains

Pesticide pollution is a problem especially in the middle of the country. And sometimes there's enough of it to possibly hurt aquatic plants and animals.

The majority of tornadoes this year have blasted through states in the Midwest and Southeast, including Illinois, Missouri, Indiana and Iowa. Tornado activity has been increasing east of the Great Plains in recent decades.

These ranchers tried to protect grassland from trees and shrubs in all the traditional ways. It didn't work. So they brought in hungry goats that turned woody plants into a cash stream.

The lesser prairie chicken was once a common sight in the southern Great Plains, but its numbers are dwindling. Even so, it lost federal protections earlier this year for a second time. Now states and landowners are overseeing conservation efforts

Nebraska ecologist Chris Helzer blends art and science to open people's eyes to an underappreciated ecosystem that is shrinking more and more every year.

Years of drought conditions in the Midwest and Great Plains have opened the door for pests and diseases that are killing trees. Now people working in parks and forests are planting new species they hope can survive the changing conditions.

The massive legislation extends tax cuts and increases safety nets for farmers who grow commodities, like corn, wheat and rice. But deep cuts to federal food assistance spending could hurt specialty growers who benefit from programs like Double Up Food Bucks.

Another year of dry conditions could hurt production for farmers growing crops and raising livestock in the region.

Wildfires have become more frequent, burning bigger areas during longer seasons thanks to conditions exacerbated by climate change. More people in the Great Plains and Midwest are turning to “prescribed” burns, which can help reduce wildfire risk.

Heat kills more people every year than any other climate-driven disaster. But experts say hot temperatures are likely causing even more deaths than official numbers show.