Climate & environment

Skies overnight tonight are expected to become mostly cloudy across the area, with scattered thunderstorms in Western Maryland weakening as they approach the region late tonight.

Ready to dig in the dirt this spring? Make sure you’re planning ahead for warming summers with this climate-conscious resource and tip sheet informed by some of the mid-Atlantic’s best gardeners and educators.

If you have the right equipment, you’ll be able to see five planets in the night sky today. Without equipment, you could see four. And if you’re willing to wake up before sunrise, you could see Saturn, too. This is a relatively rare astronomical phenomenon, getting to see so many planets over the course of one evening — but it doesn't “mean” anything, it’s just a neat occurrence.

The Environmental Protection Agency needs a stronger rule to reduce particle air pollution and to protect people with chronic lung disease and the broader community in places like Baltimore, says Dr. Panagis Galiatsatos, a physician with the Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center and community engagement co-director of the Baltimore Breathe Center.

Southerly winds are bringing smoke northward from a forest fire in Eastern North Carolina, according to the National Weather Service.

Mayor Brandon Scott and County Executive Johnny Olszewski Jr. said they were dismayed by the news but are working with the contractor and regulators to make sure appropriate procedures are in place.

Imagine the climate of the Deep South dropped over the mid-Atlantic.

The Moore-Miller transition team gathered input from more than 5,000 Marylanders to identify the state’s biggest challenges, develop solutions and help set priorities, says Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller, who chaired the transition team.

Regulators are seeking public input about a proposed civil penalty against Fort Smith, Arkansas-based ABF Freight System Inc. for alleged Clean Water Act violations spanning five years.

Saul Passe runs the county’s ReTree program, which is planting saplings in yards in 32 lower-income neighborhoods with a dearth of trees.

The Maryland General Assembly must pass legislation this session to continue providing communities with the economic and environmental benefits of solar energy, Del. Luke Clippinger and Sen. Ben Brooks say.

Maryland needs bold action to achieve Gov. Wes Moore’s ambitious plan to generate 100% of the state's energy needs from renewable sources in little more than a decade from now, Del. Stephanie Smith says.

Lt. Charles Fawley Jr., of Westminster, was charged on March 3 and could face up to $1,500 in fines.

Annapolis marks the start of spring in its own ways, even if nobody tells the calendar.

Marylanders overpaid $1 billion in excessive utility bills. Some lawmakers and advocates are demanding answers.

Climate change is luring sea turtles farther north — but some get trapped in frigid waters.

Experts say the plant will have to find an alternative way to process solids quickly to prevent further issues down the line.

Gov. Wes Moore asked the federal government to carry out an evaluation to determine if the situation amounts to a declaration of a “commercial fishery disaster.”

It’s down in a gully near Bunker Hill Road in Hereford. Peer through the trees and you’ll see it, a vintage Baltimore streetcar, forgotten and rusting away in the forest.

Replacing gas appliances with electric ones make sense, but it can be costly. Maryland lawmakers are exploring ways to expand rebates for electrification.