Nathan Rott
Nathan Rott is a correspondent on NPR's National Desk, where he focuses on environment issues and the American West.
Based at NPR West in Culver City, California, Rott spends a lot of his time on the road, covering everything from breaking news stories like California's wildfires to in-depth issues like the management of endangered species and many points between.
Rott owes his start at NPR to two extraordinary young men he never met. As the first recipient of the Stone and Holt Weeks Fellowship in 2010, he aims to honor the memory of the two brothers by carrying on their legacy of making the world a better place.
A graduate of the University of Montana, Rott prefers to be outside at just about every hour of the day. Prior to working at NPR, he worked a variety of jobs including wildland firefighting, commercial fishing, children's theater teaching, and professional snow-shoveling for the United States Antarctic Program. Odds are, he's shoveled more snow than you.
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If a major hurricane, flood or wildfire happens during the pandemic, evacuation shelters could be dangerous and cross-state aid impossible. So disaster response experts are planning new strategies.
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The Trump administration is replacing Obama-era fuel economy standards with weaker ones that will allow for more air pollution. Groups are already lining up to challenge the new rule.
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Australia's unprecedented fire season scorched sections of rare, ancient rainforests. It's another signal that climate change is intensifying and expanding wildfires globally.
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After devastating fires, there are signs of regrowth across much of eastern Australia. But there's also concern that a changing climate may alter some of the country's unique landscapes forever.
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Widespread bushfires are creating new calls to end the country's dependence on fossil fuels. But fossil fuel extraction is big business for Australia, the world's largest coal exporter.
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The Australian bushfires are emitting huge amounts of climate warming carbon into the atmosphere. Normally, new vegetation that grows back would recapture it, but that may be changing.
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A mysterious die-off of freshwater mussels has scientists scrambling to find a cause. Freshwater mussels clean water and provide habitat to countless other species.
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The U.S. Forest Service is proposing to end a nearly two-decade long limit on logging in Alaska's Tongass National Forest. Local officials have pushed for looser restrictions to boost the economy.
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The Trump administration is rescinding California's authority to regulate vehicle greenhouse gas emissions. State leaders are vowing to fight the move.
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The Trump administration is changing how the Endangered Species Act is applied. Critics say it will limit consideration of climate change, but others question if there will be any impact at all.
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The Trump administration says major changes will make the nation's landmark conservation law more efficient. Critics say it will hurt endangered plant and animals as they face mounting threats.
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Interior Secretary David Bernhardt says the revisions will make the landmark conservation law more efficient. Critics say it will hurt endangered plants and animals as they face mounting threats.