Articles by Rob Ferrett

Series: Drinking Water Quality

PFAS 'Forever Chemicals,' Explained

Audio: 
Rob Ferrett
Wisconsin Public Radio
Jan. 22, 2020 | 3:15 p.m.
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PFAS "forever chemicals" have become a fixture of public attention and policymakers are taking steps to address their use. UW-Madison civil and environmental engineering professor Christy Remucal discusses what is known about PFAS and the risks associated with them.
Series: CAFOs, Manure And Water

What Does It Mean To Be A 'Right-To-Farm' State?

Audio: 
Rob Ferrett
Wisconsin Public Radio
Nov. 6, 2019 | 3:15 p.m.
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One factor central to policy debates of livestock siting and other agricultural policies in Wisconsin is the state's "right-to-farm" law. National Agricultural Law Center attorney Rusty Rumley discusses Wisconsin's version of the law and similar laws across the nation.
Series: Extreme Precipitation And Wisconsin's Climate

Reengineering Infrastructure For A Wetter Wisconsin

J. Carlisle Larsen
Wisconsin Public Radio
Audio: 
Rob Ferrett
Wisconsin Public Radio
Nov. 4, 2019 | 6 p.m.
Over the last few years, bridges and roads have washed away during flash floods across Wisconsin. But how can engineers tackle the problem in order to prevent this kind of infrastructure damage in the future?
Series: CAFOs, Manure And Water

How To Smell A CAFO

Will Cushman
WisContext
Audio: 
Rob Ferrett
Wisconsin Public Radio
Video: 
Marisa Wojcik
PBS Wisconsin
Oct. 25, 2019 | 10 a.m.
How can livestock odors be measured and quantified in a systematic and fair way? Is it even possible to break down an odor into its component parts, or to identify an acceptable odor threshold? It turns out these questions are the subject of rigorous scientific research.

How Children's Hospital Of Wisconsin Helped Crack The Vaping Lung Disease Case

Audio: 
Rob Ferrett
Wisconsin Public Radio
Oct. 23, 2019 | 3:15 p.m.
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A lung illness public health officials have linked with vaping and e-cigarettes has gotten international attention and led to new scrutiny of their health effects. Children's Hospital of Wisconsin pulmonologist Dr. Louella Amos discusses how physicians uncovered the cause.
Series: Extreme Precipitation And Wisconsin's Climate

The Role Of Wetlands As Wisconsin Deals With More Flooding

Audio: 
Rob Ferrett
Wisconsin Public Radio
Oct. 16, 2019 | 3:15 p.m.
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As Wisconsin braces for climate change and a future with more flooding, a conservationist discusses the role that wetlands can play.
Series: Challenges To Wisconsin's Rural Schools

Slump In Wisconsin School Enrollment Continues

Audio: 
Rob Ferrett
Wisconsin Public Radio
Oct. 9, 2019 | 3:15 p.m.
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A years-long slump in Wisconsin school enrollment is continuing. Sarah Kemp, a researcher with the University of Wisconsin Applied Population Lab explains why — and in which types of school districts — these drops are happening.
Series: The Yahara Watershed
Series: Phosphorus In Wisconsin's Land And Water

What's At The Bottom Of Lake Mendota And What It Teaches Us

Audio: 
Rob Ferrett
Wisconsin Public Radio
Oct. 2, 2019 | 3:15 p.m.
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Water quality in Madison's Lake Mendota is changing, and it turns out the sludge at the bottom of it can help explain why. Jake Walsh, a researcher who formerly studied the lake at the UW-Madison Center for Limnology, discusses what scientists are learning.

Why Vaping Became A Public Health Priority In Wisconsin, The US

Will Cushman
WisContext
Audio: 
Rob Ferrett
Wisconsin Public Radio
Video: 
Frederica Freyberg
PBS Wisconsin
Sept. 24, 2019 | 4:15 p.m.
The stage had been set for a public health scare prompted by vaping long before July 2019, when health officials in Wisconsin announced a cluster of severe lung illnesses in eight otherwise healthy teens in the state.

Untangling How Minimum Markup Affects Gas Prices In Eau Claire

Audio: 
Rob Ferrett
Wisconsin Public Radio
Sept. 18, 2019 | 3:15 p.m.
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Wisconsin's so-called "minimum markup law" was debated this year, when Gov. Tony Evers proposed eliminating it as part of his road and infrastructure budget. UW-Eau Claire geographer Ryan Weichelt explains how this Depression-era law affects gas prices in the Eau Claire area.