Next New England

Immigrants from Central America will soon find out if their Temporary Protected Status will end. It’s allowed them to live here legally for decades. This episode, we take a look back at a big year in immigration policy, and look ahead. We also consider what some states are doing about widespread waste of prescription drugs. Also, we’ll meet a man who’s got a place to call home for the first time in decades – thanks to an effort to eliminate chronic homelessness. And, Oh Christmas tree, how lovely are your tiny…little…branches. Francisco Rodriguez in ICE custody at the Suffolk County House of Corrections (Jesse Costa/WBUR) Immigration, Deportation As we look back on 2017, the issue of immigration has become one of the most contentious in our region. New policies by the Trump administration have New Englanders from all over the world wondering about their status, and whether they’ll be able to stay. WBUR’s Shannon Dooling joins us to talk about her reporting, including the story of Fran

When a local sheriff in northern Vermont pulled over two Mexican farmworkers last August for a traffic violation, he immediately called for the U.S. Border Patrol. Immigrant rights advocates say more detentions and deportations are likely under a new Vermont policy that governs cooperation between state and federal law enforcement. And north of the border, a fascinating story of land disputes, Quebecois pride, and massive dams that are set to supply more power to the New England grid. Plus, a tale of survival on the high seas. NHPR reporter Sam Evans-Brown (left) tours the Daniel-Johnson Dam on the Manicouagan River in Central Quebec. The mile-long dam is one of 62 owned by the provincial utility Hydro-Quebec. New England currently gets about 10 percent of its electricity from Hydro-Quebec dams. Utilities in Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine are hoping to build transmission projects to bring down more of this power to the New England grid. Photo by Hannah McCarthy for NHPR Stops Last August and September, the

This week, we get an update the flow of migrants leaving the US to go to Quebec, and meet Puerto Ricans deciding whether to stay on the island or come back to New England. We’ll talk about housing for a rapidly aging population in Vermont, and learn how a the settlement dollars from a Volkswagen lawsuit could help spur electric vehicle use in Maine. Finally, we get a taste of what’s new about New England food. Flight Fearing the Trump administration’s stricter immigration policies, thousands have been fleeing the United States for Canada. One policy change is the end of a temporary residency program for 59,000 Haitians allowed to legally enter the United States following an earthquake in 2010. The Haitians will have to leave the country by July 2019, or face deportation. That program has also ended for two thousand Nicaraguans. It’s unclear if other groups including 300,000 Salvadorans will be allowed to remain. A man from Congo speaks with Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers after illeg

What does a state owe to people serving time in prison? And what does it owe those who should never have been locked up in the first place? We speak with a man who went to prison in Massachusetts for 32 years for a crime he didn’t commit. And we travel back over 300 years to a war on New England soil where women leaders played a major role. Plus, elm trees make a comeback, and a New Hampshire bagpipe business bumps up against global trade rules. Victor Rosario, right, with wife Beverly on Sept. 8, following a hearing in which he was formerly exonerated. Rosario spend 32 years in a Massachusetts prison after being convicted for homicide and arson. Photo by Deborah Becker for WBUR. Behind Bars Imagine that you’ve been convicted and locked up for a crime you didn’t commit. After years appealing your case, you finally prove your innocence and are set free. Would you expect the government to compensate you for that time behind bars? 37 states have laws that allow the wrongfully convicted to file for compensation,

On this Thanksgiving week, we’re presenting a few favorite segments from our archives. We dig into our energy series “The Big Switch” with stories about solar power on homes and farms, and profile a new large-scale passive housing movement. And singer-songwriter Dar Williams tells us what she’s learned about making a vibrant community while writing a new book. Plus, the craft beer industry is exploding in New England, but another time-honored trade is in danger of disappearing. A pedestrian street in the Old Port in Portland, Maine, a neighborhood popular with tourists. Musician and author Dar Williams says towns thrive when they achieve a balance between places of interest to visitors and those of interest to residents. Photo by PhilipC via Flickr Building More, to Burn Less New England is at a time of big change in the way we get our energy. Aggressive goals to cut carbon emissions have meant a move toward more renewable sources of power. But the shift from burning fossil fuels to h

This week, we’re talking ballot questions. Why are more of them showing up in voting booths in states like Maine and Massachusetts, and how much power do elected officials have to tinker with citizen-passed laws? Plus, a Puerto Rican family is reunited in Holyoke, Mass., and a Vermont veteran with PTSD finds a way to heal, through farming. Listen to the end, and we’ll take you to the most peaceful place in the universe. Marijuana plants are harvested and hung in a processing facility in Franklin, Mass. Currently only medical cannabis sales are legal in Massachusetts. A referendum passed in 2016 set the date for legal recreational sales to begin at January 1, 2018. But a law passed this summer by the state legislature pushed the date to July 1, 2018. Photo by Jesse Costa for WBUR Power to the People? Mainer Kathleen Phelps speaks in favor of expanding Medicaid at a news conference in Portland. Me. on Oct. 13, 2016. Photo by Patti Wight for Maine Public Maine voters earlier this month approved a ballot m

We’ve got lots for you this week. Fishermen clash with offshore wind developers, once-depleted bluefin tuna experience a resurgence, and 3D printing helps bring manufacturing back to Massachusetts. Meanwhile, off-road vehicles bring money and grumbles to White Mountain towns. Plus, the fascinating story of when “Live Free or Die” bumped heads with the First Amendment — and why it could prove relevant in an upcoming Supreme Court case.  Last, an appreciation of the sticky sweet snack of many a New England childhood. ATVs have become a frequent sight in New Hampshire’s Coos county. Photo by Chris Jensen for NHPR Up and Down the Coast The bluefin tuna can reach lengths of almost 10 feet. They can swim from the Bahamas to Norway in 54 days. Photo credit: NOAA Fishermen say it’s been decades since they’ve been able to catch so many Atlantic bluefin tuna so fast. Once severely depleted, populations of the prized sushi fish appear to be rebuilding. Now the industry and some

New England is recovering this week after a big storm knocked out power for days in some places. How do we keep the power on today, and make our communities more resilient in the long term? We also ruminate lyrically on fickle New England weather with writer Will Dowd. A story from Texas puts the idea of “sanctuary hospitals” in the spotlight. How are New England’s hospitals responding? And, our friends from Brave Little State separate myth from fact when it comes to the Underground Railroad in Vermont. Workers in Stowe, Vermont tend to damage from a fallen tree Tuesday. Photo by Amy Kolb Noyes for VPR Hard Rains In late October, 2011 there were still multi-colored leaves clinging to New England’s trees when a freak Nor’easter hit, dumping record snow, snapping trees, and cutting off power to millions. One year later, Super Storm Sandy battered the shoreline and caused tens of billions of dollars in damage. And then this week, a prolonged rainstorm, with winds up to 70 miles an hour, knocke

This week, we talk Amazon HQ2: whether Boston has a good shot at becoming the home of the corporation’s second headquarters, and why New Hampshire slings so much dirt at Beantown in its bid. We’ll also get an update on how Puerto Ricans with Connecticut connections are coping with hurricane recovery on the island. Plus, we’ll learn how Massachusetts volunteers help keep wild sea turtles alive when the seas turn cold. And in time for Halloween, we visit a haunted tavern to hear tales from New England’s spookiest places. A rendering of the primary site Boston is proposing in its bid for Amazon to create its second headquarters in the city. The site straddles Boston and Revere (Courtesy City of Boston) From Over the Sea We’ve been tracking the recovery efforts in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria. The island is about four hours away by plane from Hartford and Boston. Yet in many ways, it’s the island next door for New England’s more than 600,000 Puerto Rican residents. Below: Boston community organizer an

Utility companies face allegations that they drove up the cost of electricity in New England, and they’re pushing back. A rural doctor is told by the state she has to quit – in part because of her prescribing practices. Her patients ask, “who will help me with my pain?” We have the story of a wildfire that ravaged Maine 70 years ago. And we find out what the deal is with wild turkeys that are bugging residents around Boston. Dr. Anna Konopka of New London used only paper records and did not accept take insurance, but patients raved about her care. She closed her practice this month to settle allegations from the New Hampshire Board of Medicine. Photo by Britta Greene for NHPR Gaslighted A new academic report, released in conjunction with the nonprofit Environmental Defense Fund, says that New England electricity consumers paid billions of dollars more than necessary over a three-year period. The reason? Large utility companies created artificial gas shortages, according to the report.

We check in with New Englanders and their loved ones in Puerto Rico. And with everything we now know about opioid addiction, are doctors still over- prescribing painkillers? Also, after Las Vegas, one gun shop owner says the industry should self-regulate. Plus, we chat with singer-songwriter Dar Williams about her new book on rebuilding America’s towns. All that and more this week on NEXT. A pedestrian street in the Old Port in Portland, Maine, a neighborhood popular with tourists. Musician and author Dar Williams says towns thrive when they achieve a balance between places of interest to visitors and those of interest to residents. Photo by PhilipC via Flickr Aftermath Katie Herzog takes a walk with her dog, Pippen. Photo by Jesse Costa for WBUR Katie Herzog, a business consultant and grandmother from Newton, Massachusetts had back surgery at one of Boston’s teaching hospitals last spring. The doctor sent her home with a powerful opiod, which she took as prescribed. Four weeks later, she was in withdrawal.

This week, we walk the US-Canada border with Border Patrol agents, and hear the concerns of civil rights lawyers who worry about their ability to stop people they suspect of living in the country without documentation. We’ll also hear the story of an unusual experiment proposed for Martha’s Vineyard, one that asks residents to trust a scientist who’s trying to stop the spread of Lyme disease. We meet a man who’s become a Boston institution while playing music in a bear suit. And we go to church on an uninhabited island. U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brad Brant on the U.S. -Canada border in Highgate, Vt. Photo by Ryan Caron King for NENC South of the Border United States Border Patrol agents are dedicated to protecting the border 24 hours a day, monitoring for things like drug smuggling and human trafficking. Their jurisdiction also extends significantly inland. Within 100 miles of the border and the coastline they have broad authority to stop cars for immigration questions. Civil rights ad

New England communities prepare for an influx of hurricane refugees from Puerto Rico, and worry about family back home. We’ll learn what Germany can teach us about welcoming immigrants, and we’ll tour an old Hartford factory that’s preparing for a new life as a food and jobs hub for a struggling neighborhood. Plus, the craft beer industry is exploding in New England, but another time-honored trade is in danger of disappearing. A scene from the Swift Factory, which manufactured gold leaf in Hartford from 1895 to 2005. The nonprofit that owns the building hopes to house food operations, a health center, and more. Photo by Ryan Caron King for NEXT. In the News: Hurricane Survivors, Healthcare Laws, Racism There are over 600,000 Puerto Ricans living in New England, and many are struggling to get ahold of loved ones there after the devastation left by Hurricane Maria. WNPR’s Ryan Caron King spoke with one Hartford, Connecticut resident. In the city of Holyoke, Massachusetts, 80 percent of

This week, immigrants facing domestic violence take a chance applying for a special visa. Plus, we take a nervous look at Vermont’s outdated flood maps, and a new study that finds New England is losing forestland fast. Also, how does geology influence human behavior? We go WAY back into the history of our region to find out. And it’s time once again for The Big E – the massive agricultural fair that ties together the New England states. We’ll give you a taste. The Pawtuckaway Mountains in Southeastern New Hampshire are the remnant of an extinct volcano. “Blobs” of granite, formed from magma, created the rock formations that characterize much of New Hampshire’s topography. Image via USGS, 1957. Choosing Between Safety and Deportation Immigrants living in New England illegally have reason to be on edge. President Trump’s enhanced enforcement priorities are leading to increased arrests. And reports of federal immigration agents showing up at schools and courts are

Dams clog rivers and streams all over New England. Environmentalists want to take many of them down to improve habitat for fish, but some entrepreneurs want to put them back to work doing their original jobs: making power. Plus, with the Trump Administration’s voter fraud commission meeting in New Hampshire this week, we revisit our conversation about the wacky political world of the Granite State. And, we take trips to two places that are trying to attract tourists: the factory site of a controversial gun magnate, and a mythical wonderland that takes shape just over the border in Québec. Built about 150 years ago, Mill Pond Dam in Colchester, Vt., is currently breached, but still creating a small swamp upstream. Photo by Kathleen Masterson for VPR What Do You Do With an Old Dam? The rivers and streams of New England are littered with thousands of dams. Many of them were used to produce the energy that sparked industry, but they’re now doing little more than than clogging waterways. Conservationi

Paola, 19, has lived most of her life in the U.S. after being brought from El Salvador by her mother when she was a child. She received deferred action in 2016 and Tuesday was her first day of classes at UMass Boston. Photo by Shannon Dooling for WBUR In Vermont, suicides account for 89 percent of gun-related deaths. Why is that percentage so high, and what’s being done to lower the risk? Also, we learn how the region is reacting to President Trump’s decision to end the DACA program. And we explore the wide variety of accents that color the speech of New Englanders and how those sounds are changing. Finally, we wade into an offshore war between Maine and New Hampshire and visit a summer camp with a colonial flair. It’s NEXT! You can stream the entire episode by clicking play on the embedded media player above or listen to the embedded SoundCloud files below for individual reports.  At Risk Students at Eastern Connecticut State University protest President Trump’s decision to end protec

This week, we revisit New England’s most devastating weather event, the hurricane of 1938  — and find out what we’ve learned about protecting against storms. We’ll also learn about the new deal struck by Northeastern states to combat climate change, and about a big battery that could be the future for energy storage. Plus, we hear the music of the White Mountains and make some noises only a moose could love. A farmhouse in Willimantic, Conn. among acres of blowdown after the hurricane of 1938. Photo courtesy of the US Forest Service Energize NextEra site manager Ben Pierce and project manger Jeff Plew at the company’s new “grid-scale” battery array on Cousins Island in Maine’s Casco Bay. Photo by Fred Bever for Maine Public We’ve reported on the need to find storage for the extra energy that is sometimes produced by wind or solar plants  to conserve it for other times when the sun isn’t out and the wind’s not blowing. Giant “grid scale” batteries ar

The events in Charlottesville, Virginia earlier this month have echoes in New England. This week, we hear local reactions to seeing a Keene, New Hampshire local featured in a documentary about white supremacists at Charlottesville, and we recon with a quieter kind of racism in Boston in the wake of the “Free Speech” rally and counter-protest last Saturday. Plus, Granite Staters get the chance to “ask a Muslim anything.” Later in the show, we visit a Maine school on the cutting edge of composting, and a yacht race that is a reminder of another time. Counter protesters amassed outside of the barriers at the Parkman Bandstand on Boston Common on August 19. Photo by Jesse Costa for WBUR Grappling With Race and Inclusion in the Granite State It’s been two weeks since a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, led to violent clashes between neo-Nazis and counter-protesters. One anti-fascist demonstrator was killed and many were injured when a car, driven by one of the alt-right

A solar array in Coventry, Vermont. Photo by Angela Evancie for VPR This week on NEXT: A new draft federal climate report forecasts warmer temperatures, higher seas, and more precipitation for the Northeast than predicted just three years ago. We speak with a University of New Hampshire climatologist. And one town is host to a surprising amount of resources New Englanders use, and that’s taking a toll on local residents. We find out how Massachusetts’s big renewable energy procurement is shaping up, and learn about local efforts to save seeds from disappearance. Plus, we visit a West Indian food fest in Hartford, Connecticut, and an influential artists’ colony in Peterborough, New Hampshire. And finally, Jill Kaufman fills in for John Dankosky on this episode–it’s NEXT! You can stream the entire episode by clicking play on the embedded media player above or listen to the embedded SoundCloud files below for individual reports.  Unambiguous Several industrial sites are located on the Che

From Lake Champlain to the Connecticut River, overtaxed sewage systems are being pushed to filter out more pollutants. This week, we look into what it takes to clean up our water systems. Following the announcement that Los Angeles will host the 2028 Summer Olympics, we revisit Boston’s aborted Olympic bid in search of lessons about urban planning and civic engagement. We follow the journey of an aluminum can, and meet a DIY Youtube star from the woods of Maine. The mouth of the Connecticut River. The Amtrak Old Saybrook-Old Lyme bridge is the last crossing before the river meets Long Island Sound. Nitrogen runoff from soil upriver is responsible for fish die-off in the salt waters of the sound. Photo by Ryan Caron King for NENC Influent and Effluent Springfield Water and Sewer Plant Manager Mickey Nowak gives a quick biology lesson, explaining how bacteria found in sewage is currently denitrified at the plant. Photo by Jill Kaufman for NENC By the end of the year, the Environmental Protection Agency i