News from around the nation.

Trump ratchets up steel tariffs to 50%; ME clean energy backers press ahead, despite federal setbacks; Harm reduction efforts led to drop in overdose deaths among black Kentuckians; Arts group revitalizes century-old rural Iowa school building.

Transcript

The Public News Service Wednesday afternoon update.

I'm Mike Clifford.

One of America's most storied industries is getting a massive boost from President Donald Trump's latest tariffs push, at the potential cost of a broader slowdown elsewhere in the U.S. economy.

That's from NBC News.

In a report, Trump signed an executive order increasing the already substantial 25 percent duties on steel imports he first set in March to 50 percent.

Those tariffs went into effect at midnight Wednesday.

The new 15 percent duties also affect aluminum products.

Meantime, clean energy advocates in Maine are encouraging state lawmakers to follow through with the state's climate goals, despite a federal crackdown on renewable energy projects.

Legislation aims to set standards for achieving 100 percent clean energy by 2040 to help reduce emissions and lower energy prices.

Eliza Donahue with the Maine Renewable Energy Association says the harmful impacts of climate change are only increasing and there's no time to wait.

I'm not gonna lie, it's gonna be a challenge.

And so Maine really needs to step up.

And this is an example of Maine stepping up.

Donahue says the bill's passage would help attract more clean energy investments to the state.

The Trump administration has attempted to pause federal permits and loans for wind energy projects, choosing instead to advance investments in coal and natural gas.

I'm Katherine Carley.

Governor Mills has set a goal of creating 30,000 clean energy jobs by 2030.

And Kentucky's latest drug overdose fatality report shows a drop in deaths and for the first time a decline among black Kentuckians.

Groups across the Commonwealth have been working to increase access to harm reduction services.

Latasha Perry, executive director of Empower Her with Open Arms Incorporated, a Louisville-based nonprofit, says her organization provides prevention services to adolescents as well as group and individual therapy for adults who are typically required to be in therapy in order to see their children.

Some struggling with addiction are just now coming out of incarceration, they don't have the money to cover those expenses.

So it typically decreases the rate of them reunifying with their family.

Overdose deaths in the Commonwealth decreased for the third year in a row with a slightly more than 30 percent decrease in 2024 compared with the previous year.

Nadia Ramligan reporting.

And a group has transformed a soon-to-be-demolished school building in rural Iowa into a refuge for up-and-coming artists.

Demand for arts programs in the state has surged in the last few years.

Eastern Iowa Arts Academy Executive Director Heather Wagner says the historic school's bones are intact but there's still a lot of work to do to make the building ADA compatible.

So we were trying to get an elevator, we're trying to get roll-up countertops for our students and wheelchairs.

I'm trying to work on the second floor being an open public artist studios.

The 111 year old Arthur Elementary School was set to be torn down but the Eastern Iowa Arts Academy bought it sensing an opportunity to provide accessible arts education.

This story was produced as an Arts Midwest Public News Service collaboration.

This is Public News Service.

Senior advocates are sounding the alarm of the impact of social isolation on older people in states like Illinois, saying loneliness is compatible to smoking and can increase the risk of an early death by 50 percent.

Research shows a lack of social connection is as dangerous as smoking 15 cigarettes a day.

Jean Hyde Grubman with Chicago Methodist Senior Services calls social isolation and loneliness in seniors a silent epidemic, explaining the older people get, the more likely their interactions with others will decrease.

A lot of attention is paid to medical issues, physical issues, but it's that social aspect of us as human beings that I feel is kind of neglected.

About 40 percent of adults over age 60 in Illinois live alone.

Grubman says community initiatives like their organization's Senior Connections Program that matches people for intergenerational friendships aims to encourage connectedness, citing studies that show social connection increases the odds of survival and happiness.

I'm Judith Ruiz Branch reporting.

And a new study spotlights what might actually help young people stay out of the juvenile justice system, and it might not be what you'd expect.

As Alabama and other States work to respond to youth violence and mental health needs, these findings are worth a closer look, says Josh Weber with the council of state governments.

We do have a responsibility to try to make sure we identify the young people that are most at risk of violence and victimization and ensure that we are developing and implementing evidence-based strategies to provide those people with the services and supports they need.

The Youth Protective Factor study followed thousands of young people in three states.

While most teens didn't reoffend after supervision, those who did weren't always the ones with obvious red flags.

Shantia Hudson reporting.

Finally, like many major cities across the country, Houston has a landfill problem.

The city is projected to produce more than five million tons of trash annually by 2040 and only has five landfills.

The former director of solid waste management, Mark Wilfolk, says the city is working on a plan to deal with waste and is looking for alternatives to landfills.

Some places, instead of having landfills, they have waste energy plants that converts all the waste into energy.

Then that energy gets sold off into the grid and just kind of repurposed for that more aggressive recycling programs.

They're trying to find other alternatives waste disposal, separating organics out.

A 2021 report commissioned by the city showed that Houston needed to start the process for a new landfill as soon as possible.

This story was produced with original reporting from Elena Briss with Houston Landing.

I'm Freda Ross reporting.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service, member and listener supported.

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