In a news release, the federal government said the projects did not “adequately advance the nation’s energy needs, were not economically viable, and would not provide a positive return on investment of taxpayer dollars.” buff.ly/qeL3xBn

An investigation into one of the biggest poaching cases in recent New Hampshire history also uncovered potential crimes inside the state’s struggling prison for men. Get the full story from NHPR's Document team. 🔎 buff.ly/NVckIM9

New Hampshire's employment commissioner said most of the federal workforce here likely won't qualify for state unemployment benefits because they are deemed “essential” and required to work through the shutdown. buff.ly/Yzc2P02

The drought has made it harder for some dairy farmers to cut enough hay to feed their cows, and for vegetable farmers to keep their plants from getting parched. buff.ly/4jgZz5Y

“You have often heard me say that higher education is not perfect and that we can do better," Dartmouth President Sian Leah Beilock said in a recent message to the campus community. "At the same time, we will never compromise our academic freedom and our ability to govern ourselves.” buff.ly/dv5e3RR

What's an easy way to delay getting a smartphone? For these parents, the answer to that riddle is: get a landline.

While her plea marked the end of a criminal case that had been careening towards a November trial, New Hampshire Supreme Court Justice Anna Barbara Hantz Marconi's battles are not over.

“It’s definitely a little eerie,” said Melissa Heard, who was camped out at the edge of Crystal Lake in Manchester while her daughter swam. “It’s definitely October, and we’re still rocking this weather.”

The Trump administration has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review several lawsuits challenging its birthright citizenship executive order, including one case filed in New Hampshire. buff.ly/uWSpaG3

A community center in Nashua is offering a new weekly program that gives toddlers and their parents the chance to hear stories in English and Spanish. 📚 buff.ly/u2lfpNQ

Is an unwanted car, truck, motorcycle, boat, or lawn tractor haunting your driveway? This fall, create space and BOO-st the independent local journalism you count on every day by donating a vehicle of any kind to NHPR! nhpr.careasy.org/home

“I always call her the most influential American that almost nobody knows about," said Keith Mestrich, board chairman of the Frances Perkins Center, the nonprofit which donated this barn and farmhouse to the National Park Service last year for the monument.

“The goats are great at the trees and the goldenrod and the other types of brush, but the sheep really do well with the grasses,” says farmer Adam Ricci. “So by mixing the two together, we get everything covered pretty well.” 🐐🎿🐑

A spokesperson for the New Hampshire Department of Business and Economic Affairs (BEA) previously stated that the agency provided “no substantive assistance” to the project, despite records showing an employee's repeated involvement in meetings with the company.

The ACLU of New Hampshire has filed a class-action lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of New Hampshire’s decades-old loitering law. They argue the law is unconstitutional because it violates the right to due process and against unreasonable search and seizures.

New Hampshire Supreme Court Justice Anna Barbara Hantz Marconi will plead guilty to a single misdemeanor charge on Tuesday, ending one of the most high profile criminal cases involving a public official in recent state history. A trial was set to begin in November. ow.ly/8zT850X7pVb

The last coal-fired power plant in New England, Merrimack Station, has stopped running. With the closure of that facility, the region is poised to become the first in the United States without a coal plant on its grid. ow.ly/RN5v50X7pzS

A review by the New Hampshire Department of Justice into the controversial purchase of an industrial property in Nashua by a China-based beverage company with alleged ties to the Communist Party has cleared a state employee of any wrongdoing. www.nhpr.org/nh-news/2025...

Inside The Younger Years in Swanzey, it looks like any other elementary school classroom. But there’s a key difference: It has only one student, its second since it began in 2024. It’s known as a microschool, nontraditional schools that generally teach fewer than 15 kids. ow.ly/tE4X50X7eCE

Trees are home to all sorts of critters: birds, squirrels, frogs and more than a trillion teeny tiny microbes living in roots, bark and leaves. But it turns out, maybe city living isn't so great for trees, because of stressors like heat and pollution.

On a bright weekend morning in the courtyard outside of Corpus Christi Parish in Portsmouth, pets were under foot. The animals weren’t in pairs, though. They were with their people, gathering to receive a blessing from the parish’s leader. www.nhpr.org/nh-news/2025...

Eric Sweeney was sentenced Friday in a Concord courtroom filled with friends and family of the victims. Kassandra and Sean Sweeney, Eric’s half-brother, had guardianship of Eric, who was 16 years old at the time of the killings.

"National parks remain as accessible as possible during the federal government shutdown," a notice on the NPS website reads. "However, some services may be limited or unavailable."

The 2025 Rising Stars Awards — a celebration of New Hampshire’s outstanding young leaders and the organizations that champion them — are Oct. 16 at The Venues at The Factory in Manchester. NHPR's Lau Guzmán is the host this year.

This is the height of white shark season. Peak sightings off the Outer Cape have shifted later in the last couple of years, from August toward September. 🦈 Maybe you’ve been on a whale watch. But what about a trip to see great white sharks? CAI’s Jennette Barnes joined one of the public tours.

The Augustinians number fewer than 3,000 friars worldwide, making any increase in people interested in joining the order significant. www.nhpr.org/2025-10-02/p...

Join us for the next Writers on a New England Stage on Oct. 8, featuring bestselling author Patricia Cornwell, at the Music Hall in Portsmouth.

Aadi Kulkarni, 17, started teaching digital skills to seniors in his community around five years ago. He and his friends would go to local libraries and senior homes to help with things like sending emails or using a smartphone.

In 2022, the Harris Center for Conservation Education launched a project aimed at conserving America’s smallest falcon, the American Kestrel, a species of special concern in NH. 📻 Something Wild is a joint production of the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests, NH Audubon, and NHPR.

What do pastries have to do with environmental justice? Cat butts with the climate crisis? And what U.S. president ate a half-chewed piece of salmon leftover from a bear on reality TV? Grab a pencil and get ready for the inaugural Outside/In trivia episode we’re calling “Natural Selection.”

The festival’s main events will take place on Saturday, Oct. 4, as a free, all-day public event, featuring a wide range of literary programming for all ages.

Although it won’t necessarily be neat and tidy, gardeners and ecologists recommend leaving perennial plants–including stalks and canes–as is until spring. Emma Erler, lead horticulturist with Kirkwood Gardens at Squam Lakes Natural Science Center, is back with some seasonal gardening tips.

Long Story Short returns with Coming Home — stories about returning to where it all began and finding comfort where your people are. Tune in to NHPR to listen: Friday, October 3 at 7 p.m. and Saturday, October 4 at 4 p.m.

The ☀️ is out — and so is the news quiz! Let's see how well you've kept up with the top headlines this week. Yes, there's an obligatory government shutdown quiz question. 🌻 www.nhpr.org/quiz

“The breadth of the anti-DEI laws’ prohibition is startling,” wrote Judge Landya B. McCafferty, with the U.S. District Court in NH. “The definition of ‘DEI’ contained [in the law] is so far-reaching that it prohibits long-accepted — even legally required — teaching and administrative practices.”

Amanda Gokee of The Boston Globe and Olivia Richardson of NHPR join the Recap today to delve into the top headlines, starting with how the federal government shutdown is impacting New Hampshire. Listen to the New Hampshire News Recap Friday mornings at 7:45 and wherever you get your podcasts.

Drugmaker Evita Solutions announced on its website that the Food and Drug Administration signed off on its low-cost form of the pill, which is approved to end pregnancies through 10 weeks.

The state Department of Business and Economic Affairs, however, has said it gave ”no substantive assistance” to Nongfu Spring.

Ubiquity Solar and Brayton Energy lost funding for New Hampshire-based projects as part of the cancellations, according to a spreadsheet provided by the Department of Energy to Sen. Jeanne Shaheen’s office and shared with NHPR.

The U.S. Forest Service has temporarily positioned a wildfire response helicopter at Lebanon Municipal Airport to shorten response times to potential wildfires in Vermont and New Hampshire.

Union officials at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, which has more than 7,700 civilian employees, began detailing the turmoil as the effects of the shutdown rippled across America.

The New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute reported that overdose deaths fluctuated in the last decade while funding continued to increase. Deaths fell sharply recently: 287 residents died from drug use in 2024, a 33.4% decrease from 2023.

Tobey Reynolds, assistant director of project development for the state transportation agency, noted that New Hampshire currently has the “lowest cost per mile” for tolls in the country. A possible increase in tolls was discussed at a public hearing last week.

You'll have several chances to celebrate furry, four-legged friends this weekend in New Hampshire. 🐾 But if you're looking for other options, there's plenty to choose from — including a book festival, film festival and more.

"That's been past practice. When we're coming up on a looming government shutdown, people have been willing to sit down and negotiate," Sen. Jeanne Shaheen told us in a Wednesday interview. "That's been sorely lacking this time."

Taylor Caswell, a Littleton resident, drew doubts from Republican Executive Council members about his commitment to developing business opportunities in the North Country. They also said he had not done enough to market New Hampshire’s business climate to out-of-state enterprises.

Dozens of NH school districts plan to dig into savings, consider hiring freezes, or return less surplus to taxpayers to cover an unexpected $30 million bill from their health benefits provider. The bills range from $1,000 to $2 million. buff.ly/q61sY9W

Beginning Jan. 1, 2026, Anthem and Martin’s Point will no longer offer individual Medicare Advantage plans in New Hampshire, and Aetna will no longer offer plans in most counties, according to state officials. buff.ly/IOX0hwz

“It’s a very profitable industry, which is driving the problem,” said Alexander Kellermann, an assistant attorney general with the New Hampshire DOJ.

Much of New England is facing dry conditions or drought. That’s put a strain on drinking water resources in some states and led to hundreds of wells running dry. buff.ly/t1QH3uU