As campers prepare for their upcoming getaways, the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management is urging vacationers to inspect their vehicles and equipment to be sure they aren’t inadvertently transporting gypsy moth caterpillars to and from other areas.

Migratory birds are on the move, winging their way from nesting and breeding grounds in North America to winter habitat in Central and South America and the Caribbean. It’s a spectacular journey, but it’s one that many of them will never finish.

Bring clean plastic bags and film to blueReStore recycling bins in front of pharmacies, grocery stores and retail stores. Some businesses use white collection bins.

A mosquito sample collected July 25 in Pawtucket has tested positive for West Nile virus and is the first finding of WNV in Rhode Island this year, according to the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management and the Rhode Island Department of Health.

BARRINGTON, R.I. — The Rhode Island Department of Health, on June 7, announced the first beach closure of the season. Barrington Town Beach was closed for the day because of high levels of entercocci bacteria, which is found in high concentrations in human and animal feces.

Growing towers are simple structures where the space available for plant production is built vertically in a column or rectangular wall.