"The West's leading trade group for the oil industry has collaborated with, and in some cases funded, an array of groups to combat what it calls "aggressive anti-oil initiatives," according to a presentation obtained by climate activists and shared with the San Jose Mercury News."
"The corporate lobbying network American Legislative Exchange Council, commonly known as Alec, is planning a new onslaught on a number of environmental protections next year when Republicans take control of Congress and a number of state legislatures."
"Plunging oil prices sparked a drop of almost 40 percent in new well permits issued across the United States in November, in a sudden pause in the growth of the U.S. shale oil and gas boom that started around 2007."
"Stephanie Harper of the North Texas city of Bonham was a daddy’s girl. When her father would come home from work — he was a handyman, a jack of all trades, doing auto mechanics, heating and cooling, anything — she’d grab him and hug him as hard as she could. 'I’d sit on his feet and grab his pants legs,' she remembers."
"Occupational Safety and Health Administration officials announced Monday that they have cited E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. for 11 alleged violations and proposed $120,300 in fines related to problems found after toxic chemicals leaked from a tanker truck in May and exposed workers to health risks at a Deepwater, N.J., plant that is one of DuPont's largest facilities in the United States."
"A new study suggests that whole classes of BPA-free plastics—including the kind in styrofoam—release estrogenic chemicals."
"On Jan. 9, a freak storm dumped a record rainfall on central Florida's Treasure Coast, inundating the St. Lucie nuclear power plant facing the Atlantic Ocean. Storm drains failed, and 50,000 gallons of water flooded the plant's Unit 1 reactor auxiliary building through improperly sealed electrical passages, disabling core cooling pumps."
"EL DORADO SPRINGS, Mo. — This year's effort to collect wildflower and grass seeds from surviving prairie remnants has wrapped up."
"Food activists and the industry are looking to a court case between Vermont and a major food distribution association as a bellwether for the future of genetically modified foods."
"Compared with eye-catching renewable power technologies like wind turbines and solar panels, energy efficiency is nearly invisible. But advocates say doing more with less power may be an even more critical weapon in the fight against climate change and offers big economic benefits, too."
