Energy & Fuel

"The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has not properly analyzed the environmental effects of its ethanol mandate, a watchdog report found Thursday.

The 2005 law creating the renewable fuel standard requires the EPA to write reports on the environmental impacts of the requirement to blend ethanol and other biofuels with gasoline, and to determine whether measures are needed to blunt the effects.

But the EPA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) found the agency’s compliance with those provisions lacking."

"A groundswell of Native American activists has temporarily shut down construction on a major new oil pipeline with an ongoing protest that has drawn approximately 1,200 people to Cannon Ball, N.D."

"PROVIDENCE -- Construction of the first offshore wind farm in the nation is complete."

"Bankrupt coal company Peabody Energy won U.S. court approval on Wednesday for agreements with three states to partially cover $1.14 billion in potential environmental liabilities and for a bonus plan for its six top executives."

"The lifeboat keeping the coal industry afloat is getting a little lonely these days, as everyone abandons ship. According to a report released Tuesday by Climate Investigations Center, coal lobbying groups American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, National Mining Association, and World Coal Associate have been hemorrhaging member companies in recent years."

"The Obama administration on Tuesday finalized new fuel-economy standards for large trucks, buses and other heavy-duty vehicles, the latest in a series of efforts aimed at slashing greenhouse gas emissions and weaning the nation from its dependence on fossil fuels."

"Twelve Democratic attorneys general want a House chairman to end his investigation into state probes of Exxon Mobil Corp."

"The U.S. Chemical Safety Board is joining the investigation into the Friday night fire at Sunoco Logistics in which seven contract workers were injured, including four who were critically burned." The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is already investigating.

"Abandoned pipelines are facing new scrutiny from the Obama administration. The Transportation Department’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) issued an advisory bulletin Monday that tightens controls on pipeline operators."

"A puzzling concentration of the greenhouse gas methane over the Southwestern United States appears to come mostly from leaks in natural gas production, scientists said Monday."