"The U.S. Interior Department issued its first shallow-water drilling permit since offshore exploration companies were required to meet two sets of new safety regulations in response to the BP oil spill, a department official said on Monday."

"Gov. Charlie Crist and legislative leaders took turns Tuesday blasting each other for the ill-fated special session he called to get a constitutional amendment on November’s ballot to ban offshore oil-drilling in Florida waters."

"Senate Democrats appear unsure how to proceed on major energy legislation, with just days remaining on the Senate's summer schedule. The uncertainty is prompting grim forecasts for the passage of any bill -- one containing climate provisions or not."

"The Delaware River Basin Commission hasn't heard the last word on natural gas  drilling in northeast Pennsylvania. It agreed last week to hold further hearings there on its drilling moratorium."

"The official groundbreaking of a new advanced battery manufacturing plant in Holland [Mich.] on Thursday attracted both President Barack Obama and Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm."

On Thursday two powerful House committees approved separate drilling reform bills, raising the possibility that the House would meld and pass them soon.

"A small Colorado tribe takes control of its energy resources and becomes a billion-dollar corporation — but has it gone too far?"

"Passions ran high at a meeting of the Delaware River Basin Commission, which is in the process of writing regulations governing drilling in the river basin."

More immediate than the Gulf oil spill to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection are the gushers, spills, and accidents from the gas drilling boom in the state.

"As it works to reshape the oil industry's image, American Petroleum Institute's media shop has nabbed a former spokesman for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce."

"Ethanol and other renewable fuels must account for 7.95 percent of total gasoline sales in 2011 to meet Congress' mandate for 13.95 billion gallons of renewable fuels expected to be produced next year, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said on Monday."

"The Army Corps of Engineers wants to use ash cast off from coal-fired electrical generation to shore up dozens of miles of Mississippi River levees, drawing fire from environmentalists worried that heavy metals from the filler might make their way into the river."

"Interior Secretary Ken Salazar  issued revised rules on Monday for a six-month moratorium on deepwater oil  drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, replacing an earlier one that had been declared invalid by federal courts."

"A federal appeals court on Thursday turned down the Obama administration’s effort to enforce a six-month moratorium on deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico."

"Plane powered entirely by the sun lands safely in Switzerland after completing its first 24-hour test flight, proving that aircraft can stay airborne during the night using energy gathered from the sun by day."