"Up to 1.1 million acres of prairie in the Flint Hills of Kansas could be protected under the first National Wildlife Refuge unit designated by the Obama administration. To create the new protected area, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will establish a voluntary conservation easement program in eastern Kansas."

Must China really dominate the future world market in rare earth minerals so crucial to a green energy economy?
 

The Great Lakes, America's largest supply of fresh water, and surrounding forests, wetlands, and waterways are threatened by new mining of copper and nickel.

"The Canadian government [Tuesday] turned down a proposal for a gold-copper mine in central British Columbia due to environmental concerns, while authorizing a second gold-copper mine on B.C.'s northwest coast to proceed."

"In a significant legal victory for Navajo campaigners, a federal judge has voided a permit for the expansion of one of two operating mines on the Navajo reservation, calling for a more thorough review of the project's impact on the environment and on cultural sites."

"Months after the funding was approved, state legislators still haven't decided how to proceed with a study of the proposed Pebble copper and gold mine."

"[California] State officials have reached an agreement that will provide an estimated $188 million over 10 years to restore habitat for imperiled fish in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta."

"BAOTOU, China — The Chinese government on Thursday abruptly ended its unannounced export embargo on crucial rare earth minerals to the United States, Europe and Japan, four industry officials said."

"In a long-running legal battle between a Hawaiian community and the U.S. Army, a federal judge today ruled that the community has a right to know how live-fire military training in a nearby valley could damage cultural sites and marine resources."

"The European Union and the United States said on Tuesday they were pressing for solutions to concerns China may be exploiting its stranglehold on rare earth metals, crucial in the making of everything from portable phones to wind turbines."

"Gov. Edward G. Rendell of Pennsylvania signed an executive order on Tuesday effectively banning further natural gas development on state forest lands."

The alumina dust that coats a Texas Gulf Coast town is a sign of risks like those in the Hungarian villages recently buried in a spill of toxic red sludge.

"Gov. Steve Beshear's administration and coal industry representatives have sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency over coal mining permits."

"The Obama administration has moved another step closer to blocking the largest mountaintop removal permit in West Virginia history, with a veto recommendation from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's regional administrator."

"The need for rare-earth minerals like neodymium could define the relationship between the United States and China and elevate Idaho into a critical role in the nation’s industrial future."