"The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission proposed to revise its cybersecurity standards for the nation’s electric grid, expanding the rules to more than 60 additional companies."

"A massive explosion at a fertilizer plant rocked the town of West, north of Waco, causing multiple casualties and leaving people trapped and buildings on fire.

Emergency personnel were bracing for the possibility of dozens of dead in the blast, which was reported at 7:53 p.m. and could be heard 45 miles away in Waxahachie.

With a tiny budget, the U.S. Chemical Safety Board is coming under fire for slowness in completing investigations on a large number of major accidents involving chemical hazards.

"The rate dropped 12% from 2005 to 2011, with improvements among all major racial and ethnic groups, a government report says."

"The newly formed group of Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep barreled up rugged Olancha Peak last month, the 10 females and four males becoming the first new herd of the endangered animals reintroduced in California in 25 years."

"Debra White Plume and Marie Brush Breaker Randall stood in the middle of Highway 44, alongside more than 70 other members of the Oglala Lakota Nation. For hours, they didn't budge -- much to the chagrin of some tractor-trailer drivers bound for the tar sands region of Alberta, Canada."

"A BP executive testified the captain of the oil rig that exploded and sent millions of barrels of oil pouring into the Gulf of Mexico delayed activating the installation’s safety systems after the blast as a trial over the disaster ended."

"Power producers such as Dynegy Corp. and Duke Energy Corp. are bracing for new U.S. rules on the water they discharge, standards that may impose further costs on the embattled coal industry."

"A gluttonous predator is power-eating its way through reefs from New York to Venezuela. It's the lionfish."

"The White House released a plan on Tuesday aimed at protecting oceans, coastal and Great Lakes environments around the United States while safeguarding related businesses that support more than 44 million jobs."

The potential resurgence of uranium mining in the U.S. raises questions of both national and local interest.

"More than half of samples of ground turkey, pork chops and ground beef collected from supermarkets for testing by the federal government contained a bacteria resistant to antibiotics, according to a new report highlighting the findings."

"Republican lawmakers on Tuesday worked on two fronts to advance legislation that would force approval of the Keystone XL pipeline."

"WASHINGTON, DC -- In a new report, 'Cooking the Books: How The State Department Analysis Ignores the True Climate Impact of the Keystone XL Pipeline,' environmental groups and scientists opposed to the pipeline warn of 'climate disaster' if President Barack Obama allows it to cross the Canada-U.S. border, carrying tar sands bitumen from Alberta to Nebraska."

"Drought and demand are pushing the Colorado River beyond its limits — with the needs of more than 40 million people in seven Western states projected to outstrip dwindling supply over the next 50 years, according to an advocacy group's report on endangered rivers released on Wednesday."