National (U.S.)

The State Department's environmental impact statement for the Keystone XL pipeline has been the focus of a spin war among economic and political interests with a stake in the decision. The news media fell in line with the industry narrative that it "cleared the way" for the pipeline, ignoring the factual errors in the report. Media critics at the left-leaning Media Matters ask why the mainstream media failed to note Reuters' expose of the EIS' overstatement of rail traffic offering an alternative route for the oil.

"CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Diminished domestic demand has produced a virtual moratorium on federal coal sales in Wyoming's Powder River Basin, home to the 10 top-producing coal mines in the country."

"Oil refineries and drilling platforms in the U.S. are vulnerable to sea level rise and greater storm surge. Fuel pipelines, barges, railways and storage tanks are vulnerable to melting permafrost and severe weather. Warming seas and water shortages put nuclear and other electric power plants at risk. Power lines can be blown away by hurricanes and other extreme weather."

"More ominous news on the Asian carp invasion front: Asian carp eggs were recently found in the Upper Mississippi River near Lynxville, Wis., about 20 miles south of the Minnesota border."

"Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) yesterday announced plans to use an aid package for Ukraine to advance his proposal for expediting exports of domestic natural gas to U.S. allies and members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization."

The story about wolves, elk, and the Yellowstone ecosystem has been told and retold by U.S. news media. The gist is that the reintroduction of wolves restored balance in overgrown elk populations -- which in turn allowed restoration of aspen groves which the elk had been overbrowsing. But new evidence suggests the story isn't really true -- or that a true understanding of the ecosystem is far more complex. That in turn raises issues about how U.S. news media cover the environment.

"Researchers have found that children living in central and northern Wisconsin communities that don't disinfect their drinking water systems have a greater likelihood of contracting gastrointestinal illnesses than children who rely on other water systems."

"WASHINGTON -- In a setback to the U.S. government's long-running policy of converting abandoned railroads into public trails, the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday ruled for a Wyoming property owner who objected to a plan to extend a pathway across his land."

"WASHINGTON -- A report due to be released Tuesday aims to offer an object lesson to President Barack Obama: Free trade deals have high costs in unintended consequences for the environment, people's way of life, and local sovereignty."

"WASHINGTON — In the summer of 2010, it was Harry Reid, the Senate’s Democratic leader, who squelched his party’s efforts to pass a climate change bill, declaring it could never attract enough votes to pass. In the years since, he has rarely spoken publicly about the issue. But on Monday night, an impassioned Mr. Reid took to the Senate floor to kick off a nearly 15-hour climate-change talkathon by about 30 Senate Democrats, part of a campaign by a new Senate 'climate caucus' to make it a politically urgent issue."