Pollution

"The Obama administration has cleared another hurdle for Shell to drill in Alaska’s Arctic waters – the second in as many days – changing the company’s air pollution limits so its drill ship can operate in the Chukchi Sea."

Crews from the DC-area Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission spend a lot of time checking the sewer pipes outside restaurants. The grease that builds up in the network of sewer pipes causes some 40 percent of sewer overflows in the U.S.

"The Obama Administration [Thursday] gave Shell approval to prepare for oil drilling in environmentally fragile Chukchi Sea off Alaska although a critical oil spill containment vessel has not been certified. Shell will be permitted to start 'certain limited preparatory activities' for drilling off Alaska’s northwest coast, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar told reporters."

"LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The sooty-looking black gunk has been here for as long as anyone can remember, creeping on the outside of homes, spreading over porch furniture, blanketing car roofs, mysterious and ever-present."

"As the Caribbean grapples with the pollution of its waters, the ratification of a protocol designed to help arrest the problem appears to be gathering steam."

"KINGSTON, Jamaica -- An extensive fuel spill has fouled a stretch of shoreline and oiled pink flamingos and other wildlife in a nature preserve in Curacao, conservationists and residents of the tiny Dutch Caribbean island said Monday."

The gas drilling industry says fracking hasn't been linked to water contamination. But it has.

"A settlement reached in federal court promises an accelerated attack on pollution from the labyrinth of pipes under Boston and from pavement runoff, an effort designed to prevent raw sewage and other pollutants from reaching area waterways."

"SAN FRANCISCO -- The Center for Biological Diversity filed a legal petition with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Wednesday that asks the agency to set plastic pollution limits for ocean waters under the Clean Water Act."