Water & Oceans

"Canada has made it illegal to catch and hold whales, dolphins and porpoises in captivity."

"A coalition of environmental groups on Tuesday filed a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Interior Department’s rollbacks of safety measures put in place by the Obama administration in the aftermath of the fatal 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill."

"The Keweenaw Bay Indian Community, heavily reliant on fish, berries and wild rice, wants to join the 60 other US tribes who the feds have granted control over setting water regulations."

"Eleven attorneys general sent a letter last week urging EPA to reconsider its recent interpretive statement specifying that Clean Water Act permits are not required for pollution that moves through groundwater before reaching a federally regulated waterway."

"Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler said in an interview Monday that he will emphasize the importance of curbing marine debris during an upcoming summit with his Group of 20 counterparts in Japan, rather than seeking new action on climate change."

"The devastating flooding that has submerged large parts of the Midwest and South this spring has also brought barge traffic on many of the regions’ rivers to a near standstill. ... Shipments of grains, fertilizers and construction supplies are stranded."

"A near record-sized “dead zone” of oxygen-starved water could form in the Gulf of Mexico this summer, threatening its huge stocks of marine life, researchers said."

"Despite years of devastating flooding and hurricanes, the number of Americans with flood insurance remains well below its level a decade ago, undermining the nation’s ability to cope with disasters just as climate change makes them more frequent and severe."