"SAN FRANCISCO -- Chevron Corp. failed to maintain equipment at a California refinery and has not responded adequately to multiple airborne chemical releases, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday."

"As winter sets in across the northern United States, the road salt that keeps people out of ditches is flowing into rivers at levels that could harm fish and other creatures. With billions of pounds of salt spread on U.S. roads every year, researchers say that rivers, streams and lakes in the nation’s wintry cities are getting saltier. And, according to new research, the salt, or sodium chloride, in rivers remains toxic not just in winter, but throughout two-thirds of the year."

"Recent salmonella outbreaks that sickened at least 523 people and sent dozens to the hospital underscore 'serious weaknesses' in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s oversight of poultry plants, according to a study released Thursday by the Pew Charitable Trusts, which also criticized the government’s failure to push more aggressively for recalls of contaminated meat."