"President Obama announced on Friday that he was designating new national monuments covering more than a million acres in California, Texas and Nevada, his latest use of executive power to preserve public land."

"A 2,400-ton chunk of granite broke loose last week from the towering Half Dome formation in Yosemite National Park, altering one of North America's most popular rock-climbing routes, but no one was hurt and casual visitors will probably never notice."

"MINIDOKA, Idaho -- Invasive cheatgrass is overtaking native plants, priming this semiarid desert for fiercer and more frequent wildfires. The big loser in this ecological coup occurring throughout the Great Basin: the greater sage grouse."

"Mining in the deep sea for minerals is uncharted territory, but one company is well on its way to making it a reality. Now, the company is trying to convince skeptical audiences it's a good idea."

"Coal production from the controversial mountaintop removal mining technique has dropped nearly two thirds in the last six years."

"SUPERIOR, Ariz. — Outside of an aging mining town in the mountains east of Phoenix, a copper company has burrowed a shaft 1.3 miles into the high desert landscape in what is believed to be the deepest such mine in the U.S."

"HAVANA — Like many of his countrymen, Jorge Angulo hopes the United States will lift the decades-old economic embargo against Cuba. But Dr. Angulo, a senior marine scientist at the University of Havana, is also worried about the effects that a flood of American tourists and American dollars might have on this country’s pristine coral reefs, mangrove forests, national parks and organic farms — environmental assets that are a source of pride here."

"New revelations that a long strip of protected mangrove trees were illegally razed amid preparations for the 2016 Miami International Boat Show has outraged Florida environmentalists."

"A deep rift threatens the future of one of the nation's oldest and most popular conservation laws as it enters its final 100 days of authorization."