"Minneapolis, where 94% of residents live within a 10-minute walk of a park, has the U.S.' best park system, according to new rankings by a national non-profit conservation group."

"A dispute over a proposed copper and gold mine near Alaska’s Bristol Bay may be one of the most important environmental decisions of President Obama’s second term — yet few are even aware that the fight is happening."

"WASHINGTON, DC -- Federal officials [Friday] designated 28 trails as national recreation trails, adding roughly 650 miles of trails in 18 states to the National Trails System."

"Industrial farming has played a part in sucking this critical element out of our soil."

"KIRUNA, Sweden -- Ministers from the eight Arctic states and representatives of the Arctic Indigenous Peoples Wednesday adopted a shared vision statement for the future development of the region as a 'zone of peace and stability.'"

"The Arctic Council agreed on Wednesday to admit emerging powers China and India as observers, reflecting growing global interest in the trade and energy potential of the planet's Far North."

"Digging a large mine in southwest Alaska would inflict widespread ecological damage, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said in a report on Friday that could hurt the chances of a proposed project in that region winning regulatory approval."

"Demand for metals is likely to increase tenfold as developing economies surge ahead, putting severe stress on the natural environment, a new report from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has warned."

"A federal appeals court ruled today that U.S. EPA's 2011 retroactive veto of a major West Virginia mountaintop-removal mining project was legal."