"The FBI yesterday approved anti-government activist Ammon Bundy for purchase of an AR-15 rifle, reversing its initial rejection days after the Idaho resident staged a social media campaign on his quest for a new firearm."

"The Interior Department broke federal spending law when it dipped into national park fees to keep its most popular sites operating during this winter’s partial federal shutdown, the Government Accountability Office concluded Thursday."

"Germany has said it will phase out the controversial weedkiller glyphosate because it wipes out insect populations crucial for ecosystems and pollination of food crops."

"A top Senate appropriator is seeking federal ethics information for former Interior Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management Joe Balash, who recently left the department for a job with a foreign oil and gas company."

"President Trump is strongly considering a plan to revoke California’s legal authority to set state tailpipe pollution standards that are stricter than federal regulations, according to three people familiar with the matter."

"U.S. President Donald Trump showed a map of Hurricane Dorian’s projected path on Wednesday that appeared to have been altered with a Sharpie pen to include the state of Alabama, which was never in harm’s way."

"Standing at an overlook on the top of Black Mountain — the tallest point in Kentucky —  the wooded Appalachian mountains stretch on like a sea of green for miles."

"California has just become the first state in the nation to outlaw fur trapping. The Wildlife Protection Act of 2019, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom Wednesday, will prohibit the trapping of native animals including grey fox, coyote, beaver, badger and mink, along with the sale of their pelts, which often end up in foreign markets."

"A former Interior Department official who abruptly resigned last month personally expedited environmental review for a 211-mile private road project across federal land that would open up a vast new copper, gold and precious metals mining district near a national park in northern Alaska, according to a company seeking to mine there."

"The Trump administration is rolling back Obama-era rules that expanded energy-use requirements to some of the most commonly used light bulbs."