By CHERYL HOGUE

It seems improbable — a regulatory agency officially inviting polluters to secretly influence the scientific judgments it uses in crafting cleanup plans. But it happened earlier this year.

And it's likely to have impacts in the communities you cover, especially if they're facing pollution threats from a nearby military base or a Department of Energy or NASA facility.

Comparative techniques are great for explaining difficult environmental concepts -- and good journalists use them.

A new map and report by the Center for Public Integrity make it easier to pinpoint exact locations of coal-ash deposits, a waste product of coal-fired power plants.

EPA proposes a new rule addressing emissions of toxic chemicals from kilns that are fueled by coal or other typical fuels, or allegedly nonhazardous waste. You'll find this, as well as other environmental story ideas, in the latest issue of TipSheet.

Sometime in the next month, the Antarctic ozone hole is likely to start reappearing -- and making headlines.

EPA will deliver to President Bush its recommendations for streamlining air pollution regulations for utility power plants and other energy-related facilities.

EPA provided another piece of the TMDL puzzle on Aug. 3, 2001, when it released a report estimating costs of implementing the program to range from $900 million to $4.3 billion per year.

On Aug. 27, 2001, a conference of six New England states and five Eastern Canadian provinces will consider a groundbreaking strategy for reducing greenhouse gasses in the region.

Get ready for a battle over who gets to play "pollution cop" -- and watch for schizophrenia within EPA about whether the agency should keep the job.

The first state-by-state assessment of asthma prevalence was released Aug. 17, 2001, by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.