"When energy booms go bust, the public is often left responsible for the cleanup. That's because while most states and the federal government make companies put up at least some money in advance to pay for any mess they leave behind, it's often not enough."

"The gooey, grayish-black sludge that spread across Roane County in East Tennessee on a bitterly cold December morning is gone, but the fallout from the nation's worst coal-ash spill enters a new phase on Monday when the federal government begins regulating the storage and disposal of ash from coal-fired power plants."

"A provocative study on mice finds that the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing appear to disrupt the reproductive system."

"The state and federal governments have decided not to pursue $92 million in additional damages from Exxon Mobil Corp., citing the recovery of ducks and sea otters in Alaska's Prince William Sound following a devastating oil spill more than two decades ago."

"The Mississippi River basin has gotten a report card from a group that monitors watershed health and economic impact — and the grade is D+."

"RALEIGH, N.C. -- Conservation groups have asked judges in Wake and Mecklenburg counties to reject a $7 million agreement between [North Carolina] and Duke Energy to settle years of groundwater contamination violations."

"At homes and day care centers throughout Central Washington, children play in yards contaminated with lead and arsenic."

"Gov. Jerry Brown of California signed legislation on Thursday that bans plastic microbeads, giving his state one of the country’s strongest laws against the tiny abrasives used in exfoliators and other products."

"The body examining the practices of the car industry following the Volkswagen emissions scandal has been accused of a major conflict of interest after it emerged that nearly three quarters of its funding comes from the companies it is investigating."