"Despite huge progress made in reducing chemical discharges since the 1960s, many birds nesting across the Great Lakes region still struggle to reproduce or they give birth to chicks with twisted beaks or other deformities — signs that a full recovery is still likely decades away for some of the region’s most historically polluted areas."

"SAN FRANCISCO — Lax oversight by the state has allowed the oil and gas industry to contaminate protected water aquifers and endanger the public, California regulators acknowledged Tuesday while pledging to intensify supervision."

"As the Obama administration opens the door to offshore drilling, the oil industry is promising more jobs and less reliance on foreign oil. Some people who live along the Eastern Seaboard are saying, 'no thanks.'"

"North Carolina officials say they have hit Duke Energy, the nation’s largest electric utility, with the largest environmental fine in state history."

"The agencies charged with overseeing oil production and protecting California's ever-dwindling water sources from the industry's pollution all fell down on the job, one state official told a panel of peeved lawmakers Tuesday."

"New Jersey’s decision to settle a multibillion-dollar pollution lawsuit with Exxon Mobil Corporation has come under broad criticism, as lawmakers and environmentalists have questioned why the state would agree to accept only $225 million — a small fraction of the $8.9 billion in damages it was seeking in court."

"A Venezuela-bound tanker spilled an unknown amount of gasoline additive MTBE into the Houston Ship Channel after a crash with another vessel, shutting down a portion of the waterway and one container terminal."

"A train carrying oil derailed in Ontario, the company that owns the train said Saturday, which sparked a fire but no casualties."

"Cleaner air has for the first time been linked to bigger and stronger lungs among school-age children, according to findings released Wednesday from a two-decade study in Southern California."

"A train carrying crude oil along the banks of the Mississippi River derailed Thursday in a rural area of northwestern Illinois south of the town of Galena, starting a fire and leading the authorities to recommend that nearby residents leave their homes."