Covering for the slovenly among us, hundreds of thousands of volunteers are expected to participate in an annual trash collection effort on Sept. 15, 2007, along the shores of the world's oceans, lakes, and rivers.

Along with the usual spooky and spine-tingling sights we have come to expect in caves, another scary inhabitant is turning up — contaminants such as PCBs, pesticides, dioxins, gasoline, fertilizers, sewage, and caffeine. These pollutants, which are leaching into caves from the surface and groundwater, can pose a threat to the delicate underground environments that are prized by many, and that provide benefits to people, plants, and animals on the surface. The presence of these contaminants underground also serves as a blunt reminder of how pervasive pollutants are.

On Oct. 2, the National Wild and Scenic Rivers Act turns 40. How are your local rivers faring? Here's a collection of ideas, sources, and resources for river-related stories.

A voluntary program designed to reduce nonpoint (diffuse) sources of coastal water pollution caused by boating has been slowly expanding since the late 1990s.

The Bureau of Reclamation announced on June 18, 2007, its preferred management option for the Colorado River basin during drought conditions.

Recent levee failures in Colorado and Missouri have provided still more examples of the fragility of thousands of miles of US levees.

According to a recent GAO report, the nation's federally subsidized crop insurance program might not be ready to manage increasing risks to US crops due to climate change.

As spring begins to turn into summer, at least 28 states are suffering from some degree of drought. Many of these areas have already withered under multiple years of bone-dry conditions.

It's crunch time for developing the successor to the 2002 US Farm Bill, set to expire Sept. 30, 2007. Many of the ingredients that may be blended into the 2007 Farm Bill are now becoming public.

Hideous, insidious rock snot smothers US waterways.