"'American policymakers need to understand just who they will be doing business with if they approve the Keystone,' says environmental artist Franke James."

As a centerpiece of its bid to hold the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia boldly promised a "Zero Waste" program. State-owned companies are already systematically and publicly violating that pledge.

"In the year since Hurricane Sandy struck the Mid-Atlantic, news articles have widely declared that the storm has 'changed the public’s view of weather threats' and that 'resilience' would be the environmental buzzword of 2013. That sounds all well and good, but are headlines enough to move public opinion and spark new discussions?"

"Voters in swing states are more likely to favor the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) proposed carbon pollution standards for power plants, according to a new poll funded by the League of Conservation Voters."

"Bisphenol A has gotten a much higher profile in recent years, as the 'BPA-free' label adorns an increasing number of water bottles and baby products. News headlines regularly hint at possible connections between BPA and a lengthening list of health problems. But the ingredient is still common in plastics, food can liners -- and in our bodies."

"Last week, the Whatcom County Council in northwestern Washington voted to buy six new SUVs for the local Sheriff's Department and introduced its annual road construction plan. These were significant developments in this sleepy rural enclave of scarcely 200,000 people, but nothing compared to what's on the horizon: A proposal to build the largest coal export terminal on the West Coast, capable of annually shipping a whopping 48 million tons of Montana and Wyoming coal to Asia."

"SAN FRANCISCO -- Saying that the West Coast must lead the way in battling climate change, the governors of California, Oregon and Washington, along with the premier of British Columbia, signed an agreement Monday committing the Canadian province and the three states to coordinate global-warming policies."

Attacking the science behind environmental health and safety rules has long been an industry tactic. The American Council on Science and Health, a leader of the charge, has for years claimed that it is not an industry shill but an independent science organization. But it doesn't disclose its funders. Now documents reveal most of its funding comes from industries who stand to profit from its claims.

"The Energy Department is tightening its control over the Bonneville Power Administration in the wake of a scandal over BPA's illegal hiring practices."

"Officials at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) have been busy meeting with chemical and energy companies in recent days, ahead of the expected release of new biofuel standards."