"ATLANTA — Georgia Power must purchase more solar power for its energy system under a plan approved Thursday by state utility regulators, a move sought by solar developers and renewable energy proponents but denounced by a commissioner who argued it could raise costs."

"Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) filed a cloture motion July 11 for Gina McCarthy, President Obama's nominee for administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, setting up a confirmation vote that probably will occur July 16."

"WASHINGTON, DC -- The latest environmental assessment of the controversial TransCanada Keystone XL tar sands pipeline is flawed because the contractor hired by the U.S. State Department to write the review 'lied' on its conflict of interest disclosure form about its past work for TransCanada, finds research released Wednesday by two environmental groups."

"The House on Wednesday voted to slash money for renewable energy research and defy the Obama administration's decision to close the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository in a bare-bones annual spending bill for energy and water programs."

"On its face, Eastman Chemical’s lawsuit against two small Texas labs that have said its plastics may be unsafe for consumption looks like a David and Goliath kind of fight (in fact, that’s how the labs are describing it). Corporate giant attempts to silence scientists -- including a professor at the University of Texas at Austin -- from publicizing research that runs counter to its commercial interests."

"WASHINGTON -- Louisiana Republican Sen. David Vitter says he won't delay a Senate vote on President Barack Obama's pick to lead the Environmental Protection Agency after securing a deal to boost transparency at the agency."

"Vitter, the top Republican on the Senate environment panel, has been one of the biggest obstacles to Gina McCarthy's nomination. In May, he led a GOP boycott that delayed a critical vote to advance her bid. She eventually cleared the panel solely on votes from Democrats.

"The House this week is scheduled to take up a bill to fund the Department of Energy, the Army Corps of Engineers and related agencies that proposes steep spending cuts to clean energy and research programs."

"The Obama administration is looking forward to a host of new environmental regulations that go far beyond the president's plans to issue new standards for greenhouse gas emissions from new and existing power plants."

"ATLANTA -- A political group founded by billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch wants Georgia's utility regulators to reject a plan requiring Southern Co. to buy more solar energy, but an Associated Press review ahead of a vote on the issue finds that it has used misleading figures to build its case."

OAKLAND, Calif. -- The U.S. State Department is in the process of deciding whether the proposed Keystone XL tar sands oil pipeline would be in the U.S. national interest, but the determination is being made without Keystone XL’s digital GIS data, such as the longitude and latitude of milepost markers, waterbody crossings and the centerline route."