"Under fierce attack from the political right, and with even some Democrats questioning its competence, the Environmental Protection Agency is facing a tumultuous election year — with rising regulatory responsibilities, falling budgets and its very existence at stake."

"The rulings of Obama's Supreme Court nominee position him squarely in the mainstream of environmental jurisprudence, a big shift from Scalia."

"It was the Friday before Christmas and Joe Paviglianiti, a senior engineer at Canada’s federal pipeline watchdog, the National Energy Board sent an email to TransCanada Corp. “Sorry in advance for bothering you during your holidays,” he wrote on Dec. 19, 2014."

"Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder on Thursday blamed career bureaucrats in Washington and his own state for the Flint water-contamination crisis, while the head of the federal Environmental Protection Agency faulted him and other state officials."

"The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality repeatedly gave assurances that water from the Flint River was safe, when in reality it had dangerous levels of lead, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder says." CBS News/AP had the story March 17, 2016. The House Oversight Committee will hear testimony from Mich. Gov Rick Snyder and EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy Thursday, March 17, at 9 am ET. The hearing will be cablecast/livestreamed via CSPAN3.

"Many large Canadian companies are financing legal action and lobbying against President Barack Obama’s climate change plan, putting the public and their investors at risk, said a new report released on Monday by an investment services organization."

"A WBEZ investigation has found that a University of Illinois professor was given more than $57,000 over less than two years from GMO maker Monsanto to travel, write and speak about genetically modified organisms--including lobbying federal officials to halt further regulation on GMO products."

"The Senate will grapple this week with perhaps the most contentious issue in the food industry: whether the government should require mandatory labeling on foods containing genetically engineered ingredients."

"The Senate backers of legislation to strengthen the government's open records laws are hoping to pass their bill on the floor in the coming week."