If Proposition 23 passes, it could disrupt plans for many green companies and their suppliers in CA and around the US — not to mention weakening political will in other states, or at the federal level, for tougher green energy policy.

A National Research Council report says one of the most significant problems is a continuing lack of communication between federal tsunami warning system officials; local officials and emergency managers; the media; and the public.

The Commission for Environmental Cooperation (Canada, US, and Mexico) issued a report on Sept. 17, 2010, illustrating the steps 13 North American cities are taking, from small, planned efforts to reduce building energy use, to comprehensive, multi-sector adopted plans for reducing energy use.

The USGS study used data from thousands of locations to analyze trends from 1992 to 2004. You can probably find many local and regional stories as these pollutants contribute to various environmental and human health problems.

Here are a few tips for examining company "eco-friendly" marketing claims, and exploring how cell phones and their use impact the environment, all of which can serve as a hook for compelling consumer news stories in any media.

Salt and other substances used to make roads and other paved surfaces safer contaminate water ways with deadly toxicity levels that can even last till summer in some areas, according to a USGS study.

EPA warns Pavillion, WY residents not to drink or cook with their well water, and that the presence of methane (the main ingredient in natural gas) is so high that they should ventilate any room in which a shower is operating, and to not ignite anything in a closed room in which water is running.

There were just 12 of these hypoxic areas in the 1960s. Now there are more than 300, or nearly half of the 647 waterways investigated by a consortium of federal agencies that released its report on Sept. 3, 2010.

The fifth anniversary of Katrina reminds us that we are indeed at the peak of hurricane season. The resources in the Hurricane Reporting Toolbox can help you do better stories.

View and suggest additions to our list of important Gulf-related research institutes, academic programs, and labs working on marine science, gulf ecology, oil spill response and recovery, coastal ecosystems, wetlands, and more.