"The ozone layer that shields life from cancer-causing solar rays is showing its first sign of recovery after years of dangerous depletion, a U.N. study said on Wednesday, in a rare piece of good news on the environment."

"Nuclear watchdog gives go-ahead to switch two reactors back on but Shinzo Abe faces uphill battle to win over sceptical public"

"A retreat in oil and energy stocks pulled the rest of the U.S. stock market mostly lower Monday."

"Levels of heat-trapping carbon dioxide in the atmosphere rose at a record-shattering pace last year, a new report shows, a surge that surprised scientists and spurred fears of an accelerated warming of the planet in decades to come."

"The Australian who heads fishery management in the Western and Central Pacific has warned an international agreement is urgently needed to avert disaster for the tuna industry."

"Extracting natural gas for energy from shale rock deep underground requires lots of water, but much of the world's shale gas is in regions where water is already scarce, including part of California, according to a study issued Tuesday."

"LONDON -- German researchers have established the height of the Greenland and Antarctic ice caps with greater precision than ever before. And the new maps they have produced show that the ice is melting at an unprecedented rate."

"UN deputy secretary general says failure to address sanitation and open defecation threatens disaster for third of humanity."

"There are some countries in the world where the air is so polluted you can forget about coming home with a healthy holiday glow."

"As tensions mount and U.S. lawmakers push for stiffer sanctions on Russia for its role in the Ukraine crisis, oil giant ExxonMobil wants no part of it."