"The US pointman on climate change on Tuesday accused vested interests of exploiting scientific scandals and pledged to act even if China and India balk at the controversial Copenhagen accord."

"Across the country, stormwater runoff hammers thousands of rivers, streams and lakes. Communities are left to struggle with the consequences of too much pavement and too little oversight. Now the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is gearing up to tighten federal stormwater rules that have been criticized by environmental groups and deemed ineffective by a national panel of researchers."

"A trio of influential multinational corporations have decamped from the U.S. Climate Action Partnership, a 3-year-old lobby group, citing mounting concerns over the direction of climate change legislation, particularly concessions to the politically-influential coal sector."

"President Obama, speaking to an enthusiastic audience of union officials in Lanham, Md., on Tuesday, underscored his embrace of nuclear power as a clean energy source, announcing that the Energy Department had approved financial help for the construction of two nuclear reactors in Georgia."

"There’s an interesting insurgency that may give lie to recent predictions of federal failure on cap and trade. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) has a modified 'cap and dividend' bill, called the CLEAR Act, that’s slowly but surely picking up momentum."

Scholars and Rogues investigated climate-change deniers' claim about Pennsylvania State University's inquiry into allegations of research misconduct against Michael Mann. The publication found that allegations of a cover-up were "extremely unlikely" to be true.

"SAN FRANCISCO -- If electric cars have any future in the United States, this may be the city where they arrive first. The San Francisco building code will soon be revised to require that new structures be wired for car chargers. Across the street from City Hall, some drivers are already plugging converted hybrids into a row of charging stations."

"Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh will not seek re-election this year, a decision that hands Republicans a prime pickup opportunity in the middle of the country. ... What's bad news for the Dems in the longer term could be good news for the climate bill in the short term."

"President Obama is to announce on Tuesday a loan guarantee to allow construction of two nuclear reactors in Georgia, according to administration officials."

"Free condoms, packaged to show the connection between human overpopulation and threats to biodiversity, are the Center for Biological Diversity's Valentine's gift to Americans."