"When Mount St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980, the landscape changed in an instant—the geologic version of an instant, anyway. It was the deadliest eruption the United States had ever seen, leveling everything for miles north of the mountain and blanketing ash as far as Montana. On the 35th anniversary of the event, the scars still shape the Cascade Mountains of Washington state."

"Royal Dutch Shell can drill oil exploration wells this summer in the Chukchi Sea, if Shell shows it can prevent and clean up a potential spill. Environmentalists are skeptical; Shell says it's ready."

"The Obama administration is expected to all but ban trans fat in a final ruling that could drop as soon as next week, killing most uses of an ingredient that has been put in everything from frozen pizza to Reese’s Pieces but since deemed harmful to human health."

"WASHINGTON — Five months into a new Congress, and deep into a lasting drought, California water legislation still stymies and splits the state’s lawmakers."

"Reveal has obtained never-before-released data from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service showing more than 300 species of migratory birds – from red-tailed hawks to American kestrels, turkey vultures to mallard ducks – have been killed legally across the United States since 2011 to protect a wide range of business activities and public facilities under what’s called the 'depredation permit' program."

"Recent rain has brought much-needed relief to drought-stricken Texas. Is the relief more than temporary? "

"The Agriculture Department has developed a government certification and labeling for foods that are free of genetically modified ingredients."

"Regulators overseeing the country’s electric grid want to set new rules to better protect it from disturbances caused by solar storms."

"The oil industry is launching a multimedia advertising campaign tomorrow in opposition to the Obama administration’s attempt to restrict allowable concentrations of ozone pollution."

"The risk of infection from eating food tainted with a common type of salmonella or a dangerous strain of E. coli fell significantly in 2014, according to a report published Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."