"WASHINGTON, DC -- The latest environmental assessment of the controversial TransCanada Keystone XL tar sands pipeline is flawed because the contractor hired by the U.S. State Department to write the review 'lied' on its conflict of interest disclosure form about its past work for TransCanada, finds research released Wednesday by two environmental groups."

"We have to confess: When we heard that Twinkies will have nearly double the shelf life, 45 days, when they return to stores next week, our first reaction was -- days? Not years?"

"Blacks, Asians and Latinos are more likely to live in “urban heat islands” that are most at risk during extreme heat waves that are expected to worsen due to climate change, according to a new study."

"The House on Wednesday voted to slash money for renewable energy research and defy the Obama administration's decision to close the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository in a bare-bones annual spending bill for energy and water programs."

"WASHINGTON -- Environmentalists on Monday filed a petition with the U.S. government requesting regulatory safeguards for 81 particularly vulnerable marine wildlife species, from corals to sharks."

"LITTLE ROCK, Ark. -- An independent report blames manufacturing defects for the failure of an ExxonMobil pipeline that sent 150,000 gallons of crude oil into the small town of Mayflower, the company said Wednesday."

"The Obama administration is nine months behind schedule on a proposal to bolster safety standards for the type of rail car that killed at least 13 people after slamming, filled with U.S. shale oil, into a small Canadian town over the weekend."

"Across the Midwestern corn belt, a familiar battle has resumed, hidden in the soil. On one side are tiny, white larvae of the corn rootworm. On the other side are farmers and the insect-killing arsenal of modern agriculture."

"On a typical day in North Dakota prairie towns like Williston, Dickinson and Beulah, trains with 100 tank cars line up to be loaded with oil destined for markets to the east, west, and south."