"Environmentalists began 2009 optimistic about prospects for swift passage of legislation mandating U.S. reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. ... But after the House passed a sweeping climate bill last June, the effort stalled in the Senate. And now environmentalists are being asked to agree to painful compromises that senators say are needed to get something -- anything, really -- across the finish line."

"Human beings are flushing millions of tonnes of solid waste into rivers and oceans every day, poisoning marine life and spreading diseases that kill millions of children annually, the U.N. said on Monday."

"The Environmental Protection Agency announced on Monday that it would overhaul drinking water regulations so that officials could police dozens of contaminants simultaneously and tighten rules on the chemicals used by industries."

"A study by the National Academy of Sciences declared Friday that the efforts to save endangered fish in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta by restricting water delivery are 'scientifically justified.'"

"The Urban Ocean Boat Cruise shows visitors the grittier side of L.A.'s coast."

"The National Organic Program's failure to promptly follow through on investigations has allowed some companies to continue falsely advertising products as organic for years and let one company off the hook entirely, according to an audit released yesterday by the inspector general of the U.S. Agriculture Department."

"The leader of the [California's] largest water pollution regulator is married to a lobbyist for agencies it regulates, a potential conflict of interest she did not disclose publicly until an ethics complaint was brought against her."

An invasion of Asian carp is threatening to overwhelm native Tennessee fish species depended on by the state's $1.3 billion sports and commercial fishing industries.

"Gov. Chris Gregoire signed a handful of environmental protection bills into law Thursday, including a ban on the sale of children’s drinking cups that contain the plastics hardener bisphenol-A, or BPA."

"With just five words quietly slipped into legislation, Illinois lawmakers are moving to include tire burning in the state's definition of renewable energy, a change that would benefit a south suburban incinerator with a long history of pollution problems."