"The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee today confirmed the nomination of Ernest Moniz to become the next secretary of Energy on a 21-1 vote."

"WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that Nigerian plaintiffs who said foreign oil companies had been complicit in violating their human rights may not sue in American courts. The decision limited the sweep of a 1789 law that had been used to address human rights abuses abroad."

"Record-setting rains in parts of the Midwest have caused hundreds of flight cancellations and flooding, with one northern Illinois hospital evacuating patients due to rising floodwaters."

"WEST — In this small, shattered town 80 miles south of Dallas, residents awaiting word on missing loved ones spent most of Thursday finding hope in not knowing for sure.

"A gluttonous predator is power-eating its way through reefs from New York to Venezuela. It's the lionfish."

"MOSCOW — It was once protected by ice. Now regulation will have to do the work."

"Power producers such as Dynegy Corp. and Duke Energy Corp. are bracing for new U.S. rules on the water they discharge, standards that may impose further costs on the embattled coal industry."

"A BP executive testified the captain of the oil rig that exploded and sent millions of barrels of oil pouring into the Gulf of Mexico delayed activating the installation’s safety systems after the blast as a trial over the disaster ended."

"Debra White Plume and Marie Brush Breaker Randall stood in the middle of Highway 44, alongside more than 70 other members of the Oglala Lakota Nation. For hours, they didn't budge -- much to the chagrin of some tractor-trailer drivers bound for the tar sands region of Alberta, Canada."

"The newly formed group of Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep barreled up rugged Olancha Peak last month, the 10 females and four males becoming the first new herd of the endangered animals reintroduced in California in 25 years."