"As one of the hottest summers ever recorded drew to a close, Jay Portnoy watched patients stream into Children’s Mercy Hospital and Clinics in Kansas City, Mo., coughing and wheezing with asthma, 20 admissions per day for the week that started with Labor Day, he said."

"Chlorine has long been the industry standard to keep pool water clean and clear, but consumer demand for alternatives has prompted the emergence of new technologies, including the saltwater systems that came into vogue a few years ago and the copper-and-silver ionization and ozone-gas systems that are increasingly popular."

"Rising seawater temperatures forced an unprecedented shutdown last month of a nuclear reactor on the Connecticut coast."

"CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. -- Conservationists have built an artificial bat cave deep in the Tennessee woods to see if it can be a blueprint for saving bats who are dying by the millions from a fungus spreading across North America."

A debate in Iowa last week between presidential candidates' surrogates feature the Romney camp alleging environmental regulations would hurt farmers, while Obama's team emphasized the help his administration had offered to suffering farmers.

"Speaking on behalf of Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, Sen. Mike Johanns (R-Neb.) yesterday blasted the Obama administration for environmental regulations he said were stifling farmers and ranchers.

"OTTAWA -- Atmospheric scientists from around the world are asking Environment Canada to back down from a plan that they believe would compromise ozone and radiation monitoring by putting it into the hands of an Information Technology computer expert."

"The governor declines to declare that one exists. Critics say it's all about business."

"Canada dropped its longtime opposition on Friday to the international listing of asbestos as a hazardous material, a designation intended to curb the use abroad of the fire-resistant substance, which can cause cancer and other illnesses."

"TOKYO -- The Japanese government has decided to phase out nuclear power by sometime in the 2030s and shift the country in the direction of renewables, energy conservation and natural gas."

"In a letter submitted Friday afternoon to internal investigators at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, a whistleblower engineer within the agency accused regulators of deliberately covering up information relating to the vulnerability of U.S. nuclear power facilities that sit downstream from large dams and reservoirs."

"The letter also accuses the agency of failing to act to correct these vulnerabilities despite being aware of the risks for years.