"Children and teens exposed to higher amounts of the toxic chemical C8 appear to be more likely to have elevated cholesterol levels, according to a landmark new study published by researchers from West Virginia University."

"An oil and natural gas production platform exploded  in flames Thursday morning, sending 13 workers on board plunging into the Gulf of Mexico and touching raw nerves about the safety of offshore energy operations in the wake of the BP spill. But none of the 13 workers sustained serious injury, and by the end of the day Thursday, it appeared catastrophe had been averted and that early comparisons to BP's April 20 disaster were unjustified."

"Hurricane Earl  pounded the Outer Banks with heavy rains and strong winds early Friday morning as the eye of the storm passed around 90 miles off the coast. Early signs suggested the ocean surge was not as severe as predicted, but residents awaited full daylight to assess the damage."

"A federal judge has ordered the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to revise a Bush administration recovery plan for the threatened northern spotted owl, and the agency said today it intends to release a draft of the revision next week."

"Like generations of Tibetan nomads before him, Phuntsok Dorje makes a living raising yaks and other livestock on the vast alpine grasslands that provide a thatch on the roof of the world. But in recent years the vegetation around his home, the Tibetan plateau, has been destroyed by rising temperatures, excess livestock and plagues of insects and rodents."

"About 45 nations met on Thursday to seek ways to raise billions of dollars in aid to help the poor combat climate change as the United Nations warned them of a long haul to slow global warming."

"The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will roll out more regulations on greenhouse gases and other pollution to help fight climate change, but they will not be as strong as action by Congress, a senior administration official said."

The first World Congress on Environmental Health will begin Sunday in Vancouver, B.C. "About 500 delegates from 40 countries will attend the five-day conference organized by the International Federation of Environmental Health and the Canadian Institute of Public Health Inspectors. It will cover topics ranging from food safety to disaster preparedness to communicable diseases."

"The Amazon, the world's biggest river, is at its lowest level in over 40 years near its source in northeastern Peru, causing havoc in a region where it is used as the only form of travel, authorities said."

"Though B.C. has said the project could net $5-billion worth of economic activity, local natives say they'll give their lives to stop it."