"With a Paris climate agreement just over a week old, President Obama is singling out the GOP on climate change. In an interview with NPR's Steve Inskeep, the president lambasted Republicans, whom he views as excessively contrarian on the issue."
"The Obama administration is expected to extend Endangered Species Act protections for two breeds of lions, in response to a large decline in their numbers in Africa over the past two decades."
"As Congress headed home for the Christmas break after passing a budget deal, Agriculture Department Secretary Tom Vilsack presented lawmakers with an angry ultimatum: Put up more cash if you want the U.S. Forest Service to keep putting out huge wildfires."
"Plastic microbeads used in soaps, body washes and other personal-care products will be phased out starting in 2017 under legislation approved by Congress and sent to the president."
"President Obama has vetoed attempts by the Republican-controlled Congress to kill the Clean Power Plan that's a cornerstone of his climate change initiatives, the White House announced Saturday."
"In places around the world, supplies of groundwater are rapidly vanishing. As aquifers decline and wells begin to go dry, people are being forced to confront a growing crisis."
"Kemal Ali ran a successful well-digging business for farmers in northern Syria for 30 years. He had everything he needed for the job ... Then things changed. In the winter of 2006–2007, the water table began sinking like never before."
"Texas is leading the nation by far in the growth of new power generation from both wind and natural gas as more states continue to retire their coal-fired power plants."
"A leaked draft report compiled by [North Carolina] state environmental officials shows that the coal ash waste in a huge basin at the Duke Energy power plant in Belews Creek, and in basins at almost all other Duke power plant sites statewide, will have to be excavated and put in lined landfills by 2019."
"Federal agencies engaged in the battle against deadly superbugs would get their biggest funding increase ever in the congressional spending deal unveiled this week. The budget blueprint would provide at least $375 million in new funds for the 2016 fiscal year to fight antibiotic-resistant bacteria, one of the biggest health threats facing the United States and the rest of the world."
