"RIO de JANEIRO -- More than 100 heads of state and government [Wednesday] gathered in Rio de Janeiro for the start of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, Rio+20. The summit seeks to shape new policies to promote global prosperity, reduce poverty and advance social equity and environmental protection in the face of warnings that the ecological basis of life is coming undone."
"UCLA researchers say the number of days topping 95 degrees each year will jump by as much as five times. The study could help local governments prepare for extreme temperatures and reduce risk to residents, L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa says."
"A report finds that injecting carbon dioxide into underground rock formations, while a potential means of fighting global warming, could increase stresses on faults, leading to earthquakes."
"A Senate resolution seeking to reverse federal regulations limiting emissions of mercury and other toxic substances from coal-burning power plants failed to win passage on Wednesday. The resolution, introduced by Senator James M. Inhofe, an Oklahoma Republican, won support from 46 senators; 53 voted against it."
"U.S. Democrats in the House of Representatives urged the Obama administration on Wednesday to expand proposed regulations for fracking for natural gas, saying companies should be required to reveal the chemicals to be used in the process prior to drilling."
JoAnn Valenti reports on the best of the 2012 Sundance Film Fest offerings on pesticides, climate change, nuclear power, interactive art installations, and more. © Photo by Yoni Brook of women on a dying lake in India, topic of "Valley of Saints," co-winner of the Sloan science award and a Sundance award winner.
Terri Hansen, a member of the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska and correspondent for This Week from Indian Country, has been reporting on environmental issues since 1992. Her focus areas are the impacts of toxics on human health, environmental justice in the Native American community, and Indigenous Peoples worldwide.
"Alternative fuels are likely to remain more expensive than their petroleum counterparts and offer the military little advantage as it seeks to secure its access to energy supplies, according to government-sponsored studies released today."
"ELK POINT, Alberta -- There's been another oil spill in Alberta, this time northeast of Edmonton."
"One swarm covered the side-view mirror of a Volvo station wagon in a lot by the Hudson River, trapping a family of three inside. Another humming cluster the size of a watermelon bent a tree branch in front of a Chase Bank on the Lower East Side, attracting a crowd of gasping onlookers. And for several hours, thousands of bees carpeted a two-foot-tall red standpipe on the patio of a South Street Seaport restaurant, sending would-be outdoor diners elsewhere."
