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"[Last week], the seven men accused of brutally murdering Jairo Mora Sandoval on a beach in Costa Rica two years ago were acquitted of the crime. Mora's murder shocked the Central American country—long known for the progressive protection of its lush rainforests and sweeping beaches—but the judge who acquitted the accused cited reasonable doubt and a investigation marred by mistakes, including mishandled evidence. Judge Yolanda Alvaredo also acquitted the seven men of all additional counts, including sexual assault, kidnapping, and robbery."

"CASPER, Wyo. -- The Wyoming company whose pipeline leaked 30,000 gallons of crude oil into the Yellowstone River in Montana and its sister company have had multiple pipeline spills and federal fines levied against them in the last decade, according to government records."

"The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) staff gave a positive safety evaluation of the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste site Thursday, but said it is still not ready for construction."

"LOS ANGELES -- California has experienced one of the driest Januarys on record, and the lack of rain during a time of year when the weather is usually wet indicates the state is likely headed for a fourth straight year of drought, officials said."

"Coal prices, already down 52 percent since 2011, are forecast to keep falling. The rout shows that exporters’ OPEC-like tactics of trying to squeeze out high-cost producers have been frustrated by the rising dollar."

It's not just the application of nitrogen fertilizer to farmlands that causes nitrate pollution of water -- it's the timing of that application and the runoff that results. One solution seems to be winter cover crops.

"A new Army Corps of Engineers report warns that unless coastal residents and state and local leaders from the Carolinas to Maine rethink their approach to shoreline development, the next big storm will be equal to or worse than Hurricane Sandy – with its $65 billion in losses, 159 deaths and 650,000 homes damaged or destroyed."

"Amid growing concern about global weather patterns, a rocket roared into space Saturday carrying a NASA satellite that will give scientists new tools to forecast weather, track drought and monitor climate change."

"President Barack Obama's fiscal 2016 budget proposes $7.4 billion to fund clean energy technologies and a $4 billion fund to encourage U.S. states to make faster and deeper cuts to emissions from power plants, officials told Reuters."