"Seemingly unrelenting winds and drought conditions have whipped up massive dust storms this week across the High Plains, but respite is near since the weather system that's to blame has moved east into the Great Lakes and Northeast, the National Weather Service said Wednesday."

"Colorado's intensifying oil and gas boom is taking a toll on soil — 200 gallons spilled per day seeping into once-fertile ground — that experts say could be ruinous."

"The Grand Canyon was once targeted as a major dam site by the federal government, a project eventually scuttled after widespread protest. Nobody is revisiting the idea of a dam there, but a new U.S. Department of Energy report shows that the Grand Canyon and other major gorges and rivers across the U.S. may be ideal for hydropower development."

"A case of the sometimes fatal Middle East respiratory syndrome, or MERS, has been reported in Indiana, officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday."

Organic purists square off with Big Organic over what synthetic substances are allowed under USDA standards.

"National Climate Assessment, to be launched at White House on Tuesday, says effects of climate change are now being felt."

"Part of East Antarctica is more vulnerable than expected to a thaw that could trigger an unstoppable slide of ice into the ocean and raise world sea levels for thousands of years, a study showed on Sunday."

"After years of putting other policy priorities first — and dismaying many liberal allies in the process — Obama is now getting into the weeds on climate change and considers it one of the key components of his legacy, according to aides and advisers."

"U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Sunday he was hopeful that a goal of limiting global temperature rises to a maximum 2° Celsius could be achieved, but urged governments to take practical action before it was too late."