"In what came as a welcome surprise to activists in Albany, New York, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) reversed an earlier decision and now will require a full environmental review for a proposed tar sands oil heating facility at the Port of Albany."
"The oil-pipeline leak that fouled a stretch of California coastline last week reflects a troubling trend in the nation's infrastructure: As U.S. oil production has soared, so has the number of pipeline accidents."
"A government fund that has helped preserve some of the nation’s most iconic parks — from Gettysburg’s battlefields to the Everglades and the Appalachian Trail — could disappear as early as fall because of a congressional dispute over how the program’s revenue should be spent, U.S. officials warn."
"The pipeline that leaked thousands of gallons of oil on the California coast was the only pipe of its kind in the county not required to have an automatic shut-off valve because of a court fight nearly three decades ago, a county official said."
"Stephanie Mutz makes a living plucking sea urchins from the Santa Barbara coast and selling the prickly treasure to upscale restaurants in Southern California. Now, she needs new hunting grounds."
"Government prosecutors are investigating the company at the center of the California oil spill for possible criminal sanctions, according to the district attorney of Santa Barbara - a city that helped spawn the modern environmental movement."
"Flooding from record-setting rains in Texas and Oklahoma swept away hundreds of homes and left at least three people dead."
"For 17 days this spring, Darryl Ivy worked on a crew racing against the clock to spray weed killers on clearcuts in Oregon's forests."
"Increasing aridity - driven in part by rising temps - makes Yellowstone grasslands less productive despite carbon dioxide's fertilizing benefits."
