Is it safe to extend the life of the aging US fleet of nuclear power plants -- even those whose obsolete designs match those of the failed reactors at Fukushima?
"TOKYO -- A year after a huge earthquake and tsunami caused nearly catastrophic meltdowns at a nuclear plant, Japan is still grappling with a crucial question: was the accident simply the result of an unforeseeable natural disaster or something that could have been prevented?
"Regulators on Friday told the owners of the nation's nuclear reactors to implement new safety rules based on the lessons learned from the earthquake and tsunami that crippled Japan's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant a year ago. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) said it authorized its staff to issue three immediately effective orders implementing some of the more urgent recommendations."
"CHEYENNE, Wyo. -- The state of Wyoming, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and two American Indian tribes announced Thursday they have agreed to additional testing of groundwater that the federal agency says may have become contaminated by gas development that includes hydraulic fracturing."
"Fearing that climate change could wipe out their entire Pacific archipelago, the leaders of Kiribati are considering an unusual backup plan: moving the populace to Fiji."
"What happens when the fox builds the hen house?"
"The nonprofit group Friends of the Earth filed a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency today to force the regulation of lead emissions from general aviation aircraft under the Clean Air Act."
"RAPID CITY, South Dakota, March 7, 2012 (ENS) - Several dozen Native Americans critical of TransCanada's proposed Keystone XL tar sands pipeline Monday blockaded two large trucks in a six-hour standoff at Wanblee, South Dakota."
"About 70 people joined the blockade, bringing food and water, and parking their vehicles across the road to prevent the trucks from traveling across the Pine Ridge Reservation in the south-central part of the state.
"With an abundance of chinook salmon in the ocean this year, federal regulators are proposing the longest season for sport and commercial fishermen in eight years."
