National (U.S.)

"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."

"Gasoline companies -- driven by oil speculation and profits -- continue to charge more and more for their product every day. How is the industry spending the money it’s taking from customer’s wallets? In recent weeks, they have flooded television programs with television ads promoting the causes of the industry."

"Visiting the Daimler truck manufacturing plant in Mount Holly, North Carolina Wednesday, President Barack Obama announced a new $1 billion set of incentives to help consumers and businesses purchase new advanced trucks and cars."

"A Republican bid to fast-track the Keystone XL crude oil pipeline was defeated by Senate Democrats on Thursday in a vote to amend the chamber's highway funding bill. The Keystone amendment needed 60 votes to pass, but received only 56 in favor."

"President Barack Obama put the project on hold earlier this year pending further review of part of the route. Republicans wanted to wrest the approval process from his control."

Roberta Rampton and Thomas Ferraro report for Reuters March 9, 2012.

"A first-of-its-kind, peer-reviewed study published in Environmental Health Perspectives today reveals an alarming number of unlabeled chemicals of concern in commonly used household and personal care products."

"General Motors, a company that's made strides to lower the carbon footprint of driving, is taking heat from 10,000 of its customers for a donation its charitable foundation made to an institute that casts doubt on climate science."

"Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairman Gregory Jaczko said Tuesday the agency wasn't on pace to meet its own timeline for improving safety at U.S. nuclear plants in response to the meltdown at Japan's Fukushima Daiichi plant a year ago."

"The NRC will soon issue its first orders in response to the Fukushima accident, but it is also weighing a host of regulatory changes that could impose extra costs on the operators of the 104 reactors in the U.S."

"Senate Republicans' push for a vote on approval of the delayed $7 billion Keystone XL oil pipeline project gained momentum on Tuesday after Democrats failed to end debate on a major transportation bill.

Fifty-two senators, most of them Democrats, voted to move forward on the $160 billion highway bill without a proposed Republican amendment to authorize construction of the Canada-to-Texas pipeline, eight votes short of the 60 needed to end debate.