Floods are a predictable occurrence in many parts of the country, causing death, misery, and untold property damage. But they are more than a disaster story. The human toll can often be prevented, and there are stories about prevention, planning, response, and recovery.
"The 2011 Atlantic hurricane season will be above average in activity and there is a more than 70 percent chance of at least one major hurricane hitting the U.S. coastline, Colorado State University forecasters predicted on Wednesday."
"Faced with a lawsuit from environmentalists, U.S. EPA has changed course and rejected Alabama's plan to change how the state decides whether industrial plants are releasing too much soot from their smokestacks."
"A long-term Republican budget plan released this week by Representative Paul Ryan of Wisconsin calls for drastic cuts in federal spending on energy research and development and for the outright elimination of subsidies and tax breaks for wind, solar power and other alternative energy technologies."
"An often-overlooked renewable energy source is gaining momentum as lawmakers on Capitol Hill struggle to find consensus in an increasingly partisan environment and the Obama administration is looking to decrease reliance on foreign oil."
The Japanese nuclear disaster is a reminder that the storage of spent fuel in temporary facilities across the United States may be a disaster waiting to happen.
"Japanese officials took some solace Wednesday in halting leaks of radioactive water from the nation's crippled nuclear plant. But in Washington, internal e-mails from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission revealed doubts within the organization about procedures for U.S. plants in a Fukushima-style event."
On a 50-50 vote, the Senate Wednesday night rejected an effort to strip EPA of its legal authority to regulate greenhouse gases, as well as several weaker alternatives. The efforts were supported by Republicans and some coal-state Democrats. The House may act on similar legislation today.
"While U.S. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson has made environmental justice one of the seven priorities for her term in office, a new review she commissioned criticizes the agency's anti-discrimination program for both employees and contractors."
If stalemated budget talks lead to a federal government shutdown, one of the most visible impacts would be the closing of National Parks.
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