Environmental Politics

"President Obama's choice to be the nation's top strip-mining regulator said Thursday he needs to learn more about mountaintop removal coal mining before he can comment on whether it needs to be more strictly policed."

The American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity (ACCCE), whose PR contractors have been caught forging letters to Congress, is launching a $1 million campaign to send an army of "volunteers" to town hall meetings on climate change legislation -- in an effort similar to the shout-downs and occasional mob violence now being deployed against health care.

"A congressional chairman is demanding answers from a coal group about forged letters criticizing major climate legislation that were sent to three congressional offices ahead of the vote."

"A judge says Juan Dominguez conspired with Nicaraguan workers, allegedly left sterile by exposure to DBCP on banana plantations, to file claims against Dole Food and Dow Chemical."

Lobbyists for the real estate industry convinced House leaders to remove from the recently passed climate bill a provision that would have indicated how much energy older houses use.

"A total of 12 forged letters -- all appearing to come from local groups unhappy with a climate-change bill -- were sent to three congressional offices this summer by a Washington lobbying firm, according to the pro-coal group for which the firm was working."

"Environmental groups today called for new ethical controls in state government, saying recent arrests of two assemblymen involving land deals are only 'the tip of the iceberg' when it comes to the influence developers wield over the Department of Environmental Protection."

Forged letters trying to gain a vote against the House climate bill by making it seem as if minorities opposed it were traced to a PR firm.

"Conflict-of-interest allegations are not sufficient grounds for disqualification, so a southern West Virginia judge can continue overseeing a water pollution trial involving Massey Energy and its coal slurry disposal practices, the state Supreme Court said Thursday."

"Californians’ eagerness to battle global warming seems to be cooling a bit: The latest survey on the state’s environmental attitudes, released on Wednesday, showed that 47 percent consider the threat of global warming very serious, a decline of seven percentage points from two years ago."