"Sochi — Just outside the Olympic Park in Sochi, where the Winter Games open on Friday, is a green space with benches, artificial ponds and a couple of hides. 'Ornithological Park', the sign declares. The problem is that there is not a bird in sight in the park, which was set up as a replacement for sensitive wetlands that were covered over for the construction of Games venues."
"EDMONTON - A new study released Monday suggests environmental assessments of oilsands projects have underestimated the impact of pollution, raising questions about the accuracy of data used as part of the approval process."
"Duke Energy said Monday that 50,000 to 82,000 tons of coal ash and up to 27 million gallons of water were released from a pond at its retired power plant in Eden [N.C.] into the Dan River, and were still flowing."
"Naturally occurring radionuclides are widely distributed in the earth’s crust, so it’s no surprise that mineral and hydrocarbon extraction processes, conventional and unconventional alike, often produce some radioactive waste."
"Chemical maker W.R. Grace & Co. is about to go where it hasn't been for nearly 13 years: out of bankruptcy."
"ASHEVILLE — The Environmental Protection Agency will establish rules for coal ash disposal, handing environmental groups a long-sought win and setting the stage for debate over whether coal ash should be regulated as hazardous waste."
"The fact that a second contaminant in West Virginia's drinking water eluded detection for nearly two weeks — despite intense testing of the water — reveals an important truth about how companies test drinking water: In most cases, they only find the contaminants they're looking for." ...
"SALT LAKE CITY -- Using the momentum of a growing number of Utah residents who are dissatisfied with the unhealthy haze hanging over the Wasatch Front, clean-air advocates rallied in modern-day record fashion Saturday to ensure they are heard by Gov. Gary Herbert and state lawmakers."
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