Water & Oceans

Authorities re-opened a 65-mile reach of the Mississippi River which had been shut down for cleanup after an oil barge spilled.

"Millions of pigs are crammed into overcrowded barns all across the state, being fattened for slaughter while breeding superbugs—all to feed China's growing appetite for Spam."

"Brewers around the country boast that their 'pure' local water is the key to their beers' unique flavor. Coors credits the trout streams of the Rockies. Olympia  Beer's slogan is, 'It's the water.' Cold Spring Brewing Co., in Minnesota, is named for a nearby natural spring."

"CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- In the year before it filed for bankruptcy, Freedom Industries paid more than $6 million to its former owners and to companies affiliated with its current owners, court filings show."

"A massive machine — longer than a football field — is munching away beneath Washington like a giant earthworm. Before it’s done, it will devour about 2 million cubic yards of soil that has been sitting under the city since the days of the dinosaurs."

"MATHER, Calif. -- Describing the drought as a 'call to action,' Gov. Jerry Brown joined Democratic legislative leaders Wednesday to unveil a $687.4 million package aimed at helping California get through its water crisis and better prepare for the next one."

"Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin is urging federal health officials immediately to conduct more lab studies on the chemicals that spilled into a public water supply last month. The governor also asked the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and its partners for guidance on long-term health monitoring for the nine counties exposed to the chemicals."

"RALEIGH, N.C. -- North Carolina officials said Tuesday that groundwater containing unsafe levels of arsenic apparently leaching from a Duke Energy coal ash dump is still pouring into the Dan River, which is already contaminated from a massive Feb. 2 spill."

"CHICAGO — It might be back to the drawing board for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' sweeping proposal to spend billions of dollars and 25 years to block an Asian carp invasion of the Great Lakes."

"RALEIGH — The Duke Energy coal-ash spill landed in the lap of a state legislative environmental oversight panel today and gave lawmakers a rare bird’s-eye look at the documented pollution problem posed by the utility’s coal-waste dumps statewide."