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"Congressional Democrats called for investigations Wednesday into renovations at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, as the ongoing drama over the president’s problem-plagued, $16 million rehabilitation project continued to roil the capital."
"The Big Hole River, a blue-ribbon fishery that’s become a focal point in a years-long debate over nuisance algae growth, is poised to receive an impairment designation."
"A cacophony of honks and quacks greet Jim Faulstich on a spring afternoon visit to a shallow lake on his ranch on the South Dakota prairie. Hundreds of birds have landed in the wetlands for a drink, to feed, or to rest on their journey north. There are lots of ducks and gulls, but no whooping crane — which would be difficult to miss standing five-feet tall in the shallows foraging for food."
"The Trump administration and a company that is promising to bring long-gone animals back from extinction announced a partnership on Thursday to preserve cells, tissue and DNA from threatened and endangered species."
"After Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, electricity prices shot up across Europe and consumers looked for ways to save. One popular option was plug-in solar —-inexpensive and easy-to-install renewable energy systems that began to appear in store aisles."
"The Trump administration on Wednesday reached a multi-state settlement with chemical giant Chemours Co. over years-long, illegal discharges of synthetic “forever chemicals” used to make products resistant to water, grease and stains. The settlement is the first by the federal government to resolve enforcement claims against a manufacturer of harmful chemicals known as PFAS."
"To some political pundits and Democratic strategists, one takeaway from the 2024 presidential election was clear: Don’t talk about climate change." "An Inside Climate News analysis of congressional press releases shows that Democrats have scaled back mentions of climate change and recently shifted the focus to energy affordability."
"The Interior Department’s guidance instructs parks staff not to confirm deaths, the severity of injuries or other details."
"Tom and Diane Peterman tried to buy flood insurance when they moved to their retirement home on the shores of Black Lake 14 years ago but were told it wasn’t available. John Solum was told he wasn’t in a flood zone when his family bought a 1940s-era cabin there."
"The makers of popular cookware brands All-Clad and Farberware have launched an unusual legal fight against a rival whose products don’t contain “forever chemicals,” alleging the company’s ads falsely paint the presence of PFAS in its competitors’ products as toxic."
"A business controlled by the American billionaire Ira Rennert reached a $150 million settlement in the United States with 1,373 Peruvians who claimed they were poisoned by lead and other toxic substances while growing up near a Peruvian smelter, lawyers for the plaintiffs said on Wednesday."
"Lawmakers have introduced a bipartisan bill to federally ban the use of paraquat, an herbicide widely used in U.S. agriculture despite its potential health impacts."
"Abelardo de la Espriella, the apparent winner of the presidential election, has vowed to expand oil, gas and mining production, alarming activists in the world’s deadliest country for environmental defenders."
"Many philanthropists are backing away from climate giving. But one is writing very big checks." Michael Bloomberg, the former New York City mayor and founder of Bloomberg L.P., has announced $590 million in new environmental commitments in recent days."
"Since April, an outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo has ballooned to 1,114 confirmed cases and 279 deaths, already the third-largest such epidemic since the disease was identified 50 years ago. Despite its worrying size, this outbreak is threaded with mystery — particularly regarding its origins."
