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"More than 170 countries have gathered to save critical ecosystems. But the U.S. is a no-show and Russia said it will withdraw from the wetlands treaty."
"Coosa Riverkeeper filed a lawsuit Tuesday against Alabama Power, alleging significant groundwater pollution violations from the utility’s Gadsden coal ash pond that has been capped in place since 2018."
"Federal wildlife officials approved a plan last year to protect northern spotted owls by shooting other owls, but it has faced pushback from animal rights advocates and lawmakers — including conservatives. Now lawmakers could kill the plan."
"The Trump administration is planning to release a proposal Tuesday that would overturn a 16-year-old scientific finding that has allowed three administrations to regulate climate pollution."
"Senate appropriators on Thursday approved a $41.5 billion spending bill to fund the Interior Department and EPA, setting up a showdown with the House and President Donald Trump. The bill represents a bipartisan compromise on the agency budgets, a necessity given the need to attract 60 votes on appropriations measures in the Senate."
"In Settegast, where the average person dies before retirement age, Black women battle environmental racism and a record increase in cost of living."
"As Brazil prepares to host the COP30 climate summit in the Amazon city of Belém in November, President Luís Inácio Lula da Silva is under pressure to veto a measure that could have a huge impact on the world's largest tropical rainforest."
"As heat grips Illinois this summer, one group is more vulnerable to extreme heat than any other: Those incarcerated inside the state’s decaying prisons and jails."
"Republicans are quietly moving to kill proposed regulations for PFAS-contaminated sewage sludge that is spread on farmland as fertilizer, a practice that has sickened farmers across the country, destroyed their livelihoods and contaminated food and water supplies."
"In a government survey, state and local officials said they were overworked, underpaid and underappreciated."
"A Maine congressman and several commercial fishing groups are getting behind a push to delay rules designed to protect a vanishing species of whale for 10 years. The North Atlantic right whale numbers only about 370 and has declined over the last 15 years."
"Interior Department officials are committed to "rebuilding" the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park that's been partially overrun by a lightning-ignited fire that claimed the historic Grand Canyon Lodge, dozens of guest cabins, and concessionaire facilities."
"There are few summer traditions more predictable than turning sharks into profit. Fifty years ago, on June 20, 1975, “Jaws” established the template for the modern-day blockbuster, combining mass marketing and high-concept thrills that all but guarantee mega box-office returns. But the film’s lasting power lies in how it transformed a relatively obscure marine predator into a cultural icon and villain that could be used for financial gain."
"As the climate warms, new data shows huge swaths of land across the globe are quickly drying, threatening humanity’s supply of fresh water."
"The Interior Department is expanding its targets for layoffs to include more than 1,400 “competitive areas” — an increase of hundreds of categories since its first notice this spring — including new units within the Bureau of Reclamation, Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, and Office of the Secretary, according to an internal document."
