"The Senate Appropriations Committee [Thursday] approved 16-14 a spending bill for the Interior Department, U.S. EPA and the Forest Service after adding money for wildfire fighting and rejecting a Democratic attempt to strike a dozen policy riders."
"Oregon has asked the Federal Railroad Administration to place an open-ended moratorium on oil trains traveling through the state, because preliminary findings of an investigation into the June 3 derailment in Mosier suggest inspectors might not be able to detect the problem that likely caused the crash."
"Looking to raise millions for a bold expansion of early childhood education, Philadelphia City Council on Thursday approved a 1.5-cent-per-ounce tax on sugar-sweetened and diet beverages, the first such tax imposed in a major U.S. city."
"Fueled by hot and dry weather, wildfires threatened homes in California and other Western states as crews struggled to corral flames that have scorched miles of brush and timber."
"The Omaha Public Power District (OPPD) board of directors voted unanimously on June 16 to close Fort Calhoun Station, the smallest nuclear power plant in the U.S., due to economic reasons."
"The number of women infected with the Zika virus during their pregnancies in the continental United States has risen to 234, health officials said on Thursday."
"Pregnant women who become infected with the Zika virus are at risk of having babies with the severe birth defect known as microcephaly, regardless of whether they have symptoms of the disease, according to a new report."
"One of the world’s largest coal companies, Peabody Energy, paid a prominent scientist and dozens of others to promote climate change denial, new documents reveal."
"The House Appropriations Committee on Wednesday advanced a $32.1 billion spending bill for the Interior Department and environment programs, sending a bill laden with policy riders to the House floor."
"President Obama may have chosen to locate his library in his adopted home state of Illinois, but a new move by Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) suggests he may leave his biggest environmental footprint in his home state of Hawaii."
