"Forget lobbying. When Washington, D.C.’s biggest trade associations want to wield influence, they often put far more of their money into advertising and public relations, according to a new Center for Public Integrity investigation."
"Though partisan gridlock is the political buzzword of the day, it's another kind of grid that's making political sparks fly in Michigan. There, two powerful utility companies — Consumers Energy and DTE Energy — control the lion's share of the electric grid and appear to be behind a new advocacy effort that coincides with the start of a new legislative session."
"HERSHEY, Pa. — House Speaker John Boehner wouldn't say if he believes the scientific consensus that humans contribute to climate change when asked here at the Republican retreat on Thursday."
"Pope Francis said on Thursday he believed that man was primarily responsible for climate change and that he hoped this year's Paris conference would take a courageous stand to protect the environment."
"Researchers have found that pharmaceuticals and personal-care byproducts persist at low levels miles from sewage discharge pipes in Lake Michigan. And a study from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee shows that the most prevalent drug in the lake — the Type 2 diabetes medication Metformin — changes the hormonal system of fish exposed to it."
"The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries issued a report on Thursday that downgraded demand for its crude for 2015, while also predicting slower oil-production growth in the United States."
"ROME (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Human activity has pushed the planet across four of nine environmental boundaries, sending the world towards a "danger zone", according to a study published on Thursday in the journal Science."
"A team of scientists, in a groundbreaking analysis of data from hundreds of sources, has concluded that humans are on the verge of causing unprecedented damage to the oceans and the animals living in them."
"Most of the toxic chemical waste managed at industrial facilities in 2013 in the US was not released into the environment, according to the EPA’s annual Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) report."
"A federal judge in New Orleans ruled Thursday that 3.19 million barrels of oil were spilled during the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil disaster. The ruling means BP now faces up to $13.7 billion in pollution fines for the spill, well below the amount federal prosecutors want the company to pay."
