"The soils in large areas of the Southern Hemisphere, including large parts of Australia, Africa and South America, have been drying up in the past decade, a new study finds."
"With climate legislation stalled in Congress and U.S. EPA just months away from regulating greenhouse gases for the first time, 37 states have taken sides in a court battle that could end up steering U.S. climate policy for years."
In a hotly contested Maryland race for House of Representatives, incumbent Democrat Rep. Frank Kratovil plays up his environmental credentials in a a district where the livelihoods of farmers and watermen (plus a tourist industry) depend on the environment. His opponent, Republican Andy Harris, offers a stark contrast and is making a strong showing."
"BEIJING -- During her first official visit to China, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson today signed an agreement with Minister of Environmental Protection Zhou Shengxian that formalizes the partnership between the United States and China on environmental protection."
"A roundup of wild horses began Monday in northwestern Colorado over the objections of animal advocacy groups."
"Free-range cattle roam widely across the West, protected by centuries-old laws that give them the right of way while grazing and force landowners to fence them out. But as urban sprawl has extended into what used to be seemingly endless pasture land, cow-friendly open range laws are under fresh scrutiny, criticized as anachronistic throwbacks to the Wild West days before Interstate highways and tract homes."
"San Francisco nail salons that replace nail polish containing toxic chemicals with safer alternatives will be recognized by the city if the San Francisco Board of Supervisors approves the program in a vote next week.San Francisco nail salons that replace nail polish containing toxic chemicals with safer alternatives will be recognized by the city if the San Francisco Board of Supervisors approves the program in a vote next week."
"A high-priority Obama administration push to unclog a backlog of contested mine safety citations is backfiring. After a West Virginia coal mine explosion in April exposed a weak link in a system designed to identify safety violations, the government has spent $23 million to reform the system. ... Instead, the list of unresolved safety appeals has grown to 18,100 cases, from 16,600 at the time of the disaster at the Upper Big Branch mine."
Specific or broad environmental issues could play a role as voters decide which candidate to choose in many races. At the same time, the environment continues to score way down the list, according to pollsters, when voters are asked about all their priorities.
"In a newly unveiled campaign ad, the Democratic Senate candidate and current West Virginia governor, Joe Manchin, picks up a rifle and fires a bullet into a target labeled 'Cap and Trade Bill.'"
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