Environment

A sign touting the Inflation Reduction Act is seen at Glynwood Boat House in Cold Spring, N.Y., on Aug. 17, 2022.

The EPA's watchdog is warning about oversight for billions in new climate spending

5:01am April 01, 2023

by Eric McDaniel

The Environmental Protection Agency received billions from President Biden's climate legislation, but the EPA inspector general warns there is "a high risk for fraud, waste and abuse."

Trucks line up to enter a Port of Oakland shipping terminal on Nov. 10, 2021, in Oakland, Calif. President Joe Biden's administration cleared the way for California's plan to phase out a wide range of diesel-powered trucks, a part of the state's efforts to drastically cut planet-warming emissions and improve air quality in heavy-traffic areas.

Environment

The EPA approves California's plan to phase out diesel trucks

8:11pm March 31, 2023

by The Associated Press

The agency's decision allows California — which has some of the nation's worst air pollution — to require truck manufacturers to sell more zero-emission trucks over the next couple of decades.

Officials announced Thursday plans to return Lolita — an orca that has lived in captivity at the Miami Seaquarium for more than 50 years — to its home waters in the Pacific Northwest. Here, trainer Marcia Hinton pets Lolita, a captive orca whale, during a performance at the Miami Seaquarium in Miami, March 9, 1995.

After 50 years, a Florida aquarium plans to return Lolita the orca to her home waters

4:46pm March 31, 2023

by Jonathan Franklin

The 57-year-old orca was captured over 50 years ago at the age of 4 from the Pacific coast near Seattle. She retired last spring from performing in exhibition shows.

Smoke rises from a derailed cargo train in East Palestine, Ohio, on February 4, 2023.

The Justice Department adds to suits against Norfolk Southern over the Ohio derailment

3:44pm March 31, 2023

by Juliana Kim

The federal government is accusing Norfolk Southern of "unlawfully polluting" the country's waterways and violating the Clean Water Act in the accident near East Palestine.

Bats congregate in the Bat Cave in Queen Elizabeth National Park on August 24, 2018. Scientists placed GPS devices on some of the bats to determine flight patterns and how they transmit Marburg virus to humans. Approximately 50,000 bats dwell in the cave.

There's a second outbreak of Marburg virus in Africa. Climate change could be a factor

12:30pm March 31, 2023

by Fran Kritz

The first outbreak this year was in Equatorial Guinea, which has seen 20 deaths already. Now there are cases reported in Tanzania as well for this infectious disease with a high fatality rate.

In this photo provided by the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources, swimmers swim after spinner dolphins in Honanau Bay, Hawaii, March 26, 2023. Hawaii authorities say they have referred 33 people to U.S. law enforcement after the group allegedly harassed a pod of wild dolphins in waters off the Big Island.

Authorities are investigating 33 swimmers for allegedly harassing dolphins in Hawaii

3:13am March 31, 2023

by Ayana Archie

The Marine Mammal Protection Act was amended in 2021 to prohibit people from being within 50 feet of spinner dolphins in Hawaii.

Krishna Lal stands in front of her house. The town of Chamba is on the hill behind her.

'Ghost villages' of the Himalayas foreshadow a changing India

2:21pm March 30, 2023

by Raksha Kumar

Parts of the Himalayas in India are seeing people leave for cities that offer more jobs. Those left behind feel forgotten as the government looks to use the land for resources for the growing cities.

Electric cars charge at a hub in downtown Milan on March 23. Starting in 2035, all cars sold in the European Union will be zero-emission vehicles.

All new cars in the EU will be zero-emission by 2035. Here's where the U.S. stands

10:09am March 30, 2023

by Joe Hernandez

European Union states agreed to a plan after adding an exemption for cars that run on e-fuels. In the U.S., efforts to phase out gas-powered cars include future bans in several states.

A map highlights areas where thousands of blocks of federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico were offered up in an oil and gas auction Wednesday.

The Biden administration sells oil and gas leases in the Gulf of Mexico

4:43pm March 29, 2023

Energy companies secured access to 1.6 million acres of waters offered at auction. It's the second time this month that the administration has opened federal territory for new fossil fuel drilling.

Three barges are jammed up against the McAlpine Dam on the Ohio River, just off the shore in Louisville, Ky. Officials say a barge carrying 1,400 tons of methanol is partially submerged.

A barge carrying methanol broke free in the Ohio River

9:52am March 29, 2023

by Bill Chappell

"There is currently zero evidence of a tank breach or any leaks, and air and water monitoring resources are in place," according to Louisville Metro Emergency Services in Kentucky.