Pollution

"The Trump administration has given its strongest indication to date it may not stand in the way of lawsuits aimed at undoing Obama-era environmental protections for smog-forming pollutants."

"The owner of a pipeline leaking natural gas into Alaska's Cook Inlet is dealing with another potential gas leak on a different line. It is the third such incident this year for Hilcorp Alaska in an area that has been declared a "critical habitat" for endangered beluga whales."

"For decades, Alaska has struggled to get running water and sewer systems to its rural communities. An estimated 3,000 households — or about 10,000 people — still lack both. Now, that job may be getting harder, as climate change exacerbates old problems and creates new ones."

"State lawmakers this week agreed to stretch out a regulatory review of Dominion Virginia Power’s plan to permanently store coal ash at four sites, including in Chesapeake. ... But assessments planned by Dominion to help state regulators decide next year if the cap-in-place proposals are still sound may not include most of the ash stored at the Chesapeake site, the company has indicated."

"India's $3 billion plan to clean the holy Ganges river is badly behind schedule with large stretches contaminated by toxic waste and sewage, forcing Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene, according to government officials and documents seen by Reuters."

"Most of Tennessee’s factory farms would no longer need state permits that regulate animal waste disposal, under the terms of a bill before the state legislature."

"A new study from the University of Minnesota suggests that household fertilizer and pet waste are the major sources of nutrients polluting Twin Cities lakes, streams and rivers."

"In a rebuke to the Trump administration, the Supreme Court [Monday] decided to continue hearing litigation over the Obama administration's Clean Water Rule."

"New research released Monday documents the impact that pollution from a coal-fired plant in Pennsylvania had on four wealthy New Jersey counties as far as 30 miles downwind. Women in those counties had a greater risk of having babies of low or very low birthweight — less than 5½ pounds — than did women in similarly affluent areas."

"The Environmental Protection Agency has issued a new, more detailed plan for laying off 25 percent of its employees and scrapping 56 programs including pesticide safety, water runoff control, and environmental cooperation with Mexico and Canada under the North American Free Trade Agreement."