Water & Oceans

"A series of powerful snowstorms in the Sierra Nevada has resulted in a small milestone in drought-stricken California: The snowpack is now higher than average for this time of year."

"SandRidge Energy Inc., the financially troubled oil producer focused on earthquake-prone northern Oklahoma, is defying a state directive to shut down six disposal wells linked to quakes."

"Plastic microbeads used in soaps, body washes and other personal-care products will be phased out starting in 2017 under legislation approved by Congress and sent to the president."

"In places around the world, supplies of groundwater are rapidly vanishing. As aquifers decline and wells begin to go dry, people are being forced to confront a growing crisis."

"Kemal Ali ran a successful well-digging business for farmers in northern Syria for 30 years. He had everything he needed for the job ... Then things changed. In the winter of 2006–2007, the water table began sinking like never before."

"A leaked draft report compiled by [North Carolina] state environmental officials shows that the coal ash waste in a huge basin at the Duke Energy power plant in Belews Creek, and in basins at almost all other Duke power plant sites statewide, will have to be excavated and put in lined landfills by 2019."

"Just east of the Homestead-Miami Speedway, off Florida's Biscayne Bay, two nuclear reactors churn out enough electricity to power nearly a million homes. The Turkey Point plant is licensed to continue doing so until at least 2032. At some point after that, if you believe the direst government projections, a good part of the low-lying site could be underwater. So could at least 13 other U.S. nuclear plants, as the world’s seas continue to rise."

"It’s not in your head. Seattle’s Lake Washington is getting warmer and more comfortable to swim in every year. And it’s not the only lake experiencing a rapid rise in temperature."