"Buried in the earth, almost too small to see, seeds have long been underestimated — dismissed as mere inert specks, barely even considered alive. Yet the more closely researchers have examined these embryonic plants, the more they have learned about their dynamism and endurance."

"The unprecedented move highlights regulatory tensions between Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, and an environmental rule-making commission controlled by appointees of Republican state legislative leaders."

"Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Wednesday that a controversial proposal by his administration to develop golf courses, pickleball courts and hotels at state parks is “going back to the drawing board.”"

"Barb Boustead remembers learning about corn sweat when she moved to Nebraska about 20 years ago to work for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and found herself plunked down in an ocean of corn. The term for the late-summer spike in humidity from corn plants cooling themselves was “something that locals very much know about,” Boustead, a meteorologist and climatologist, recalled."

"The Sunrise Movement plans to contact 1.5 million Americans about voting for Kamala Harris. But it is waiting to decide about endorsing her until her climate plans are clearer."

"An internal watchdog criticized the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) top air official for participating in the development of a rule that regulates an industry in which he reportedly had financial holdings."

"Last year’s Canadian wildfires, which blanketed much of the eastern U.S. in smog, released more carbon emissions than all but three countries worldwide, according to research published Wednesday."

"New studies suggest global warming boosts natural methane releases, which could undermine efforts to cut emissions of the greenhouse gas from fossil fuels and agriculture."

"Soil, plants and water along popular recreation spots near Los Alamos, New Mexico, the birthplace of the atomic bomb, are contaminated with “extreme concentrations” of plutonium, a new study has found, but calls for the federal government to act have been dismissed."

"The consultants, who worked for Dow, the pesticide’s manufacturer, help corporate interests defend their products against environmental and health regulations."