Pollution

"COPPER BASIN, Tenn. — A decade ago, the Ocoee River was dead — devoid of any insect or fish life that normally signals clean water."

"House Republicans pushed through legislation Friday that gives the states the power to regulate coal ash from power plants as if it were municipal garbage, pre-empting pending federal regulations that could be much tougher."

"LAFAYETTE, La. -- Pelican Refining Company pleaded guilty to felony violations of the Clean Air Act at its refinery in Lake Charles, Louisiana, and to obstruction of justice charges Wednesday in federal court in Lafayette. If the court sentences according to the terms in the plea agreement, Pelican will pay $12 million in criminal penalties, the largest criminal fine ever imposed in Louisiana for violations of the Clean Air Act."

"HOUSTON -- A Houston-based natural gas and oil drilling contractor pleaded guilty Tuesday to a negligent violation of the Clean Water Act in federal court in Muskogee, Oklahoma."

The Obama White House issued a strong statement Wednesday opposing a bill by Rep. David McKinley (R-WV) that would prevent the Environmental Protection Agency from regulating the disposal of coal ash. A 2008 failure of a TVA coal-ash in Kingston, Tennessee, caused major property and environmental damage. EPA administrator Lisa Jackson took office vowing to regulate coal-ash pollution, but has delayed action under White House and industry pressure.

EPA's official investigation of a massive 2009 fish kill in West Virginia's Dunkard Creek ended by blaming the pollution squarely on Consol Energy's Blacksville No. 2 mine. But an EPA biologist said that coal mine drainage alone was not enough to explain the problem -- and that contamination of mine pools by methane and water from the Marcellus Shale formation was possibly an additional cause.

"LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. -- An Amish farmer examines young trees and shrubs he planted last fall along the stream running through his farm. A few trees are starting to peak from shelters built to protect them from pests and 'green death,' when new trees are swallowed up by old growth. When the trees and shrubs are fully grown, they'll form a buffer to keep grazing animals and stormwater carrying manure fertilizers out of the water."

"For more than half a century, International Molasses Corp. has sold its product to bakeries and manufacturers that use the sticky syrup in cookies and candy.  But recently, the Saddle Brook company found a new and unexpected market — at contaminated industrial sites, where the molasses literally gets pumped into the soil."

"DETROIT -- At a time when many government programs are fighting for survival, there's one place the money is still flowing for now: the Great Lakes."

"The controversial proposed path of the TransCanada Keystone XL oil pipeline across Nebraska is unlikely to change, company officials said Tuesday."