Natural Resources

"Federal regulators say they’ve finally crafted a rule that will protect coal and other miners from toxic silica dust, a growing problem in mines that has left thousands sick and dying."

"Europe removed a record number of dams and other barriers from its rivers in 2023, a report has found, helping to restore its disturbed waterways to their natural states."

"In a small Texas city, officials say land previously treated with a prescribed burn stopped the Windy Deuce Fire from entering neighborhoods. But the practice of intentionally burning excess vegetation has faced opposition from some private landowners."

"Coral reefs around the world are experiencing global bleaching for the fourth time, top reef scientists declared Monday, a result of warming ocean waters amid human-caused climate change."

"President Joe Biden's administration is offering farmers money for adopting practices that store carbon in the soil to fight climate change, but Reuters interviews with soil science experts and a review of U.S. Department of Agriculture research indicate doubt that the approach will be effective."

"In a move that environmentalists called a betrayal, the Biden administration has approved the construction of a deepwater oil export terminal off the Texas coast that would be the largest of its kind in the United States."

"The U.S. set aside 23 million acres of Alaska’s North Slope to serve as an emergency oil supply a century ago. Now, President Joe Biden is moving to block oil and gas development across roughly half of it."

"Oil companies will have to lay down significantly more money to drill on public lands following a sweeping final rule published by the Biden administration Friday that also increases federal royalty rates and aims to shrink the future footprint of the nation’s oil program."

"Screechy, gangly bird gorges on invasive apple snails, helping wetlands and crawfish farms".