California

"Joshua trees are weird. They've got shaggy bark, twisted branches and needle-like leaves."

"Atrazine has been a dirty word among environmentalists for decades. Now state and federal agencies are coming down on the weed killer, amid troubling evidence that it disrupts hormones and contributes to birth defects."

"A wildfire burning along California's Big Sur coastline keeps growing a week after it broke out, and looks to be a problem for the scenic region for weeks to come."

"Firefighters scrambled on Thursday to contain a deadly wildfire that has forced the evacuation of hundreds of residents and gutted dozens of homes near the coast of central California."

"Firefighters in drought-hit California who are battling a 50-square-mile wildfire could be hampered by triple-digit heat, wind gusts up to 30 mph and low humidity on Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service."

"More than 1,600 firefighters battled on Monday to contain a fast-spreading wildfire that has forced hundreds of evacuations in the drought-parched canyons north of Los Angeles, destroying 18 homes, killing at least one person and closing a highway."

"California agencies released a three-year plan to bring delta smelt back from the brink of extinction, but some of the goals and the overall feasibility of the plan have been questioned."

"Concluding a long legal climb to cleaner air, the federal government Monday announced a record $425-million settlement with two oil refiners that is expected to reduce pollution emissions in the West by almost 43,000 tons annually."

"Water from the Colorado River could transform several thousand acres of desert into farmland under a change in policy adopted by the Coachella Valley’s largest water district."

"California regulators Wednesday again rejected Volkswagen’s plan to fix diesel cars that were programmed to cheat on air pollution tests, saying the proposal lacked enough detail for the state to gauge its effectiveness."