National (U.S.)

"In a remote desert spot in northern Nevada, there is a geothermal plant run by a politically connected clean energy start-up that has relied heavily on an Obama administration loan guarantee and is now facing financial turmoil."

Salmonella bacteria are pervasive in much U.S. chicken, and sicken an estimated 1 million people a year.

For many poor families in California's rural San Joaquin Valley, the drinking water that comes from the tap is unhealthful -- often polluted by the same large-scale agriculture that gives them jobs. Pollution of private wells is a problem that spreads nationwide.

Mark Grossi reports for the Fresno Bee October 1, 2011.

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"With the Obama administration about to decide whether to green-light a controversial pipeline to take crude oil from Canada’s oil sands to the United States Gulf Coast, e-mails released Monday paint a picture of a sometimes warm and collaborative relationship between lobbyists for the company building the billion-dollar pipeline and officials in the State Department, the agency that has final say over the pipeline."

"Earlier this week, I published a post pointing out that the Daily Caller's claim that the EPA plans to hire 230,000 employees to enforce new climate regulations is false. Since then the Daily Caller has quadrupled-down on the claim, despite a number of other outlets -- first Politico, then Greg Sargent's Washington Post blog -- also pointing out that it was flat-out wrong. Now the Caller has published an editor's note that, rather than reasserting the claim, attempts to reframe their entire argument."

Many people have told stories of getting severely sick near natural gas wells, especially ones using the controversial fracking technique. One of the biggest barriers to determining whether the gas production is causing illness is the gas industry's resistance to disclosing the toxic emissions and hazardous wastes they generate.

Abrahm Lustgarten and Nicholas Kusnetz originally reported the story for ProPublica September 16, 2011.

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"EPA finds trichloroethylene causes kidney and liver cancer, lymphoma and other health problems. The decision could raise the cost of cleanups nationwide, including in the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys."

"SANTA FE -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has approved a plan for the clean up of the largest and highest priority abandoned uranium mine on the Navajo Nation."

"SACRAMENTO -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today ordered a $60 million cleanup of groundwater polluted with rocket fuel at the Aerojet Superfund Site in Sacramento County, the latest phase of a long-term decontamination project at the site."

"The U.S. Department of Energy said on Wednesday it will provide a Texas clean coal plant with $450 million in funding months after a power company shelved plans for a similar plant in West Virginia."