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"For a good part of its rich history, residents of unincorporated Allensworth, the first African American colony west of the Mississippi, have gone without a reliable supply of safe drinking water."

This is still the case today, where the Tulare County community's wells -- which provide water to the neighboring Colonel Allensworth State Historical Park that commemorates the area's legacy -- exceed federal levels for arsenic.

"The Heartland Institute's board of directors was not consulted before the group launched an explosive billboard campaign last week, resulting in the resignation of one director and dismaying others, sources said."

"The eastern diamondback rattlesnake, North America's largest venomous snake, may need its own antidote. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is considering adding the reptile to the Endangered Species List to restrict its hunting, killing and sale."

"'We are going to do our best to keep these beautiful animals on the planet with us,' said Dan Everson, Deputy Field Supervisor for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service in Alabama.

The service on Wednesday approved further study on the declining numbers of the snake species.

"LOS ANGELES -- A $670 million overhaul at California's San Onofre nuclear plant was expressly intended to avoid the types of ailments that have sidelined its twin reactors. An overriding goal for a team of engineers who worked on steam generators installed at the plant in 2009 and 2010 was minimizing wear and tear on the nearly 40,000 tubes that carry radioactive water inside the massive machines. Customized design and manufacturing promised years of reliable service for a plant that can power 1.4 million homes in Southern California. But the opposite happened."

"If you've been following the epic saga of the FDA's long-awaited sunscreen regulations, you probably won't be surprised to hear that the agency has pushed back enforcement of its latest set of rules from this summer to mid-December of this year. The rules -- you know, someday—will bar manufacturers from making outlandish claims on their labels (no more SPF 150)."

"On her 14th birthday, Kayla Boner got her driver's permit and then went home complaining of stomach-bug symptoms that landed her in the hospital two days later. Antibiotics didn't work. Kayla's condition deteriorated. Her kidneys failed. She had a seizure and went on a ventilator. Soon after, her brain activity ceased. Just 11 days after her symptoms surfaced, Kayla's distraught parents decided not to keep her on life support."

"Quiet, Gordon Hempton says, is a 'think tank of the soul.' The acoustic ecologist has criss-crossed the world searching for and recording some of nature's most elusive sounds. He says the experience of silence is in danger of being lost and explains why nature's 'silence' is vital to our minds, our relationships, and the natural world as well. He walks us through those environments — from the Hoh Rain Forest to thunder in the Kalahari Desert."

"After spending five years in opposition trying to detoxify the Tories' image, David Cameron promised to lead 'the greenest government ever' when he entered No. 10, exactly two years ago. Matt Chorley investigates what became of that pledge."

"Chemical titans say they have what farmers need to fight superweeds, but will they only be adding to a growing problem?"