"The European Union's trade authority plans to start an investigation into whether U.S. bioethanol exporters are receiving unfair state subsidies and selling their fuel to Europe at illegally low prices, diplomats said on Tuesday."
"Shell Oil, ExxonMobil and Morgan Stanley are among the major oil and financial companies potentially on the hook for millions of dollars in civil fines tied to fraudulent renewable fuel credits — and that could be the tip of the iceberg."
"TORONTO -- More than a decade after the Walkerton disaster, much of Canada's tap water remains at risk from contamination despite initial progress in front-line monitoring and treatment, a new report concludes."
"NEW ORLEANS -- BP has lost two big rulings in its fight to shield itself from potentially having to pay billions of dollars more in damages related to the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history."
"A new lobbying group has formed in Albany, N.Y., to argue on behalf of hydraulic fracturing for natural gas at the state level, in what may signal the start of open support from labor unions for the controversial drilling practice."
"A 5-month investigation by Environmental Health News reveals that the chemical industry spent at least $23.2 million over the past five years to lobby California officials and donate to campaigns in an effort to defeat bills that would have regulated flame retardants. The four top recipients, three Democrats and one Republican, never voted in favor of any of the five bills. During the years of lobbying, the flame retardants have been building up in people’s bodies, including breast milk, around the world."
"Republicans have been attacking environmental regulations, arguing that they hurt the economy and that the costs outweigh the benefits. But four decades of data show they are wrong."
"Even clouds can suffer from inhaling air pollution, a new study finds, resulting in extreme rainfall patterns that appear to be altering climate across the globe."
"A Coast Guard admiral who led the government's response to the Deepwater Horizon disaster is taking over as the nation's chief overseer of offshore drilling safety, the Obama administration said Monday. Rear Adm. James Watson begins his post as director of the Interior Department's Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement on Dec. 1."
The bankruptcy of the solar firm Solyndra has focused a lot of attention -- some of it politicized -- on clean-energy subsidies. While those subsidies have sparked something of a "gold rush" among clean-energy entrepreneurs, some clean-energy startups face serious economic challenges that may justify them.
Advertisement 
