Natural Resources

The Obama budget proposes charging tiny royalties for hard-rock minerals owned by the U.S. taxpayers that have been given away free to large, profitable corporations for more than a century. Will the GOP deficit hawks go along?

"Author Wendell Berry and 13 other environmental activists emerged from the [Kentucky] state Capitol on Monday to roars of approval and applause, ending their four-day occupation of Gov. Steve Beshear's outer office."

"Thawing permafrost is triggering mudslides onto a key road traveled by busloads of sightseers. Tall bushes newly sprouted on the tundra are blocking panoramic views. And glaciers are receding from convenient viewing areas, while their rapid summer melt poses new flood risks. These are just a few of the ways that a rapidly warming climate is reshaping Denali, Kenai Fjords and other national parks comprising the crown jewels of Alaska's heritage as America's last frontier."

"The Canadian province of Ontario said on Friday it will not approve any offshore wind projects and will not accept new applications until there is further scientific research on the industry."

"The world's second biggest palm oil company has agreed to halt deforestation in valuable areas of Indonesian forest, bowing to pressure from western food processors and conservationists."

"Virginia is about to limit state regulators' ability to protect public health and the environment from toxic discharges entering state waters from surface coal mines."

"The federal Environmental Protection Agency said Monday that it will review the consequences of large-scale development projects, such as the proposed copper and gold Pebble mine, in [Alaska's] Bristol Bay watershed."

"A Department of Interior study of potential new restrictions on surface coal mining outlines projected production shifts and job losses as well as estimated environmental benefits of tougher regulations, according to a draft report obtained under the Freedom of Information Act."