The earth's species may be facing a sixth major mass extinction that could take millions of years to recover from, Elizabeth Kolbert reports in The New Yorker.
"Global energy demand is expected to soar 44 percent over the next two decades with most of the demand coming from developing countries such as China and Russia, the U.S. government's top energy forecasting agency said on Wednesday."
A draft bill from the House Natural Resources Committee would drastically reform the Interior Department's corruption-plagued system for collecting oil and gas royalties.
Scientists from the National Center for Atmospheric Research say melting Greenland ice sheets could raise sea levels more in the northeaster US and Maritime Canada because of a change in ocean currents.
"China is ready to strengthen its cooperation with the United States to combat climate change, Premier Wen Jiabao told US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday, state media reported."
Researchers from California and Hawaii have analyzed 25 factors and developed a map that reflects the relative cumulative magnitude of their effects on the waters extending for about 250-350 miles off the shores of Washington, Oregon, California, and the Baja Peninsula.