Renewable energy and nuclear power increasingly factor into the evolving American energy equation to replace polluting coal. Even some environmentalists acknowledge that nuclear is a viable emissions-free option to dirty coal while... 

U.S. energy-related CO2 emissions will be 7 percent lower than their 2005 level of nearly 6 billion metric tons in 2020 as coal’s share of electricity production continues a steady descent over the next two decades, according... 

United Nations’ officials [this week] launched the International Year of Sustainable Energy for All with a call on governments, the private sector and civil society to help expand energy access, improve efficiency and increase... 

Two weeks after a pipeline leak in coastal Mexico sent oil gushing into a river, state oil monopoly Pemex has recovered about two-thirds of the spilled crude, but the full clean-up could take another month. Mexico’s environmental... 

A rise in the atmosphere of aerosols – miniscule particles which include soot, dust and sulphates – has led to more rainfall in certain parts of the world and could provide vital clues for future climate predictions, a... 

The Environmental Protection Agency is introducing its most ambitious clean air rules in decades, though it is making some concessions to election-minded Republicans who oppose them. The EPA, facing backlash from heavy industry, has... 

by Jess Zimmerman. President Obama and the EPA have not had an entirely uncomplicated relationship during his tenure, but in the face of a GOP candidate field that is almost uniformly anti-environment, the president is throwing his... 

by Christopher Mims. In a rare bipartisan move — the policy was initiated under George W. Bush and finalized under Obama — the federal government has enacted catch size limits in order to prevent overfishing of coastal... 

by Sarah Laskow. West Virginia continues to win the game of exposing human beings to extremely hazardous conditions in exchange for working-class pay, then telling them to deal with it when they get sick. The latest example of this... 

by Christopher Mims. Maggie Koerth-Baker is one of the most responsible energy journalists on the planet, in part because she writes for the blog of all blogs, BoingBoing, which has never felt the need to cloak its writers' opinions... 

by Jess Zimmerman. Baltimore company Constellation Energy has retrofitted two coal-burning power plants in anticipation of new EPA emissions laws. Now a lawsuit has delayed the new regulations from being enacted, and Constellation... 

by Sarah Laskow. The EPA may retest water in Dimock, Pa., where residents have linked polluted water to fracking operations. In its first round of testing the town's water, the EPA declared it safe. GM is fixing up the Volt in... 

by Jess Zimmerman. In 1972, the year-old EPA had photographers traverse the country to document the (often dire) state of the environment. This project, Documerica, was “the visual echo of the mission of the EPA,” according... 

by Christopher Mims. Of all the GOP candidates, Rick Perry has been perhaps the most fervently dismissive of the reality of human-caused climate change. So why does his energy plan include a provision for “clean coal”... 

A U.S. federal appeals court on Friday issued a last-minute order to delay the January 1 implementation of stricter federal limits on pollution from coal-fired plants, providing a temporary win for utilities worried about the cost... 

by Sarah Laskow. India set a goal to build 20 gigawatts of solar — an enormous amount — by 2020. The haters said at first that the country might not make it, but lately India's plan is seeming smarter than anyone imagined... 

by Christopher Mims. What happens if and when current subsidies for solar panels are phased out? Doesn't matter — the cost of solar photovoltaics continues to fall even as the cost of grid electricity continues to rise,... 

A few small drops of mercury can contaminate a 20-acre lake and the fish that happen to reside there, thanks to coal-fired plant emissions. That’s a major reason why the EPA’s decision to regulate the emissions of mercury, lead... 

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration on Wednesday unveiled rules for coal-fired power plants that mean costly investments passed on to consumers, but also health benefits. Hundreds of older plants — which together make up the... 

by Sarah Laskow. Today marks the solstice : the shortest day of the year and the beginning of winter. Things will only get better from here on out, as long as by “things” you mean “the amount of daylight available...