Greenwire

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is actively working to ensure the knowledge of skilled workers tasked with overseeing U.S. nuclear reactors who are nearing retirement is quickly passed on to a new generation of engineers and other experts, the agency's chairwoman said yesterday.

The White House is considering ways to incentivize the energy and water sector to adopt standards aimed at thwarting cyberattacks, including doling out insurance and priority consideration for grants and technical assistance.

BP PLC must appear in court today to explain to a U.S. magistrate judge why the company should not be required to pay the $130 million bill it received to cover the cost of operating the center responsible for processing billions of dollars in economic claims in the settlement between the oil giant and victims of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

High above the bustle of Manhattan, bees are busy pollinating rooftop plants and producing honey.

A Discovery network special that questioned whether a giant prehistoric shark still lurked in ocean waters has drawn fire from its viewers, despite high ratings.

As the sequester goes on, philanthropy groups and nonprofits are helping keep the consequences of the budget cuts at bay in national parks. But officials worry about how long the help can go on.

Despite protests, an oversized load of oil refinery equipment last night traveled through a northern Idaho river corridor.

The National Marine Fisheries Services won't allow an aquarium to import beluga whales.

Seafood consumers are overpaying -- sometimes twice as much -- for their mislabeled dinners, according to a report by an environmental group.

Nearly a dozen wildlife advocacy groups are organizing a rally on the National Mall next month to oppose the Interior Department's proposal to remove Endangered Species Act protections for wolves across most of the continental United States.

The governors across the five-state range of the lesser prairie chicken are asking Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe to give the states time to implement a developing rangewide plan for the bird before listing it as a threatened species.

Interior Secretary Sally Jewell yesterday said she is committed to completing the acquisition of more than 2 square miles of state lands within Grand Teton National Park, calming fears that the federal government may renege on a deal it reached with Wyoming in late 2010.

Rep. Rodney Alexander (R-La.) yesterday said he won't seek re-election next year, putting another seat in play for Democrats mounting a long-shot bid to regain control of the House in 2014.

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) plans to lift his hold on President Obama's choice to head the Office of Personnel Management, ending a short-lived confirmation fight and paving the way for a Senate vote.

Last week's quarrel between the top Democrat and Republican on the House Science, Space and Technology Committee over the subpoenaing of confidential health studies used to develop many of U.S. EPA's air-quality regulations has spilled into the August recess.

The House's senior Democrat has advised President Obama to scrap his plans to regulate greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act, urging him instead to focus on helping Congress pass climate change legislation.

The California climate activist marshaling opposition to the controversial Keystone XL pipeline cried censorship late yesterday after Washington, D.C.'s local NBC station refused to air an ad he submitted featuring an actor sliding down a mock oil-soaked pipeline while portraying the CEO of the project's sponsor.

The Obama administration should designate new national monuments, expand its oil and gas leasing reforms, and charge industry more to drill on public lands, according to a coalition of conservation groups.

The emerging field of sustainable vegetation control will get a high-profile stage this week as more than 100 "Eco-Goats" spend the next six days grazing near the tombstones of former lawmakers and some of Washington, D.C.'s most famous, and infamous, residents at the Congressional Cemetery.

A recent panel of top federal officials painted a grim view of how sequestration is affecting agencies, detailing the challenges in ensuring that critical work gets done when Congress doesn't seem to understand the consequences of across-the-board funding cuts.

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