Smog forecast to hit Beijing
Heavy smog is forecast to hit Beijing from Wednesday to Friday as the air is stagnant, making it unfavorable for diffusing pollution such as fireworks smoke. The municipal environment monitoring Continue Reading
Porter Ranch gas leak begins taking big toll on small business
On a recent afternoon at King TaeKwonDo , in one of the many shopping centers dotting this sprawling suburb north of Los Angeles, only seven young children were attending the Continue Reading
Oil Drilling Off East Coast Under Attack From Keystone Foes
Environmentalists emboldened by President Barack Obama’s rejection of the Keystone XL pipeline are now trying to convince the administration to close a door it opened last year to allow oil Continue Reading
City of Washington, D.C., says ‘no’ to offshore drilling
Advocacy group Oceana said it welcomed Washington, D.C., to a growing list of local governments expressing opposition to drilling in the Atlantic Ocean. The city council in the nation’s capital Continue Reading
LA prosecutor files criminal charges over gas leak near Los Angeles
Los Angeles prosecutors filed criminal charges against the Southern California Gas company on Tuesday over a huge methane gas leak that has forced thousands of Los Angeles residents from their Continue Reading
China tackles smog with help from the World Bank
China’s capital has become notorious for its smog but the biggest contributors to local air pollution are industrial furnaces, district heating systems, residential fires and trucks rather than power plants. Continue Reading
China should consume more natural gas to control air pollution: expert
China should increase the proportion of natural gas in an energy mix currently dominated by coal to cut air pollution, an expert said Sunday. Compared with coal, the burning of Continue Reading
Shale-rich Oklahoma funding earthquake research
Mary Fallin, governor of emerging shale state Oklahoma, said she set aside more than $1 million in emergency funds to support earthquake research. Fallin approved $1.38 million in one-time costs Continue Reading
Cutting Pollution From U.S. Power Plants Cheaper Than You Think
Cutting global-warming pollution in the U.S. may not be so costly after all. A shift to wind and solar power and an expanded electric grid would allow the U.S. to Continue Reading
Aliso gas leak effort in final phase
The steps necessary to stop the gas leak from Aliso Canyon in California is underway, though work won’t be done until the end of February, a gas company said. California Continue Reading
Climate Deal’s First Big Hurdle: The Draw of Cheap Oil
Steady improvements in the fuel economy of new vehicles have stalled recently as consumers, buoyed by low gas prices, snap up lower-mileage trucks and sport utility vehicles. Credit Andrea Morales Continue Reading
The environmental consequences of cheap oil
The economic effects of plunging oil prices is a bad news/good news story. The bad news is that world stocks are taking a beating, especially those of energy companies, with Continue Reading
Plugging Methane From Oil Wells Seen Topping $125 Million
The Obama administration moved for the first time Friday to stop energy companies from releasing unwanted natural gas from oil wells drilled on federal lands, a practice that environmentalists say Continue Reading
Obama Administration Proposes Cutting Methane Waste from Oil, Natural Gas Production
The Interior Department proposed rules Friday to cut methane emissions from oil and natural gas operations on federal lands, the latest move in President Barack Obama ’s climate change agenda. Continue Reading
Appeals Court Declines to Block EPA Carbon Rule During Litigation
A federal appeals court on Thursday declined to temporarily block a key Obama administration environmental rule to limit carbon emissions from power plants, rejecting requests by states and companies that Continue Reading
Sandridge Energy Agrees to Shut Several Oklahoma Wells
After days of negotiations with Oklahoma regulators, an embattled oil producer has agreed to shut down several wells used to dispose of wastewater and that had been linked to earthquakes Continue Reading
Obama to Force Oil, Gas Companies to Pare Potent Methane Leaks
A massive natural gas leak in southern California that has forced thousands of residents from their homes is giving momentum to the Obama administration’s plan to clamp down on methane Continue Reading
Oceana latest to call for end to Shell’s Alaska program
Conservation group Oceana became the second such organization to intervene in the consideration of Shell’s leases offshore Alaska on environmental grounds. Shell is appealing to the U.S. federal government to Continue Reading
Church of England and New York State Fund to Press Exxon on Climate Change
New York’s state pension fund and the Church of England, both investors in Exxon Mobil Corp. XOM -1.95 % , plan to file a shareholder resolution demanding the largest U.S. Continue Reading
Shell lease requests offshore Alaska face scrutiny
A group of environmental activists filed a challenge to leases held by Royal Dutch Shell in Alaskan waters, citing the need to act on behalf of the climate. Earthjustice, working Continue Reading
Rare January Hurricane Forms in the Atlantic, Headed for the Azores Islands
The first January-born hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean since 1938 formed on Thursday, and headed toward Portugal’s Azores islands. Hurricane Alex strengthened from a tropical storm into a Category 1 Continue Reading
Energy cheers and jeers for Obama’s SOTU
The Sierra Club hailed President Barack Obama for steering the nation toward a low-carbon future, though the energy industry warned of the administration’s heavy hand. “Looking back at the last Continue Reading
Drivers May Pay for Next Step in Fight Against Air Pollution
Some U.S. drivers may soon see a new expense at the gas pump: the cost of taking the global-warming fight on the road. New York and four other states are Continue Reading
London Fails EU Annual Pollution Limits Eight Days Into 2016
Nineteen times this year, the concentration of nitrogen dioxide has exceeded the EU limit of 200 micrograms per cubic meter as an hourly mean. London failed annual European Union limits Continue Reading
No Short-Term Fix for California Methane Leak
To the dismay of thousands of residents of Porter Ranch, Calif., whose lives have been upended by a huge natural-gas leak from a nearby well, the local utility says it Continue Reading
The energy sector changed forever in 2015
Two massive and permanent shifts in energy took place in 2015. The first was the beginning of the end of the oil age as Saudi Arabia’s led OPEC on a Continue Reading
Putin reviews environmental agenda
Weeks after a breakthrough U.N. agreement on climate issues, Russian President Vladimir Putin said next year would be the year of the environment in Russia. “The president resolved to hold Continue Reading
Southern states brace for surging Mississippi River flooding
Residents of southern states along the Mississippi River are bracing for the flooding that has swamped communities from the Ohio River Valley to eastern Oklahoma over the last week, causing Continue Reading
Climate Chaos, Across the Map
What is going on with the weather? With tornado outbreaks in the South, Christmas temperatures that sent trees into bloom in Central Park, drought in parts of Africa and historic Continue Reading
US views on climate change pose test for 2016 candidates
Global warming or hot air? Democratic politicians say climate change is a grave threat to the US. Their Republican counterparts accuse them of alarmism over a non-issue. A close study Continue Reading
Freak storm pushes North Pole 50 degrees above normal to melting point
This storm in the far North Atlantic is the same storm that caused two tornado outbreaks and widespread flooding in the United States. Now, it’s pushing temperatures at the North Continue Reading
Cataclysms from the North Pole to South America
Rising water forces road closures and threatens homes. From the top of the world to near the bottom, freakish and unprecedented weather has sent temperatures soaring across the Arctic, whipped Continue Reading
El Nino weather ‘could be as bad as 1998’, says Nasa
The US space agency Nasa has warned that the effects of the current El Nino weather phenomenon could be as bad as those of 1998, the strongest on record. That Continue Reading
Man-made warming blamed for exceptional weather conditions
Two weeks after the Paris agreement on a new international effort to fight climate change, extreme weather across the world illustrates the impact that global warming is having already, in Continue Reading
Man-made warming blamed for exceptional weather conditions
Two weeks after the Paris agreement on a new international effort to fight climate change, extreme weather across the world illustrates the impact that global warming is having already, in Continue Reading
El Niño and record ocean warmth fueling severe weather, experts say
Record warm ocean surface temperatures in tandem with El Niño in the Pacific Ocean are driving severe weather that is leaving a trail of destruction from the U.S. to Australia, Continue Reading
Christmastime storms, tornadoes kill at least 43 in U.S
Storms hit the U.S. South, Southwest and Midwest over the Christmas holiday weekend, unleashing floods and tornadoes that killed at least 43 people, flattened buildings and snarled transportation for millions Continue Reading
In Canada’s far north, warm weather threatens vital ice road
Wild blueberries and lichen grow on the tundra at the Kennady Diamonds exploration camp in the Northwest Territories in this picture taken September 25, 2015. Each winter, in the far Continue Reading
British Army Is Deployed as Flooding Submerges Northern England
The British Army stepped in on Sunday to help evacuate hundreds of people from waterlogged homes across the country, as swollen rivers and heavy rainfall brought misery to swathes of Continue Reading
Italy smog: Milan and Rome ban cars as pollution rises
Milan is banning cars, motorcycles and scooters for six hours a day over the next three days. In Rome, cars with odd-numbered plates have been banned for nine hours on Continue Reading
Russia warming ‘2.5 times quicker’ than global average: report
Out-of-control fires and deadly floods have hit the country nearly every year this decade Russia is warming more than twice as fast as the average for the rest of the Continue Reading
Powerful Storm System Across South and Midwest Kills at Least 14
A powerful storm system that tore across parts of the South and Midwest claimed lives and destroyed homes and businesses just as final preparations for Christmas celebrations were under way. Continue Reading
California Faces Lost Decades in Solving Drought
One of the seemingly easiest ways to expand California’s water supply would be to raise the height of the 602-foot Shasta Dam by 18.5 feet, adding the equivalent of another Continue Reading
Forget El Niño: La Niña Poised to Storm the Markets
HONG KONG—As El Niño reaches its peak this winter, investors are already bracing for its sister climate phenomenon, La Niña, to be next to upend weather patterns and potentially wreak Continue Reading
In the Dirtiest Cities, Air Pollution Forces Life Changes
Thick layers of toxic smog often blanket the skies in Hanoi, limiting visibility to less than a mile away. When the pollution gets really bad in Beijing , children are Continue Reading
After Paris accord, most U.S. Republicans back action on climate
A majority of U.S. Republicans who had heard of the international climate deal in Paris said they support working with other countries to curb global warming and were willing to Continue Reading
Companies in South China See Silver Lining in Beijing’s Smog
The online ads sound alluring: Come to the sunny south of China and forget the smog of Beijing, they say. Enjoy the laid-back lifestyle; abandon unhealthy Beijing! As Beijing residents Continue Reading
At Crunch Time For US Drillers, Warm Weather Threatens Meltdown
Strapped for cash, Chesapeake Energy Corp canceled its traditionally grand display of holiday lights this year, but like most oil and gas drillers it is still dreaming of a white Continue Reading
Oil Refiners Find a Little Bright Spot in Europe Too Hot to Heat
Europe’s balmy weather is presenting oil refineries with such an awful market for heating fuel that tankers bringing supplies from the U.S. are doing mid-Atlantic U-turns because their cargoes aren’t Continue Reading
Oil Has a Reality Check for Those Elated by the Climate Deal
For anyone elated by the climate-change accord in Paris, the commodity markets have a reality check for you. World leaders may have vowed to wean the world from fossil fuels, Continue Reading