Environment

October 10, 2007 - Yesterday the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a record $4.6 billion settlement with American Electric Power in a lawsuit brought by eight northeastern states and a number of environmental advocacy groups.

October 8, 2007 - A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers insider alleges that the 40 pumps protecting New Orleans from catastrophic flooding still suffer from serious flaws that put the city's residents at risk -- and the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) has found her concerns so compelling that it's ordered the U.S. Department of Defense to respond to the charges.

October 5, 2007 - A report released this week by the Government Accountability Office is critical of the way the Federal Emergency Management Agency administered an alternative housing program for people displaced by Hurricane Katrina.

October 3, 2007 - Last week, I went to Washington, D.C. to speak to Congress about the need for bold federal action to jump-start the Gulf Coast recovery and make sure Katrina aid reaches those who need it.

October 2, 2007 - Florida Power & Light last week announced plans to build Florida's first large-scale solar thermal power plant, which will be one of the world's largest.

October 1, 2007 - If you plan to drive along Interstate 40 through Tennessee over the next few years, you might want to be extra careful.

October 1, 2007 - Global warming skeptic Patrick J. Michaels has left the climatologist's office at the University of Virginia -- a big relief to university faculty who lamented Michaels' industry funding and contrarian views on global warming.