Environmental News

California Attorney General Sues Feds in Offshore Fracking Challenge

Attorney General Kamala Harris and the California Coastal Commission has filed a lawsuit challenging the federal government’s recent finding that fracking off the state’s coast has no significant environmental impact. The lawsuit filed in federal court in Los Angeles says …

Wyoming Refiner Pays $655K for Asbestos Cleanup

Sinclair Casper Refining Co. has paid $655,000 to the Environmental Protection Agency for cleaning up asbestos at an oil refinery in the town of Thermopolis, Wyo. The Casper Star-Tribune reported the agency determined there was significant contamination at the site …

Cleanup Costs of Oregon Train Derailment Along River Pilling Up

Six months after a train hauling Bakken crude oil derailed along the Columbia River Gorge, Washington, Oregon and other officials are still tabulating a bill to send to Union Pacific Railroad. Union Pacific said in a statement that it is …

Swiss Re’s U.S. Solar Power Plant is One Part of Its Climate Change Commitment

Swiss Re’s solar power installation at its U.S. headquarters in Armonk, N.Y., a 2-megawatt facility expected to be up and running by late spring 2017, is just one part of a green theme that the carrier has been writing for …

BNSF in Washington to Examine Covering Coal Trains Under Agreement

BNSF Railway will study the use of physical covers for coal and petroleum coke trains as part of a tentative agreement reached this week with environmental groups that sued alleging that coal spilled from trains pollutes waterways in Washington state. …

Everest Insurance Expands Environmental Coverage

Everest Insurance has expanded its environmental offering with its new ESP policy form, a mono-line site pollution policy form that includes coverage available for both new and pre-existing pollution conditions for bodily injury, property damage, and cleanup costs. Enhancements available …

Judge in Washington Finds Railway Could Be Liable if Spills Proven

A federal judge in Seattle has found that BNSF Railway could be held liable in a lawsuit claiming that coal spilled from trains pollutes waterways if environmental groups can show at trial that such discharges actually occurred. Ruling in the …

Brazil Charges 21 with Homicide for Failing to Avert Samarco Mine Disaster

Brazilian prosecutors charged 21 people with qualified homicide on Thursday for their roles in the collapse of a tailings dam at the Samarco Mineração SA iron ore mine last November that killed 19 people. The charges follow what is now …

Brazil’s Prosecutor Expected to Seek Criminal Charges over Samarco Mine Disaster

Brazilian prosecutors are finalizing a criminal investigation into the Samarco mine disaster and expect to ask a judge by the end of September to charge employees, one of the prosecutors heading the case said. The investigation is looking into alleged …

Brazil Mine Disaster Caused by Poor Drainage & Design of Tailings Dam: Report

The deadly collapse of a tailings dam last November at the Samarco mine, owned by Vale SA and BHP Billiton, was caused by drainage and design flaws, a report into Brazil’s worst-ever environmental disaster showed on Monday. The 76-page report …