Avinash Kar spoke to Bloomberg about NRDC’s fight to put a stop to the unregulated overuse of antibiotics in livestock, criticizing the FDA for “expecting industry to solve the problem”… The Los Angeles Times ran an op-ed by Heal the Bay’s former president Mark Gold about the EPA’s weak recreational beach water quality criteria proposal that allows a dangerous acceptable risk of illness for beach-goers and highlighted NRDC’s role in pushing the EPA for new beach water quality standards… The American Independent also extensively referred to NRDC and Steve Fleischli’s blog post on the public health threats of the same EPA proposal…

The Richmond Times-Dispatch quoted Kate Slusark on the recent listing of Atlantic Sturgeon on the endangered species list, saying, "the federal government is giving this remarkable fish a fighting chance to live on into the 21st century"…Inside Climate News reported on NRDC and other enviros request that Obama formally put into effect rules for the country's first solar program on government-owned lands by this fall…

Al Gore’s blog in the Huffington Post linked to NRDC Water Program’s Thirsty for Answers page, which details the water related problems climate change will cause American cities… Ralph Cavanagh was interviewed in a Beyond the Light Switch documentary about the future of energy; in the video he “debunks a well-known concern about the “intermittent” output provided by wind and solar energy”… Mother Nature Network noted NRDC and a handful of other, non like-minded organizations, as all coming together to fight against the GOP sponsored transportation bill…

The Houston Chronicle posted a video of Peter Lehner’s keynote speech critiquing the natural gas industry at the day-long North American Energy Resources Summit held by the Energy Forum of the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy… Susan Casey-Lefkowitz sparred with a Manhattan Institute “expert” over the Keystone XL pipeline on WHYY (Philadelphia Public Radio)… In the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Sarah Janssen discussed the many reasons why BPA is dangerous to the public in anticipation of the FDA’s anticipated ruling on the chemical…

Jennifer Sass interviewed with Voice of America, commenting on NRDC’s lawsuit against nanomaterials, emphasizing that more safety information is needed on this technology, because “compared to the huge commercial investments in research in development, spending for health and safety research lags far behind”… The Hill reported on NRDC’s “Don’t Drill and Drive” message to lawmakers this week, in light of House Republican plans to tie a new federal highway bill to increased offshore oil drilling…

Zak Smith was interviewed on KPCC (Southern California Public Radio) emphasizing the need to regulate when the Navy can use its sonar technologies, due to the known hazards to sea mammals and cetaceans...  Amy Mall spoke to Buffalo News about the need for stronger regulations for air pollutants released from the hydraulic fracking process…  Amy was also quoted on this issue in the Akron Beacon Journal Online… In E&E News, Rich Kassel called for the Obama Administration to make good on promises to regulate tail pipe emissions to protect public health…

Frances Beinecke was quoted in the Idaho Statesman as the leading voice opposing plans to move National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) into the Interior department, saying the move would compromise the “scientific and environmental strengths of NOAA, and the independent perspectives it brings to critical issues”… Simon Mui was quoted in the Washington Post about the California Air Resources Board plan to update its zero emission vehicle program (ZEV), which would put California on track to have 87 percent of passenger cars powered by batteries or fuel cells by 2050. Simon was quoted extensively about the rule in KCBS, KQED, New York Times’ Wheels blog, Public News Service, Fox Business News, HybridCars.com, and GreenCarReport.com…

In the print edition of the Economist, David Pettit expressed concerns that growing competition between Los Angeles ports and the Panama Canal may add to southern California’s air pollution… In an interview with Southern California Public Radio stations KPBS and KPCC, Zak Smith argued that the National Marine Fisheries Service needs to do more to protect against the threat sonar poses to whales, dolphins, and other animals migrating in the Pacific Ocean. NRDC’s lawsuit against the Navy’s expanded use of sonar in training exercises off the west coast was mentioned in the San Francisco Chronicle, Boston Globe, and Indian Country Today Media Network…

Kate Sinding commented on the energy industry’s disapproval of the use of “fracking” to describe hydraulic fracturing saying, “it was created by the industry, and the industry is going to have to live with it” in an Associated Press story… Roland Hwang discussed California’s clean vehicle program rule and the adoption of these requirements to other states such as Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Rhode Island and Vermont in a Bloomberg BusinessWeek piece…

Eric Goldstein praised New York City’s latest initiative to boost recycling rates but notes that more must be done to educate New Yorkers about recycling in the New York Daily News… Adrian Martinez spoke to the San Gabriel Valley Tribune about an NRDC suit aimed at getting air quality monitors installed by Southern California freeways…

Frances Beinecke responded to President Obama’s State of the Union remarks in USA Today, saying home-grown energy sources certainly are preferable to imports… Huffington Post Green and energy-focused blogs FuelFix and Houston Chronicle’s Texas on the Potomac also quoted Frances reacting to the State of the Union address, saying “feeding our addiction to fossil fuels is not the long-term solution; we need to embrace renewable sources of energy with even greater fervor as well as energy efficiency”… Frances was also quoted in a Bloomberg Businessweek piece on Obama’s call to expand Natural Gas fracking in the U.S., saying that NRDC “will be as aggressive as it can be” to ensure that the domestic mining is properly regulated…

In Reuters News and Insight, Larry Levine praised the court decision in New York to improve stormwater oversight to reduce pollution in runoff that enters the watershed; Associated Press also ran a story on the decision, which was picked up by Wall Street Journal, NewJerseyHerald.com, WCAX.com, and many others…

In a Bloomberg article on new criteria for evaluating public transit projects based on “social equity,” Deron Lovaas explained how the new system would be “fixing a misstep of the previous administration”… An article in InsideHealthPolicy.com quoted Avinash Kar on the new FDA “voluntary regulations” on antibiotics for livestock… Kim Knowlton was featured in an in-depth interview for PublicHealthNewsWire.org, discussing her work in climate change and how it will affect public health…  

Frances Beinecke spoke to People’s World about the environmental community’s victory over the Keystone XL pipeline, calling the enormous win, “the result of massive grassroots opposition that spanned from First Nations in Alberta to farmers in Nebraska to you"… ABC News reported on NRDC’s release of NRDC Trustee Robert Redford’s thank you video to President Obama for rejecting the tar sands pipeline… CNN.com quoted Susan Casey-Lefkowitz on Obama’s rejection of the Keystone pipeline, as saying, "if we keep on going after these dirtier and less easy to access forms of fossil fuel, we will not be able to fight climate change"… Susan was also quoted on this issue by Businessweek, Globe and Mail, and PetroleumNews.com, among others…

The Associated Press reported on NRDC’s stance that New York needs stringent regulations for hydraulic fracking… Noah Horowitz spoke with Grist about which are the best light bulbs to buy as new lighting efficiency standards bring more options to the market… KPCC, California’s Public Radio station, quoted Jessica Lass’ blog in support of the threatened Lacey act, which regulates the trafficking of illegally harvested wood… Bernadette Brennan commented to UPI.com about pollution monitoring and disclosure systems of 113 Chinese mainland cities… Radhika Khosla penned an opinion piece in the Hindu Business Line about building efficiency in India, and the need for stronger regulations in the face of increasing demand for buildings…

The Keystone XL pipeline victory continued to make headlines today. Frances Beinecke was quoted in The New American on President Obama’s landmark decision this week to reject the permit… Susan Casey-Lefkowitz spoke to NPR, reaffirming NRDC’s determination to fight any proposed tar sands pipelines in the future… Anthony Swift told Bloomberg that Republicans’ efforts to expedite the federal review process are responsible for making this such a politically charged issue… As a guest on the “Patt Morrison Show” on KPCC, Southern California public radio, Danielle Droitsch told listeners “the pipeline was rejected for all the right reasons”… Simon Mui and David Pettit spoke to Inside Climate News about efforts to keep tar sands oil out of California because of the state’s landmark low-carbon fuel standard…

The New York Times reported on the benefits of new higher fuel economy rules, citing data compiled by the GO60 MPG campaign, a coalition effort from NRDC and other groups… E, The Environmental Magazine heralded the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a 10-state compact to reduce climate change pollution from power plants in the Northeast, noting that NRDC believes “it serves as a powerful model for what a comprehensive national energy policy should do”…  An editorial in The Journal News (Hudson Valley, NY) called for New York to slow down on proposed fracking, referencing NRDC’s detailed, 500-page assessment of the dangers it poses…

The New York Times named Kate Sinding as one of two “widely regarded key players” in the fracking debate, crediting her with having “asked the right questions and provided the technical expertise that helped produce what has, in effect, been an almost four-year moratorium on new gas drilling in New York State.” Kate also was quoted on this issue by Legislativegazette.com… Reuters quoted Susan Casey-Lefkowitz about how the Canadian federal government is acting with the interest of big oil profits at heart related to the proposed Northern Gateway tar sands pipeline between Alberta and British Columbia... Susan also was quoted on this issue by The Hill, the Vancouver Sun, and UPI.com… Bloomberg cited the many reasons NRDC is against a proposed Northern Gateway pipeline through British Columbia… UPI.com also reported on NRDC’s involvement to stop this pipeline…

MSNBC.com spoke to Larry Levine about the politically polarizing Supreme Court case of the Sackett family’s lawsuit against the EPA over findings that their land contained environmentally sensitive wetlands; in the article Larry explains why these EPA findings are important tools to protect the environment from misuse…  Larry was also quoted on this issue by Fox News, the International Business Times, USA Today, and others…

Josh Mogerman was interviewed by Northwest Indiana's Post-Tribune on the need to implement measures against invasive species in the Great Lakes in the near term, rather than the Army Corps’ more lackadaisical, wait-and-see approach… John Walke commented on the suspension of the federal Cross-State Air Pollution Rule to Environmental-Finance.com, calling it “disappointing”… In E&E News, Jake Schmidt explained the motivations behind different countries’ willingness to pledge to cut emissions in international climate conferences, discussing Durban, Copenhagen and Kyoto… Discovery News reported on an NRDC finding that “runoff from chicken and hog waste in the mid-Atlantic led to a deadly algae outbreak that killed millions of fish and caused "skin irritation, short-term memory loss and other cognitive problems in local people"…

The Wall Street Journal quoted Larry Levine regarding a Supreme Court case about Clean Water Act enforcement; Larry was also quoted extensively about the case in the print edition of the New York Times, NPR, McClatchy Newspaper, and the Huffington Post… In another Wall Street Journal piece, Bobby McEnaney said the White House decision to extend a ban on uranium mining in the Grand Canyon and the Colorado River was a “no-brainer”… The Huffington Post quoted Avinash Kar criticizing the FDA’s proposal of a partial ban against certain antibiotics used on farm animals, saying the announcement was “meant to distract attention from its effort to sweep the broader issue under the rug.” Avi also spoke about FDA’s proposal to limit cephalosporins and NRDC’s lawsuit with WebMD Health News and the Los Angeles Times…

Brad Sewell spoke with The Washington Post about U.S.’s decision to impose fishing catch limits for every species it manages, from Alaskan pollock to Caribbean queen conch… David Pettit was quoted in the Los Angeles Times expressing concern over a new proposal that would expedite environmental review for rail projects… Susan Casey-Lefkowitz commented in Toronto’s The Star article about hearings for the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline--the planned pipeline would carry tar sands-derived crude oil across the mountains from Alberta through the Rockies to the B.C. coast…

Anthony Swift spoke to Houston Chronicle’s FuelFix blog about Republican lawmakers’ push for approval on the Keystone XL oil pipeline after an upbeat jobs report, explaining that tougher fuel-efficiency and greenhouse-gas standards would put more Americans to work and save consumers more money than the Keystone XL…

Larry Levine was quoted in an Associated Press story, discussing a Supreme Court case about Clean Water Act enforcement, citing compliance orders as an important tool that the EPA can use to remedy “real and serious environmental harms that are ongoing”; this article was picked up by The Boston Globe, The Huffington Post...  Larry was also quoted in a Washington Post article on the same subject... The Wall Street Journal quoted David Pettit on the potential nationwide implications of a judge’s decision not to enforce California’s low-carbon fuel rules; The Miami Herald, E&E News and many more also quoted David in their coverage of this story…

A CNN Opinion piece on the light bulb efficiency standards, written by a descendant of Thomas A. Edison, cited NRDC’s study of the potential savings to consumers and environmental benefits of better bulbs throughout the United States… Adrian Martinez spoke with the Associated Press about NRDC’s legal effort to ensure air quality monitoring near California freeways; this story ran in the Sacramento Bee and San Jose Mercury News… Susan Casey-Lefkowitz was extensively quoted in a Vancouver Sun story on NRDC’s success in delaying the Keystone XL pipeline and new focus on stopping the Enbridge Gateway pipeline in British Columbia, and any other pipeline that would carry tar sands through ecologically sensitive areas; several other Canadian outlets picked up this story…

Bloomberg Businessweek named NRDC as one example of an environmental group with serious reservations about hydrofracking and its side-effects… Avinash Kar spoke with Triple Pundit about FDA's recent decision not to regulate antibiotics in livestock feed, saying that antibiotics use will continue to grow unless it is regulated… an article on earthquakes caused by fracking on Foreign Policy’s the Oil and the Glory blog linked to Briana Mordick’s blog which discusses the topic in detail…

Doug Obegi commented to Time magazine about a “paradigm shift” in the way people are approaching the water crisis in California… Avinash Kar spoke with the International Business Times about the decades-long fight to remove antibiotics from livestock feed, citing NRDC’s recent lawsuit and FDA’s new attempt to avoid responsibility… Wired magazine also reported on this issue, using original FDA documents that chronicle the known dangers antibiotic pumped livestock pose to humans; NRDC is credited with unearthing this information and pressuring the agency to support its intentions with a lawsuit… Good magazine reported on Jeanne Gang’s new book Reverse Effect, which represents a yearlong partnership with NRDC to re-imagine the Chicago River, in order to thwart the invasive Asian Carp crisis in the Great Lakes…

In The Washington Post's Wonkblog, Nathanael Greene pointed out the many problems with corn ethanol technology and subsidies, among them that corn ethanol fuel was supposed to be a “stepping stone towards better fuels”… John Walke commented to OpEdNews.com about the new mercury and air toxics standard, saying that "The electric power sector is far and away the largest emitter of toxic air pollution in America"....In The Hill’s E2 Wire blog, Susan Casey Lefkowitz noted that given the sixty day timeline for the Obama Administration to decide the fate of the Keystone XL pipeline, the Administration will have to deny the permit… Susan was also quoted on this issue by the Journal Standard…

John Walke commented on the importance of the recent toxic air pollution regulations for power plants in Huffington Post, saying “The electric power sector is far and away the largest emitter of toxic air pollution in America”… John was also quoted in the Memphis Commercial Appeal to clarify the purpose of a recent EPA regulation to control coarse-particulate pollution…

Susan Casey-Lefkowitz explained why President Obama cannot legally approve the measure that would expedite the Keystone XL pipeline in The Hill’s E2 blog... A Voice of America piece on the extreme weather events of 2011 quoted Pete Altman on the connection to climate change and the need for mitigation and adaptation policies to be put in place… The Los Angeles Times Greenspace blog linked directly to Damon Nagami’s blog post on the upcoming decision about the future of the Taylor Yard on the banks of the Los Angeles River…

Noah Horowitz spoke with the Tampa Tribune, saying that more efficient lightbulb technology is “alive and well”… A New York Times Opinionator piece on the FDA’s failure to act on antibiotics in American meat noted NRDC’s efforts to push the administration to take responsibility… and Deron Lovaas was quoted by The Bond Buyer on the feasibility of various transit bills making it through Congress…

A Canadian Press article picked up by Herald Business referred to NRDC as the most vocal opponent of the Keystone XL pipeline and cited Susan Casey-Lefkowitz’s blog about the passage of the U.S. payroll tax bill that would fast-track a decision on the tar sands pipeline. Susan was quoted in the Vancouver Observer and Toronto Star News Services about TransCanada Corp.’s attempt to fast-track the decision on the pipeline… Amy Mall explained to Bloomberg that lobbying, especially from powerful industry such as oil and gas companies, plays a major role in state-by-state differences in drilling standards and hydraulic fracturing rules. Amy was quoted in the Houston Chronicle’s Fuelfix blog, and McClatchy News Service carried by New Hampshire’s SentinelSource.com and NY’s Timesunion.com…

Bob Deans commented in the New York Times about the recent Royal Dutch Shell deepwater oil spill off the southern Nigerian coast, noting, “it is a reminder, also, that we have no business drilling for oil in the Arctic waters”… Avinash Kar spoke with NPR’s Food blog about the FDA’s decision to withdraw a decades-old proposal to limit the use of antibiotics in animal feed, calling the move “nothing more than bureaucratic maneuvering in the face of the lawsuit.” Avi also was quoted in the Huffington Post and Food and Drink Digital about the decision… A Milwaukee Journal Sentinel piece highlighted NRDC’s support for delisting gray wolves in the Great lakes as an indication that the population is starting to rebound…

Rich Kassel expressed concern that the lack of enforcement on New York City’s vehicle idling law is putting public health at risk on CBS New York.com… Josh Mogerman was quoted in a piece on Wisconsin Public Radio about the list of potential ways to keep invasive species from moving between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins…

Frances Beinecke was interviewed by the New York Times about the state of the environmental movement.  In the piece, Frances cites NRDC’s emphasis on communicating powerful messages and our concerns about hydraulic fracturing … TIME Magazine’s Ecocentric blog cited Frances’ blog post urging President Obama to stand firm against the Keystone XL pipeline… Susan Casey-Lefkowitz spoke with Bloomberg BusinessWeek, criticizing the Keystone pipeline provision attached to the payroll tax cut extension as a “special interest” rider that did not belong in the agreement. Susan was quoted extensively about the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline rider in local, national and international news outlets, including Reuters, Montreal Gazette, Christian Science Monitor carried by Alaska Dispatch, USA Today picked up by the Tennessean, Delaware Online, ABCNews.com, Arizona’s Tucson Citizen, Hill’s E2 blog, Globe and Mail, Winnepeg Free Press, Windsor Star, and Tree Hugger…

Noah Horowitz commented in the New York Times about the delay in funding for light bulb standards enforcement, noting the delay as a “speed bump” but expressed optimism that “the standards are moving forward unabated”; our lightbulb team was quoted in a number of outlets included the Associated Press, Bloomberg, Dow Jones, AOL Energy, CNNMoney.com and Gannett … John Walke spoke with USA Today about EPA finalizing limits on power plant emissions, including mercury and other toxic pollutants, saying the rules will be “historic clean air and public health achievements”…

In an interview with NPR’s Ombudsman Perspective, Roland Hwang objected to NPR’s negative framing of America’s ability to reach the 55 mpg goal, noting that “an average of 55 mpg is already within reach using existing technology and that no special feats of engineering are required”… In a Financial Times piece about the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s decision to approve Shell’s plan for Arctic drilling, Chuck Clusen warned that the decision “invites a disaster of epic proportions”… Simon Mui spoke with E&E News about the California Air Resources Board’s decision to do away with the special treatment given to 75 per cent of the crudes entering California. Simon’s blog post about this decision was also cited in the Calgary Herald… 

David Pettit spoke with Bloomberg to discuss the federal government’s decision to sell new leases for oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico; this story was also covered by The Wall Street Journal, Houston Chronicle’s FuelFix blog, and The Hill’s E2 Wire blog… 

Scott Slesinger told the Associated Press that House Republicans are giving the American people “more pollution, more health problems and more environmental problems" by passing an unrelated amendment to the payroll tax cut bill that fast-tracks the Keystone XL pipeline approval process and bypasses environmental protection studies; this piece was picked up by CBS News, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, and Huffington Post, among others… Susan Casey-Lefkowitz wrote a scathing op-ed that was published in The Hill’s Congress blog on this attempt to attach the Keystone XL approval to the tax break bill, saying, “The same House Republicans who drove the country to the brink of default last summer now want to hold American families hostage to the profits of Big Oil”…

The Wall Street Journal quoted Amy Mall on the need for national fracking standards, in a story on chemical disclosure laws coming out of states such as Colorado and Texas, among others… The Tennessean continued its coverage of NRDC’s win in a Dickson County, Tenn., lawsuit that will force polluters to pay $5 million to clean up toxic chemicals that had contaminated the groundwater, quoting Selena Kyle in an in-depth piece…

Melissa Lin Perrella praised the work that the Los Angeles and Long Beach ports have done to adopt clean-air practices in their operations in the Los Angeles Times’ Money and Company blog… Allen Hershkowitz spoke with the Philadelphia Inquirer about the benefits of recycling versus waste incineration… and the Bangor Daily News quoted Sami Yassa on the serious implications of Governor Paul LePage’s decision to weaken sustainably-harvested lumber standards in Maine. This article originally ran in the Sun Journal, and was also picked up by the Dallas Morning News and Maine Environmental News; Maine Business Journal also covered this story…

CNN highlighted actress Victoria Principal’s generous donation to NRDC to support our campaign to prevent drilling off the U.S. Atlantic and Pacific Coasts, and our campaign to "require critical scientific assessments and demonstrated oil spill response capability in the Arctic before allowing additional leasing." The piece quoted Frances Beinecke on the importance of this effort in the wake of the 2010 Gulf oil spill disaster, saying "If we've learned anything from this tragedy, it's that we must not allow it to happen again." This story has been running on the ticker for CNN Network News, it is posted on CNN.com and will also run on HLN in Showbiz Tonight…

Jocelyn Zuckerman joined Public Radio International’s “Living on Earth” program for a seven-minute segment to discuss her recent OnEarth cover story “The Constant Gardener,” which explores the urban agriculture boom in Africa. One of the urban farmers featured in her piece also joined the show… The Associated Press reported on a lawsuit filed by NRDC against the Interior Department to stop the sale of leases for offshore oil and gas drilling in the Gulf, given what little progress on safety and oil clean up measures have been made since the BP disaster. The article was carried by the Washington Post, USA Today, and the State Journal…

In a Los Angeles Times Greenspace blog, Jake Schmidt discussed the Durban climate talks, noting that commitments from both the industrially developed and developing world indicated progress…  A CNNMoney.com article refuting TransCanada’s claims that the tar sands Keystone XL pipeline would create 20,000 jobs quoted Susan Casey-Lefkowitz on the actual numbers, which would be in the hundreds. In the article, Susan also called out House Republicans for inaccurately tooting the pipeline as a “national jobs package.” The article also ran on California’s ABC News Channel 12 and Colorado’s KLDO.com… In an Associated Press article, Suzanne Struglinski explained just how far the House Republicans, with some Senate support, are willing to go in order to get the XL pipeline approved, saying that they are “even willing to block the much-needed extension of the middle-class tax cut” to achieve their ends…

In a Roll Call article, John Walke expressed “guarded optimism” that attempts to roll back environmental regulations won’t make it in to the final tax bill…  Bloomberg reported that one of the reasons NRDC opposes fracking for natural gas is a concern over “proper disposal of the wastewater pumped to the surface with oil and gas -- about 1 million gallons over the life of a well, according to an EPA estimate.”