The Arctic seas are being made rapidly more acidic by carbon-dioxide emissions, according to a new report. Scientists from the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP) monitored widespread changes in ocean chemistry in the region. They say even if CO2 emissions stopped now, it would take tens of thousands of years for Arctic Ocean chemistry to revert to pre-industrial levels. Many creatures, including commercially valuable fish, could be affected. They forecast major changes in the marine ecosystem, but say there is huge uncertainty over what those changes will be.

Governments and members of the European Parliament must decide on a plan to prop up the EU carbon market by July at the latest, a joint statement from nine energy and environment ministers, said. The statement, seen by Reuters, is expected to be published officially on Tuesday to coincide with discussions among members of the European Parliament on the European Commission plan. No-one from Britain's Department of Energy and Climate Change, which is expected to release the statement, was immediately available for comment. A proposal, known as backloading, to strengthen the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) by removing some of a glut of carbon allowances generated by recession was rejected by the European Parliament last month in an initial vote.

As the country’s leading conservative donors finished off plates of roast lamb and spaetzle in a Palm Springs, Calif., hotel ballroom on Monday, Charles G. Koch delivered a pep talk. The November elections had been a major setback for the cause of liberty, Mr. Koch told the more than 200 guests, many of whom had pumped millions of dollars into the political operation founded by Mr. Koch and his brother David. But there would be no backing down, Mr. Koch said, according to some of those attending. They would learn from their mistakes, test new strategies in the coming months and prepare for the 2014 elections, with control of Congress once again at stake.

As the centerpiece of Europe’s pledge to lead the global battle against climate change, the region’s market for carbon emissions effectively turned pollution into a commodity that could be traded like gold or oil. But the once-thriving pollution trade here has turned into a carbon bust. Under the system, 31 nations slapped emission limits on more than 11,000 companies and issued carbon credits that could be traded by firms to meet their new pollution caps. More efficient ones could sell excess carbon credits, while less efficient ones were compelled to buy more. By August 2008, the price for carbon emission credits had soared above $40 per ton — high enough to become an added incentive for some companies to increase their use of cleaner fuels, upgrade equipment and take other steps to reduce carbon footprints.

State of the Union addresses are wearying rituals, in which stitched-together lists of never-gonna-happen goals are woven into idealistic catchphrases, analyzed as rhetoric by an unqualified panel of poetry-critic-for-a-night political reporters, quickly followed by a hapless opposition-party response, and then, in almost every case, forgotten. This year, plunked into the midst of the tedium was a gigantic revelation, almost surely the most momentous news of President Obama's second term. "I will direct my Cabinet," he announced, “to come up with executive actions we can take now and in the future to reduce pollution, prepare our communities for the consequences of climate change, and speed the transition to more sustainable sources of energy."

California and federal public health officials say valley fever, a potentially lethal but often misdiagnosed disease infecting more and more people around the nation, has been on the rise as warming climates and drought have kicked up the dust that spreads it. The fever has hit California's agricultural heartland particularly hard in recent years, with incidence dramatically increasing in 2010 and 2011. The disease — which is prevalent in arid regions of the United States, Mexico, Central and South America — can be contracted by simply breathing in fungus-laced spores from dust disturbed by wind as well as human or animal activity. The fungus is sensitive to environmental changes, experts say, and a hotter, drier climate has increased dust carrying the spores.

Environmentalists have filed a lawsuit to force federal regulators to review the way they calculate emissions from petrochemical plants, oil refineries and other large industrial facilities. In the suit filed on Thursday, Air Alliance Houston and three other groups accuse the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency of using outdated and inaccurate formulas to estimate levels of air pollution. The groups say studies show that actual smog-forming emissions can be 132 times greater than EPA estimates, which are based on data provided by the industry. The agency, as a result, does not possess reliable data to protect public health, according to the suit filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will vote May 9 on whether to advance the nomination of Gina McCarthy to lead the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the panel announced Thursday. McCarthy, who would replace former EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, heads the agency’s Office of Air and Radiation. “Gina McCarthy is a strong, bipartisan candidate and is the right person for the job at this critical time. The EPW Committee’s business meeting is an important step forward in the confirmation process,” Committee Chairwoman Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) said in a statement. McCarthy will likely clear the committee with Democratic support, but Republicans could make the count close.

Anti-fracking laws passed in two New York towns were upheld by an appeals court, which rejected arguments by a dairy farm and a Norwegian energy company that the bans are superceded by state law. An appellate panel of the New York State Supreme Court in Albany today ruled that drilling bans in the towns of Dryden and Middlefield don’t conflict with state regulations for the oil and natural-gas industry. The state law seeks to protect the right of the general public, not just the owners of oil and gas properties, “a goal which is realized when individual municipalities can determine whether drilling activities are appropriate for their respective communities,” the court said.

Louisiana will receive $340 million from BP in early Natural Resource Damage Assessment money for four projects to restore barrier islands and to finance two coastal science centers, Gov. Bobby Jindal announced Tuesday in a news conference in Jean Lafitte. The money comes from $1 billion that BP set aside in 2011 to build early projects to compensate for damages to natural resources resulting from the three-month flow of oil resulting from the blowout of BP's Macondo well in April 2010. The projects include almost $320 million for restoration of Whiskey Island, also known as the Caillou Lake Headlands, in Terrebonne Parish; and the Cheniere Ronquille headland, Shell Island and North Breton Island in Plaquemines Parish. Another $22 million will be spent on the two fish stock research and enhancement centers in Lake Charles and Pointe a la Hache.

A top Capitol Hill advocate of the proposed Keystone XL oil sands pipeline is applauding Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s connection — via his political advocacy group FWD.us — for an advertisement that supports the controversial pipeline. “Glad Mark Zuckerburg [sic] and @FWD_us are advocating for #jobs and North American #energy independence. #TimeToBuild #KeystoneXL #KXL,” Rep. Lee Terry (R-Neb.) tweeted on Wednesday. Terry’s tweet is the latest in a political scrum over a recent ad supporting Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) that shows Graham praising the Keystone project. The ad was released by Americans for a Conservative Direction, which is affiliated with FWD.us, a group Zuckerberg recently helped launch to advocate for immigration legislation, education reform and research funding.  

Hydraulic fracturing uses large amounts of pressurized water — mixed with sand and chemicals — to crack subterranean rocks and release oil or natural gas. Up to 10 million gallons of water can go into a single well. And according to a new study, it’s happening in many places where water supplies are already stretched perilously thin. The study, released today by the nonprofit group Ceres, examined 25,450 fracked wells across the United States and found that 47 percent lie in areas that face high or extremely high “water stress.” In those areas, at least 80 percent of the available fresh water is already being used in homes, farms or businesses. The numbers have big implications.