The Bush administration, U.S. troops, and Iraqi citizens aren't the only people preparing for war: Employees of American companies that specialize in extinguishing fires from oil wells are also readying themselves for what's to come. Iraq's economy, Middle Eastern political stability, and U.S. interests all dictate that the oil industry cannot be a casualty of war -- so any fires would have to be controlled, fast. That's a tall order in a country whose oil wells are spread over swamps and mountains, and are often far from water sources that could be used to help control flames. During the Gulf …

In a blow to environmentalists, a Democratic effort to delay President Bush's plan to relax the New Source Review regulations of the federal Clean Air Act was struck down by the Senate yesterday in a 50-46 vote. The postponement effort had been led by Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.), who wanted to give scientists six months to study the Bush proposal's likely effects on human health. The Senate vote paves the way for industrial polluters to upgrade plants without installing state-of-the-art pollution controls, as the law currently requires. Despite the loss, some environmentalists saw a silver lining in the bipartisan breakdown …

Nearly half of the Canadian province of British Columbia could be opened to logging and other commercial interests if the provincial government has its way. In an effort to encourage business and stabilize B.C.'s economic base, the government is proposing to set aside 48 percent of the province, or some 45 million hectares, as a "working forest," a designation that permits logging, mining, ranching, tourism, recreation, and other commercial activities. Of that land, 23 million hectares are already open to the timber industry, while 22 million are not currently being harvested. Stan Hagen, minister of sustainable resources management, said environmental …

Joining the European Union comes at a price: The 10 nations that are poised to become members next year will have to spend up to $117 billion to meet the bloc's 149 environmental regulations, according to E.U. Environment Commissioner Margot Wallstrom. For the mostly poor, formerly communist nations in question, that amounts to between 2 and 3 percent of gross domestic product -- money that will probably have to come from private investors and international lending institutions. Meeting the E.U. wastewater directive presents the heaviest financial burden; other costly measures include landfill regulations and incineration standards. The 10 countries due …

Tiny Delaware is getting tough on crime -- environmental crime, that is. Gov. Ruth Ann Minner (D) and several state legislators want corporate leaders to sign annual sworn statements declaring that their companies are complying with environmental laws; if a company is then found to be in serious violation of such laws, its top management could face criminal charges. The proposal, which will be included in bills to be introduced to the General Assembly later this month, is part of a larger statewide effort to crack down on companies that repeatedly or intentionally violate anti-pollution laws. If it passes, company …

Private laboratories have been caught faking environmental test results, according to officials in the U.S. EPA and the Justice Department. Companies often use private laboratories to test air, water, soil, petroleum, underground tanks, and other products and indicators; a clean tests yields a certificate of compliance with environmental regulations. David Uhlmann, who heads the Justice Department's environmental crimes section, said that private labs "are oftentimes in bed with the people who hired them, and conspired to commit environmental crime." Other instances of improper testing stem from poor training or efforts to cut corners in the interest of saving money. The …

The California Coastal Commission has been declared unconstitutional by an appellate court, a decision that could result in a significant power shake-up at the entity in charge of managing one of the world's most popular and politically charged coastlines. At issue is the balance of power on the commission: A majority (eight of 12) of its members are appointed by the state legislature, but the commission operates under the auspices of the executive branch, an arrangement the court said violated California's separation-of-powers doctrine. The state has 30 days to fix the problem or the commission, which is charged with handling …

The debate over oil and gas drilling in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge has been in the limelight a lot lately -- but what about energy exploitation in the rest of the state? On Friday, the Bush administration released a report on the likely environmental impact of new drilling in the National Petroleum Reserve, an Indiana-sized chunk of Alaska set aside in 1923 as an energy source for the U.S. Navy. The administration is weighing the benefits of leasing off parts of the reserve to private energy companies. The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that the reserve is home to between …

In an all-out effort to demonstrate the viability of voluntary solutions to global climate change, officials from the Bush administration are touring the country, coaxing promises from industry leaders to cut greenhouse gas emissions. If self-regulation fails to attract enough takers, staving off mandatory emissions restrictions will become increasingly difficult -- a fact that many industry leaders see as sufficient incentive to participate in the president's plan. Others, however, criticize what they call the "mandatory voluntary climate program," saying it is coercive. Environmentalists, meanwhile, say the plan is far too narrow in scope to have any impact on climate change. …

In a setback for the Bush administration, a federal appeals court yesterday halted a federal plan to permit thousands of Mexican trucks on U.S. roads, calling instead for environmental reviews that could take up to three years. In November, President Bush approved the entry of 30,000 Mexican trucks per year, citing obligations under the North American Free Trade Agreement to lift trade barriers. A coalition of environmentalists, Teamsters, and U.S. trucking companies responded by filing suit, claiming the trucks would not meet U.S. emissions standards. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with the plaintiffs, saying that compliance with …