Energy and Environment

October 31, 2014 - Led by the American Petroleum Institute, energy interests are contributing to the outside spending onslaught in North Carolina elections this year. Not surprisingly, their giving overwhelmingly favors anti-regulatory Republicans and Democrats with weak environmental records.

October 23, 2014 - Over the past 15 years, North Carolina's high court has sided against the environment in every major environmental law case it's considered, a new study finds. And with the court's three Democrats facing tough re-election challenges, the odds could become even more stacked.

October 16, 2014 - The North Carolina Mining and Energy Commission will consider an environmental group's petition to craft rules protecting people from toxic air emissions from fracking operations, a growing concern among public health experts.

October 10, 2014 - The nation's largest electric utility has skewed its political contributions to give anti-regulatory Republicans a better shot at capturing control of the Senate, as has the industry at large. But Duke and other utilities are hedging their bets by backing key incumbent Democrats, including Sen. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana.

September 29, 2014 - U.S. Department of Labor investigations have uncovered hundreds of cases in which oil and gas workers, many involved in dangerous jobs, are being cheated of earnings.

September 19, 2014 - Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to gather in New York City on Sept. 21 for the biggest climate protest in U.S. history, preceding the start of the U.N. Climate Summit on Sept. 23. The gatherings come as the cost of climate change-related disasters is climbing -- especially in the South.

September 18, 2014 - Homeless men were bused to a public hearing on fracking in western North Carolina to boost the appearance of support for the controversial drilling technique. The men were wearing T-shirts emblazoned with the name of the N.C. Energy Coalition, a front for big oil and gas interests.