After nearly a year of negotiations with the state’s utility companies, Massachusetts officials announced a set of new energy efficiency standards on Friday in what is anticipated to be the most ambitious plan in the nation.

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Mega-yachts are inherently evil, right? Maybe not. The Wall Street Journal reports that pollution-spewing, fuel- guzzling mega-yachts have been enlisted by the International Seakeepers Society, an ocean research group, to collect data on the oceans and seas.

The Seakeepers have installed scientific equipment on more than 30 mega-yachts and . . . “collected more than 300 million meteorologic, climatological and oceanographic measurements.” WSJ

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After decades of monitoring damage to the ozone layer, environmental policymakers finally have reason to celebrate. Well, sort of.

A new study issued by the University of Leeds says the ozone layer is now mending, but its repair could actually contribute to global warming in the southern hemisphere.

Scientists say high-speed winds generated by the hole led to the formation of moist, radiant clouds that essentially shielded the Antarctic region from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays.

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The Securities and Exchange Commission issued an interpretive release on Wednesday in an attempt to offer guidance to public companies regarding the need to  disclose the impact of environmental legislation and regulation on their businesses.

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At a time when the US is pushing for wind and solar power, a surprising move took place in Germany, one of the forerunners in the solar market.

Reuters announced that ” Germany on Wednesday slashed subsidies for solar power in a move to ease the world’s largest solar market towards free competition, drawing howls of protest from panel manufacturers.

“Environment Minister Norbert Roettgen set out a 15 percent cut in so-called feed-in tariffs for new roof-mounted solar power from April, confirming figures reported earlier by Reuters.

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