Throughout his term, President Obama has repeatedly heralded clean energy and the industries that surround it as being a vital element of America’s economic future. Many Republicans, meanwhile, have questioned environmental regulations that would promote the “clean economy” as job killers that unduly penalize mature industries more central to the US economy.
But what is the reality of “clean” jobs in the US? A recent study by the Brookings Institution and Battelle Technology Partnership seeks to answer that question. ALASKADISPATCH

The federal government will slash funding to the environmental agency that evaluates potentially harmful policies and projects before they get the green light.
And if the trend in declining funds and employees continues, Canada could experience a series of environmental disasters, as government loses access to valuable information about proposed resource projects — whether it’s shale gas extraction, offshore drilling or big hydroelectric projects, critics say. VANCOUVERSUN