State examiner OKs first wind farm in Virginia.

A state hearing examiner has recommended construction of the first utility-grade wind farm in Virginia, provided it meets conditions to minimize harm to the environment.

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Record set for number of bad air days. The Salt Lake City Winter Air Quality Alert program set a record this season for the number of bad air quality days. [News Source]

More snow, then things warm up. In the seven years Utah has been measuring, there hasn't been a worse winter for fine-particle pollution. [News Source]

Unclean air puts citizen’s health in jeopardy. Brown haze over Utah Valley translated into coughing and indoor recess for children this winter. [News Source]

N.J. Dem grills park chief on snowmobiles. On the 135th anniversary of the founding of Yellowstone National Park, a Democratic representative from New Jersey grilled National Park Service Director Mary Bomar Thursday about the ongoing controversy regarding snowmobiling in the park. [News Source]

TXU coal plant approved. TXU will begin construction on a new coal plant in Central Texas as soon as possible, since recently receiving approval. [News Source]

Cleaner air at a price. A North East Texas Air Care organization heard from researchers about reducing pollution-causing emissions coming from dozens of gas compressor engines at energy well sites in East Texas. [News Source]

Virginia a step closer to wind farm. A Virginia hearing examiner has recommended construction of the first utility-grade wind farm in the state, provided it meets conditions to minimize harm to the environment. [News Source]

Group dreams up ‘green’ van. Automakers can cut emissions by 40% with existing technology, says a scientists' group, as it unveils a blueprint for a climate-friendly model. [News Source]

Gore talks global warming in Oklahoma. Former Vice President Al Gore told Oklahomans on Thursday that dire environmental consequences will result if changes are not made to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases that humans put into the air and sea. [News Source]

Can you be green by buying offsets? Buy an airline ticket online, and you're increasingly likely to see this pitch: Add a payment of a few dollars, and finance save-the-Earth activities to offset environmental damage caused by your trip. [News Source]