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NPR's Scott Simon asks author Imbolo Mbue about her new novel, How Beautiful We Were.

A ship off the Sri Lankan coast has been burning, leaking acid and plastic pellets. NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with Sri Lankan marine biologist Asha de Vos on the environmental impact of this disaster.

change in how it regulates carginogenic chemicals. The agency will assess two of its long held beliefs... that half the dose of a substance is half as dangerous and that all people face an equal risk from a chemical. The proposal will also allow the EPA to loosen or tighten guidelines on a chemical as warranted by any new research.

A bill moving through Congress that would change the definition of "dolphin safe" tuna has caused an unusually angry fight within America's environmental community. The legislation has pitted Greenpeace and the World Wildlife Fund -- supporters of the bill -- against the Sierra Club and the Defenders of Wildlife. As NPR's David Baron reports, the fight has exposed philosophical differences between major environmental organizations.

Commentator David Brooks discusses the compromise environmental regulators must make between the costs and benefits of new regualtions. Recently, the EPA tightened rules concerning the emission of particulates. Brooks thinks that these changes will be more expensive than justified by their health benefits.

The Bush administration eases federal rules governing runoff from major livestock operations, calling the existing regulations confusing and costly. Critics say the move further damages efforts to keep rivers and streams clean. NPR's John Nielsen reports.

A group opposed to urban sprawl known as the Earth Liberation Front, or ELF, has claimed responsibility for setting fire to several houses under construction on what used to be farmland in Suffolk County, New York. Linda talks with Craig Rosebraugh, a spokesman for the Earth Liberation Front in Portland, Oregon.

Environmentalists worry about "bio-pharming" -- the creation of grain varieties for drug research. Regular corn and soybean crops could become contaminated, say groups such as Greenpeace. Regulators are just beginning to address those concerns. NPR's John McChesney reports.

The Bush administration proposes strict new controls on off-road diesel emissions. Some environmental groups that have been critical of the administration's past environmental record praise the proposed standards. NPR's David Molpus reports.

At the U.N. clime conference, roughly 100 governments have signed a pledge to end deforestation by 2030. And in the U.K., efforts are already underway to reforest large parts of the country.