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Environmentalists have been wary of the Bush administration since its first day in office. They say reforms proposed by the president will be disastrous for the environment. The government maintains it is simply making it easier and more affordable for businesses to obey environmental laws. NPR's John Nielsen reports for Morning Edition.

NPR's David Baron reports that Evangelical Christians will make the rounds on Capitol Hill tomorrow to defend the Endangered Species Act. They are part of an American religious environmental movement born several decades ago that is stepping now into the political arena.

NPR's Elizabeth Arnold reports environmental issues were not key components of this years election, but they are sure to be one of the main issues in the next Congress. Environmentalists are worried that Americans will be kept in the dark on environmental policy now that Republicans control both the House and the Senate.

In the last three months since President Bush took office, he's made some decisions on environmental policy that have upset environmentalists but which the President characterizes as necessities during the country's energy crisis. Host Lisa Simeone talks with NPR's Christopher Joyce about the President's environmental policy.

On the banks of the Skykomish River in Monroe, Washington today, Republican Presidential nominee George W. Bush announced a $5 billion environmental initiative. Bush said the program was needed to improve maintenance and resource protection in the National Park System. Aides hope the event will get the campaign back on message after days of distraction. Andy Bowers, of NPR News, is with the Bush campaign.

NPR's Nina Totenberg previews arguments in today's Supreme Court case, which poses a fundamental challenge to federal regulatory powers. At issue is whether Congress acted within the Constitution, when it ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to enforce the Clean Air Act of 1970 by setting clean air standards based on public health. (8:44).

NPR's John Nielsen reports on the background of Christine Todd Whitman, who has accepted president-elect George W. Bush's offer to head the Environmental Protection Agency. Whitman already has national stature and her acceptance is evidence that running EPA is no longer viewed as a stepping stone to national prominence. And she's neither friend nor foe to an environmental community that has been skeptical of the GOP agenda.

NPR's Martin Kaste reports that in addition to all of the usual problems associated with illegal drug production, the drug trade in Colombia is causing environmental problems. Chemicals such as ammonia and sulfuric acid, used in the production of cocaine, end up in rivers that flow through sensitive ecosystems such as the country's rain forest. Colombian officials have used the environmental argument to obtain a billion dollars of U-S aid money to fight the cocaine industry. They say their efforts to eradicate illegal drug production will save vast areas of rain forest.

NPR Legal Affairs Correspondent Nina Totenberg previews arguments in a Supreme Court environmental case with major implications for local governments and federal regulators. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers wants to say 'no' to a proposed land fill in the Chicago metropolitan area because of its potential damage to migratory birds. Municipal governments say the Corps doesn't have jurisdiction because the wetlands are entirely within Illinois borders. The Corps says it's enforcing the Clean Water Act. Arguments will be heard today.

On Earth Day, NPR's Senior News Analyst Daniel Schorr examines President Bush's early decisions on the environment, and compares then to similar political battles from the 1960s.