Residents need to reach out to local and state governments and make sure that natural gas drilling companies take steps to protect the land, water and health of landowners and neighbors, an environmental attorney said Wednesday.

Deep beneath the Earth’s surface from New York to West Virginia sits the Marcellus Shale, an enormous geological deposit of natural gas. Natural gas is one of the cleanest fuels available — if you can extract it without ruining the water around it.

A massive oil pipeline project could be headed for conflict with First Nations this fall, as angry aboriginal leaders consider blockades to wring concessions from a major energy sector player.

State regulators gave the go-ahead to Xcel Energy's plans for a green makeover: shutting down two coal-fired power plants in the state and building one of the world's largest utility-scale solar power plants.