The state was at odds with the EPA and Rutland aldermen losing confidence in their police chief were among the top stories this week.

The City of Rutland is grappling with a crisis in its Police Department, stemming from a child pornography investigation focused on an officer. We talk with Mayor Chris Louras about how the police investigation is being handled, and other critical issues facing Rutland. And reporter Candace Page explains why the EPA is looking at Vermont's Lake Champlain Cleanup goals.

Governor Jim Douglas and the US Environmental Protection Agency are feuding over the future of Lake Champlain.

(Host) Pollution from underground petroleum storage tanks continues to be a problem around Vermont. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded $1 million to Vermont's Environmental Conservation Department to deal with the issue.

The Environmental Protection Agency says repairs are needed at a Superfund pollution site on Burlington's Lake Champlain waterfront.

More than $20 million from the EPA will go toward cleaning up water supplies and the rest will clean up diesel emissions.

With oil prices high and winter on the way, Vermonters are turning back to wood for heat. But many outdoor wood heaters are smoky and inefficient. As a result, state environmental regulators have imposed tough standards to control the pollution.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says the owners of a Richford farm will be fined and ordered to make amends for illegally converting 40 acres of wetlands into hay fields.

Vermont has joined twelve states, New York City and the District of Columbia in suing the Environmental Protection Agency, claiming the Bush Administration has failed to rein in emissions from oil refineries.

A dozen environmental groups want the Environmental Protection Agency to force Vermont to do a better job controlling water pollution. One organization wants to go even further.  

Experts say it's time for the state and federal governments to figure out new ways to pay for highways and other transportation systems; Vermont's Health Department has run out of a vaccine to protect people against shingles; the University of Vermont and the Environmental Protection Agency want to figure out the financial value of the natural world.

Dr. Robert Costanza is the Gund Institute's Director and recently visited our VPR studios to help explain the goals of his research into ecological economics.

Air quality is expected to reach unhealthy levels in southern Vermont today.

Governor Jim Douglas says it's taking longer than he expected to reduce phosphorus levels in Lake Champlain. But Douglas says he's convinced that the state has the right strategy to improve the quality of the lake over time. VPR's Bob Kinzel reports.

Governor Jim Douglas' office has been in a high-profile disagreement with the EPA about cleaning up Lake Champlain. We discuss this issue and others, and we take your calls.

Here are the top stories at 7:30 a.m.: Last week, the Environmental Protection Agency angered Governor Jim Douglas with its criticism of the state's efforts to clean up Lake Champlain. But the EPA's concerns are not new. A year ago, the federal agency told the state it needs to do more to cut phosphorus pollution in the big lake; Four Chittenden County police departments plan to start recording the race of people who are stopped on Vermont's roads and in other detentions in an effort to reduce prejudice that leads to racial profiling...

Last week, the Environmental Protection Agency angered Governor Jim Douglas with its criticism of the state's efforts to clean up Lake Champlain. But the EPA's concerns are not new. A year ago, the federal agency told the state it needs to do more to cut phosphorus pollution in the big lake. VPR's John Dillon has more:

The Environmental Protection Agency's criticism about the pace of cleaning up Lake Champlain has become a debate about science - and about politics. Governor Jim Douglas says it's another example of the Bush administration's refusal to effectively deal with environmental issues. But as VPR's Ross Sneyd reports, Democrat Gaye Symington sides with the EPA and says it's Douglas who has failed the environment.

Governor Jim Douglas is panning the Environmental Protection Agency for its criticism of Vermont's efforts to clean up Lake Champlain.

The Environmental Protection Agency has some harsh words for Vermont's efforts to clean up the phosphorus that flows into Lake Champlain; more...