A mixed bag of electoral victories in Washington state and Oregon on Tuesday night opened some room for the ambitious climate agendas of the states' green-minded governors. But failure to tip the Washington Senate left environmentalists just shy of the across-the-board victory many had hoped for.

HONG KONG -- The Chinese government for the first time has said publicly that it will cap carbon dioxide emissions from two major polluting industries, but its impact on the nation's overall climate change mitigation remains unclear.

Alaska's cliffhanger gubernatorial election is raising serious concerns about whether the state's major oil companies will continue to work with Alaska to build a proposed multibillion-dollar liquefied natural gas pipeline and export project.

Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) has generally avoided the spotlight during her 14-year Senate career, but an election next month nearly 2,000 miles from her home state could substantially raise her profile on energy policy.

While licking their wounds from this week's losses, environmental groups are now looking at making a difference in future campaigns. "We're all in for 2016," said League of Conservation Voters chief Gene Karpinski yesterday.

Despite their impressive gains last night, Republicans do not appear to have flipped enough seats to undo most of President Obama's environment and climate change agenda.

Keystone XL pipeline supporters looking for a path forward on the project by congressional approval -- rather than waiting for President Obama to decide -- are claiming victory, even as backing from some Democrats remains uncertain.

A majority of the Supreme Court today appeared concerned about federal prosecutors charging a Florida fisherman under a white-collar law with destroying evidence for allegedly tossing fish overboard.