Environment

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A helicopter fills a 600-gallon bucket with water from a local reservoir in Alpine, Utah, on Wednesday. Hundreds of homes remained under mandatory evacuation orders. (Associated Press)

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Secretary of Energy Steven Chu (right) and Sen. Harry Reid, Nevada Democrat, announce construction of a hybrid geothermal/solar power plant in Nevada last summer. (Associated Press)

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Oscar Pistorius of South Africa runs with the aid of carbon fiber blades. Both of his legs were amputated below the knee when he was 11 months old. (Associated Press)

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National Animal Firecrackers, seen during an antique fireworks auction from the collection of George Moyer. (Rod Lamkey Jr./The Washington Times)

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Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder says some ballot efforts in November, particularly those by public sector unions, are "a stifling of Michigan's reinvention." (Associated Press)

Homes are left in ruins after being destroyed by the Waldo Canyon Fire in the Mountain Shadows neighborhood of Colorado Springs, Colo., on Monday, July 2, 2012. The 28-square-mile wildfire, which has killed two people and destroyed nearly 350 homes, was 70 percent contained on Monday. (AP Photo/Bryan Oller)

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A member of the Colorado National Guard stands watch at a roadblock leading to homes in the Mountain Shadow area of Colorado Springs on Tuesday. The homes in the background are among 346 destroyed by the Waldo Canyon wildfire. (Associated Press)

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First lady Dolley Madison rescued a portrait of George Washington when she fled the White House set afire by the British in August 1814. (Associated Press)

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Pitbull might be on his way Kodiak, Alaska, if thousands of Wal-Mart voters get their way. (Associated Press)

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In this Tuesday, May 8, 2012 photo a traditional road map of the Pittsburgh area and one showing the same region on an iPad are seen placed together in Moreland Hills, Ohio. Transportation agencies around the country are printing fewer maps to cut costs or just to acknowledge that public demand is down. (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta)

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A North Carolina Air National Guard crew prepares a C-130 cargo plane for wildfire duty on Monday, July 2, 2012, in Albuquerque, N.M. (AP Photo/North Carolina Air National Guard, Michael Wilber)