Environment

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A pine tree possibly felled by a tornado damaged the home of Bob Van Derwart near Woodstock, Ga., on Monday, Sept. 5, 2011. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Smoke from a wildfire hangs in the sky on Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2011, in Bastrop, Texas. Officials hope calmer winds will help firefighters battling the fires, which have destroyed nearly a thousand homes in the state in the past week. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

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Quarterback Stephen Morris (17) of the Miami Hurricanes runs into the end zone for a touchdown in the second half at Byrd Stadium at the University of Maryland in College Park, MD, Monday September 5, 2011. (Andrew Harnik / The Washington Times)

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Wide receiver Quintin McCree (#17) of the Maryland Terrapins breaks a runs against the Miami Hurricanes in Byrd Stadium at the University of Maryland, on Monday September 5, 2011. (Andrew Harnik / The Washington Times)

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Miami Hurricanes fan Cetera Bunch wears a shirt which makes reference to the recent controversy surrounding the Hurricanes football program at Byrd Stadium at the University of Maryland, on Monday September 5, 2011. (Andrew Harnik / The Washington Times)

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Six months after a tsunami and nuclear disaster wiped out the fishing industry in northeastern Japan and scared domestic and foreign consumers away from Japanese seafood, Ofunato's fish market is bustling again. (Christopher Johnson/Special to The Washington Times)

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A man walks on driftwood piled up on a bridge on Monday, Sept. 5, 2011, after powerful Typhoon Talas struck Kiho, Japan. (AP Photo/Kyodo News)

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ASSOCIATED PRESS Baltimore Gas & Electric contractor Nate Mickel of Altoona, Pa., works on a power line in Annapolis the day Hurricane Irene hit.

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Overflowing water from a river floods a residential area in Nachikatsuura, Japan, on Sunday, Sept. 4, 2011. (AP Photo/Kyodo News)

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The emperor penguin nicknamed "Happy Feet," who washed up on a New Zealand shore two months ago, looks out of his temporary crate before his release into the Antarctic Ocean on Sunday, Sept. 4, 2011. (AP Photo/National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research Ltd.)

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In this image released by New Zealand's National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research Ltd., the wayward emperor penguin dubbed "Happy Feet" slides down a makeshift water slide into the Antarctic Ocean south of New Zealand as he is released from the NIWA research vessel Tangaroa on Sunday, Sept. 4, 2011. (AP Photo/NIWA)

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North Korean workers unload emergency flood aid sent from the United States at the Pyongyang airport in North Korea on Saturday, Sept. 3, 2011. The small but symbolic shipment of emergency aid for the flood-stricken North is the latest sign of a thaw in relations between the countries. (AP Photo/Associated Press Television News)

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Alabama Department of Transportation road crews clear debris from the road to Dauphin Island, Ala., early on Sunday, Sept. 4, 2011, as Tropical Storm Lee continued to meander along the Gulf Coast, bringing torrential rains and flooding. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin greets supporters at The Machine Shed restaurant, in Urbandale, Iowa, Friday, Sept. 2, 2011. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

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Tropical Storm Irene caused road and building damage along Route 15 in New York, Thursday, Sept.1, 2011. Utility companies continue to bring New York electricity customers back on line, but almost 182,000 are still blacked out four days after Irene pounded the state with drenching rains and high winds. (AP Photo/Hans Pennink)

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**FILE** In this photo from June 15, 2011, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Lisa Jackson testifies on Capitol Hill. (Associated Press)

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** FILE ** In this May 26, 2011, file photo, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) headquarters is seen in Rockville, Md. The risk of an earthquake causing a severe accident at a nuclear power plant is up to 24 times greater than previously believed, according to an AP analysis of preliminary government data, and the nation’s nuclear regulator believes that a quarter of reactors may need modifications to make them safer. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

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ASSOCIATED PRESS Workers install safety netting at the Washington National Cathedral on Thursday after the landmark was damaged Aug. 23 by a 5.8-magnitude earthquake. A cathedral spokesman said no additional debris is expected to fall, adding that the netting is strictly a precautionary measure.

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A worker attaches a chain to a washed-out rail line in Phoenicia, N.Y., in the Catskill Mountains. Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Irene caused $1 billion in damage in New York, most of it from flooding upstate.

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In this Jan. 31, 2010 photo, a visitor inspects a Honda Motor Co.'s hybrid Fit at the Japanese automaker's headquarters in Tokyo. The Fit subcompact beat Toyota Motor Corp.'s Prius hybrid last month to top Japan's auto sales model rankings, its first return to that spot in nearly two years, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association said Friday, Feb. 4, 2011. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara)