Gulf Coast tourism suffers from perception of oil-coated towns and may take years to recover

For Gulf tourism, problem is perception _ not oil

US Fish & Wildlife Service proposes restoring whooping cranes in Louisiana bayou country

Whooping cranes may return to Louisiana

NEW ORLEANS — The whooping crane — one of the world’s most endangered birds and one of the first animals on the U.S. endangered list — could be back in Louisiana’s wetlands as early as February under a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposal.

Final tests to precede ’static kill’ attempt in Gulf of Mexico

WASHINGTON/NEW ORLEANS - Oil company BP Plc was planning final tests Tuesday before a possible attempt to permanently seal its damaged well on the floor of the Gulf of Mexico.

Crews remove Gulf relief well plug, another step toward getting ready to kill it

BP tries to reinvent self with American CEO; Hayward agrees but grouses, ‘Life isn’t fair’

BP hopes to turn page with new CEO, leaner company

Drilling company executive tells oil spill panel that ‘reckless operating mistakes’ to blame

Competitor points to BP-driller relationship

Officials tout value of skimming ships in oil cleanup, but can’t measure their worth

Value of oil skimming Gulf flotilla is uncertain

Essence Music Fest, educators and cleanup crews fill New Orleans over the 4th of July holiday

Essence Fest helps sustain New Orleans amid spill

BP says new tests show it’s on target to finish drilling relief well by mid-August

BP says Gulf relief well on target for mid-August

Texas uses water-based cranes, shears to target decades of scuttled vessels in Gulf of Mexico

Texas targets decades of abandoned ships off coast

BP preparing to start burning at sea oil siphoned from leaking well in Gulf of Mexico

BP to start burning captured Gulf oil at sea

BP cuts pipe with giant shears, plans to lower cap over Gulf oil gusher

Coast Guard: BP engineers turn to giant shears to saw off leaking pipe spewing oil into Gulf

BP encounters another setback in effort to contain the blowout; oil threatens Fla. beaches

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BP: saw became stuck after cutting 45 percent of pipe in effort to contain oil

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BP encounters another setback in effort to contain blowout as oil threatens Fla. beaches

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Coast Guard: BP making 1st major cut in latest attempt to contain _ not plug _ Gulf leak

Giant containment dome to bottle up oil in the Gulf soon headed to site of massive spill

EPA to study environmental impact of drilling method used to recover natural gas in shale

EPA to study ‘fracking’ gas drilling method

Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra posts final workout before 2010 debut Saturday

Rachel Alexandra has final work before 2010 debut

River project that promised to build land along coastal La. shuts down after 6 years, $33M

Land-building project in Lousiana shuts down

Panama Canal expansion plan has Gulf ports racing for potential new business

Canal expansion sets off race among Gulf ports

Somali pirates hijack ship with $20M of oil, showing difficulty of protecting supertankers

Somali pirates hijack $20M of oil going to US

Thousands of Dr. Sueuss-like creatures live in dark ocean depths, report finds

Thousands of strange creatures found deep in ocean

Report: Thousands of deep-sea dwellers found scavenging in the ocean’s pitch-black recesses

Study: Scavengers big and small dwell in deep sea