U.S. Interior Department

President Joe Biden’s nominee to head the Interior Department faced sharp questions from Republicans Tuesday over what several called her “radical” ideas that include opposition to fracking and the Keystone XL oil pipeline

The U.S. Interior Department’s inspector general is looking into a complaint about a land deal that links Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and the head of energy services giant Halliburton in Zinke’s hometown of Whitefish, Montana, a spokeswoman said Thursday. Democratic lawmakers called for an investigation amid reports that a charitable foundation created by Zinke and run by his wife, Lola,...

U.S. officials said Thursday that they misspoke when they recently announced they had approved an expansion of a Montana coal mine that would keep it operating for another 19 years. U.S. Interior Department spokeswoman Heather Swift said the 60-million-ton mine expansion is under review. In an email, she blamed “internal miscommunication” for the incorrect announcement last Friday about Westmoreland Coal...

Federal authorities say they’ve launched the first national system intended to prevent hobby drones from interfering with planes and helicopters fighting wildfires.