An environmental group sues the Cuomo administration to secure the release of documents that would shed more light on how the state drafted its plan to permit high-volume hydraulic fracturing for shale gas. It wants full disclosure of public records on communications between the governor, six other senior officials and representatives of the oil and natural gas industry. [Environmental Working Group]

Five suggestions for ways that hydraulic fracturing could be made safer. [Sage Magazine]

PBS NewsHour is under scrutiny for extensively quoting Anthony Watts, a meteorologist and climate change skeptic. [Media Matters]

M.I.T researchers propose a new cleanup technology for offshore oil spills: using magnets to separate oil from water. [Mother Nature Network]

New York takes top ranking in a survey of America’s dirtiest cities, followed by New Orleans and Baltimore. [Travel and Leisure]

The Japanese government retreats from its pledge to phase out nuclear power by 2040 after its plan draws opposition from business groups and communities whose economies depend on the plants. [The New York Times]