Erica Peterson

Today marks six months from the day tornadoes tore through parts of Indiana and Kentucky, killing more than 30 and destroying buildings in their path. Churches in Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio are marking the milestone.

The federal Mine Safety and Health Administration is reporting increases in the number of miners who have filed discrimination complaints after reporting safety violations.

Federal law protects miners who report unsafe working conditions to employers, or refuse to work until the problem is fixed. But Assistant Secretary of Labor Joe Main says that after the explosion at the Upper Big Branch Mine in West Virginia two years ago, it was obvious many miners were afraid to exercise their rights.

A coal operator is suing a West Virginia newspaper and reporter for libel.

Kentucky's whiskey fungus lawsuits are getting some national attention. The New York Times ran a piece yesterday about the fungus--scientifically called Baudoinia--that's prevalent on the outside of distilleries and homes near them. The lawsuit charges that the fungus germinates on ethanol which is released during fermentation.

A large coal-burning power plant in Illinois that provides electricity to some areas of Western Kentucky and Indiana is under fire. A non-profit analyzed the costs of the plant and the numbers suggest ratepayers in eight states are paying more than they should.

So much for hopes that rainy weather would keep ozone levels in the Louisville Metro area in the normal range. The Air Pollution Control District is forecasting the air will be unhealthy for sensitive groups (like the elderly, the young, and those with heart and lung conditions) on Thursday.

Ozone levels are expected to be high, and the Air Quality Index is predicted to be 106.

IdeaFestival 2012 will kick off with a day-long conference about water--how we use it, what happens when there's not enough of it and how groups and countries are addressing the global water crisis.

The Obama Administration has announced new fuel economy standards for cars and small trucks that will go into effect in five years.

Starting in 2017, cars and light trucks will have to be more fuel efficient than they are now. By 2025, the average car’s fuel economy will be 54.5 miles per gallon.

The Transit Authority of River City is ramping up service in and around downtown.

TARC is increasing the frequency buses arrive and depart along the entire length of 4th Street in downtown Louisville.

North of Central Ave, the 4th Street bus will run every 10 minutes from 6am to 9pm. South of Central, it will run every 20 minutes.

The new schedule has been in effect since August 12. TARC Executive Director Barry Barker says this comes on the heels of increasing the frequency of the number 18 and 23 buses last year.

The Louisville Metro area is coming off of a string of bad air quality days, in which ozone levels were high enough to be unhealthy for many people. But relief may be on the horizon.

There were four consecutive air quality alerts called last week, but ozone levels were only high enough to exceed the federal standard on three of those days: Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

Air Pollution Control District spokesman Tom Nord says the weather could be tricky to predict this week, but it seems likely Louisville’s ozone levels will remain normal for now.