Mark Urycki

The Cleveland river's 1969 burning inspired Randy Newman's song and endless jokes. But its cleanup has been such a success that environmental officials travel from around the world to take notes.

Cleveland wasn't the first city to have a river burn, but it was the first to get widespread attention. That 1969 blaze helped spur environmental regulations.

The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments Tuesday on a citizenship question proposed for the 2020 census. The court's ruling could affect Ohio in several ways. The state is expected to lose a congressional seat and an electoral vote after the 2020 Census, due to population declines. Those seats are apportioned on the basis of all residents in a state, not just citizens.

Ohio Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur says she will vote to defeat the new North American Free Trade Agreement worked out by the Trump Administration last fall. On Friday the Democrat said one of the reasons she is opposed to the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) is an expansion of drug company exclusivity. “You weren’t expecting that the pharmaceutical issue would be hidden in a trade bill but it is,” said Kaptur.

It was a wild ride for Ohio farmers this year. President Trump’s trade war with China cut off exports for many farmers, and it’s affecting their plans for 2019. After President Trump announced tariffs on Chinese steel this spring, China retaliated with a 25 percent tariff on American soybeans and other agricultural products. Medina County farmer Tom Trout says the export market for soybeans completely dried up and prices dropped. “You give the market what it wants, and right now it’s telling us it does not want more soybeans,” Trout said.

Once the traditional holidays of Black Friday and Cyber Monday are over, some Americans look forward to another tradition: the annual Christmas Bird Count. Since 1900 birders have picked one day — sometime around Christmas — to survey as many birds as they can find in a 15 mile diameter circle. Birder Mike Edgerton, a member of the Greater Akron Audubon Society, says it’s been a valuable form of crowd sourcing.

Ohio’s Congressional delegation is sending a new face to Washington but will remain dominated by 12 Republicans over just four Democrats. One district...

The Ohio Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that a lawsuit against the University of Notre Dame and the NCAA may go forward in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas…

The US Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio has announced indictments of four area men on charges of firearms possession. As convicted domestic abusers, they were forbidden from having guns. That crackdown is part of a new effort by law enforcement agencies.

The Army Corps of Engineers is looking to protect its southern flank from invasive species. It’s putting up $2 million to stop the Asian carp and other…