There will not be a full climate deal this year, but officials are hopeful that nations can solidify voluntary agreements. A deadlock ensued as developing countries wanted the Kyoto Protocol to be extended until 2012, as Japan, Russia, and China argued for a wider deal. In addition, the United States has argued for a "legal symmetry," placing more in a new deal under which climate targets for China would have equal force to any commitments by the rich.

France and Spain banned bluefin tuna fishing for the rest of the season after the industry exhausted its quota more quickly than anticipated. Vessels that use sonar to locate the fish have become so efficient that they can fill a season's quota in just 10 days, and the limit was reached within the first two weeks of this year's season. Small-scale fishing for the tuna, using hooks, nets, and traps, will be allowed to continue for the moment. In the Pacific, bluefin found off the coast of the United States carried radioactive contamination from Japan's crippled nuclear plant.

China's state council will likely hold a meeting before the end of June to approve plans for the nuclear industry, according to Xu Yuming, the vice secretary general of the China Nuclear Energy Association. The nation is currently building at least 27 reactors and has 50 more planned, according to the China Nuclear Energy Association.

The United States, Japan, and the European Union (EU) have challenged China's export restrictions on rare earth materials, requesting dispute settlement consultations from the World Trade Organization (WTO). In the first WTO case filed jointly by the parties, they argue that China is driving up the prices of rare earth, crucial to the development of renewable energy technologies, by limiting exports.

Japan will formulate a new energy policy by early 2013 and by March will unveil a range of options to meet energy demand to 2030, the Tokyo Shimbun reported last week. Japan has said that it will boost power conservation and increase the use of renewable energy to make up for power lost from an end to nuclear generation.

A team of visiting nuclear experts warned Japan against becoming "over-conservative" in the future as the country works to clean up as much as 2,400 square kilometers of land affected by the Fukushima disaster. A group of 12 experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency will present its final report on its nine-day mission to the Japanese government next month, but the team has already voiced its opinions on certain remediation methods. It said that removing layers of topsoil contaminated by radiation, a method currently being considered by Japan, would be impractical.

Tokyo Electric Power Co asked a government-backed bailout body for an additional 690 billion yen ($8.8 billion) last week to help compensate victims of the nuclear crisis at its Fukushima Daiichi power plant. To help Japan's biggest utility, known as Tepco, meet costs running into trillions of yen for compensation and cleanup, the government had already agreed in November to provide 890 billion yen ($11.4 billion) through a bailout fund.

Japanese plans to restart nuclear reactors and cap their lifespan at 60 years has drawn anger, as citizen protestors delayed a nuclear watchdog hearing on its stress test results last week. Local officials, whose approval is needed to relaunch nuclear power plants, said that the stress tests are not enough and demanded additional safety standards.