"Millions of Americans may be drinking water that is contaminated with dangerous doses of lead. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) knows it; state governments know it; local utilities know it. The only people who usually don’t know it are those who are actually drinking the toxic water."
"GHENT -- The head of a Columbia County chemical recycling company whose plant was destroyed in an inferno last week knows hundreds of gallons of toxic hazardous PCBs were at the site before the fire, but won't know how much burned until the tangled wreckage can be examined."
"LOS ANGELES -- A Los Angeles Superior Court judge has dismissed a lawsuit brought by nearly 3,000 Filipino workers claiming injury from pesticide exposure while worked for Dole Food Co."
"DA NANG, Vietnam -- In the tropical climate of central Vietnam, weeds and shrubs seem to grow everywhere -- except here."
"In the Olympics of pollution, an environmental group has given Kentucky a gold medal of sorts for spewing the most toxic air emissions from its power plants, most of them fueled by coal."
"The damage caused by a fire at the Chevron refinery in Richmond will take months to repair and will hobble one of the West Coast's biggest sources of fuel, industry experts said Wednesday."
Topics of the latest reports, published by the Federation of American Scientists, include Arctic changes, mountaintop mining controversies, pollution control law enforcement, climate change, midnight rulemaking, scientific papers/security risks, oil sands enviro issues, and fracking/drinking water.
What's in that derailed railcar or overturned tanker truck? The answer is often visible on a hazmat placard affixed to the vehicle (we suggest binoculars). The placard often includes a "UN number" which you can look up in the "Hazardous Materials Table" published in the Code of Federal Regulations, among other places.
"Thousands of East Bay residents were ordered to stay in their homes with the windows and doors closed Monday night after a series of explosions and fires tore through Chevron's Richmond refinery."
"After a historic committee vote to advance legislation that would overhaul the country's chemical regulations, it remains unclear whether there is a path for the bill to clear the full Senate -- let alone the House -- before the end of the year."
