"Microplastics have been found in every human placenta tested in a study, leaving the researchers worried about the potential health impacts on developing foetuses."
"EPA announced an additional $1 billion will go toward cleaning up the nation’s most contaminated areas under its Superfund program." "The funding will help scrub 25 waste sites and speed cleanups at another 85 existing tracts."
"An Ohio commission awarded bids to frack oil and gas under state parks Monday, despite statewide backlash and an ongoing investigation into possibly fraudulent support."
"It was the puddles of green sludge left by the tires of massive tractors in western Belgium’s industrial farmlands that drew the attention of biological engineer Ineke Maes. The slime was destructive algae, the result of the excess of chemicals used by farmers to boost their crops, but at a high cost to nature."
"Federal environment officials have ordered a Los Angeles County landfill to take urgent action to protect public health, citing noxious odors and hazardous waste issues in the surrounding community."
"Texas regulators recently authorized a company to operate ponds to store and recycle millions of gallons of oilfield wastewater laced with toxic chemicals next to a Baptist summer camp in the Permian Basin."
A key U.S. federal agency tasked with investigating the nation’s industrial chemical accidents has been limping along for years. Now, the latest Issue Backgrounder reports that replenished staffing and a funding boost may mean it’s found its footing. But as the pace of chemical accidents accelerates and safety regulations stagnate, will it make a difference?
A new Spill Tracker website is a good source of information on chemical spills, albeit one with an agenda. But according to the latest Reporter’s Toolbox, it’s just one among a set of powerful resources for covering dangerous releases, large and small. More on Spill Tracker, plus another half-dozen-plus government and nonprofit data sources on petrochemical incidents.
"A city and county in Ohio have agreed to pay $112,000 to resolve NewsNation journalist Evan Lambert’s federal civil rights lawsuit, which stemmed from his unlawful arrest last year while covering a press conference about the derailment of a train carrying toxic chemicals in East Palestine, Ohio."
"Two Texas farm families have seen their health decline, their pets and livestock sickened and killed, their water poisoned and and their property values wiped out due to high levels of chemical contamination linked to a company marketing treated sewage sludge as a fertilizer and soil conditioner, according to a lawsuit filed by the families."
