"XINGFU, China — Last month, scientists disclosed a global pollution mystery: a surprise rise in emissions of an outlawed industrial gas that destroys the atmosphere’s protective ozone layer. ... Now, a trail of clues leads to this scrappy industrial boomtown in rural China."
"Scott Pruitt, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency, discussed hiring a friend of a lobbyist family that owned a condominium he was renting for $50 a night, newly released emails suggest. The files also show communications involving the lobbyist’s client interests that have not previously been disclosed, suggesting a closer relationship between the lobbyist, J. Steven Hart, and the agency than previously known."
"The 13 bald eagles were found lifeless on a Maryland farm more than two years ago, many with wings splayed, bodies intact, and talons clenched. ... And at least six, according to a federal lab report, had ingested a highly toxic pesticide that essentially has been banned from the U.S. market, in part because it is lethal to birds."
"The House passed its farm bill Thursday by a vote of 213-211 after weeks of uncertainty over whether leadership would be able to secure enough support within the fractious GOP Conference to pass a measure that is critical to farm country."
"New York state sued 3M Co and five other companies to recover the cost of cleaning up environmental contamination caused by toxic chemicals in firefighting foam that they manufactured."
"The CDC has quietly published a controversial review of perfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, that indicates more people are at risk of drinking contaminated water than previously thought."
"The idea that pesticides are essential to feed a fast-growing global population is a myth, according to UN food and pollution experts."
"Hawaii became the first state in the country to ban pesticides containing chlorpyrifos, a chemical that has been linked to disruptions in the brain development of babies and young children, with Gov. David Ige signing the measure into law on Wednesday."
"The Environmental Protection Agency intends to block an Obama-era proposal and effectively shield companies from scrutiny about how they prevent and respond to chemical disasters. At a hearing Thursday, agency officials got an earful from dozens of people who live and work near refineries and chemical facilities across the country."
"The federal agency that frequently investigates chemical disasters in Houston and elsewhere is struggling to function amid an exodus of investigators and management’s push toward more lenient treatment of industry, interviews and documents show."
