SEJ members have complained a lot over many years about difficulties getting information and interviews from US EPA. SEJ officers and FOI watchdogs have talked to EPA about the problems for a long time, too. If a regular call to a line press officer brings poor results, try explaining your problem to the boss — here are their numbers!
Explosions from ammonium nitrate fertilizer, like the one in West, Texas that killed 15 people in April 2013, are only one of many hazards posed to communities from dangerous materials under the purview of EPA and other agencies. Toxic inhalation hazards could kill tens of thousands of people if released in crowded areas. Here are several tools to help you find local facilities that handle toxic, explosive, flammable, corrosive, and otherwise hazardous materials.
Until recently the American food revolution seemed to have bypassed the Rustbelt region which rims the Great Lakes from Buffalo to Detroit. But an "interdependent web of chefs, butchers, farmers, millers, bakers and brewers" there are "cooking sustainably, supporting agriculture and raising families — all while making world-class food with a strong sense of place."
"Gov. Jerry Brown said Tuesday that he intends to change California's landmark consumer-safety law in an attempt to reduce frivolous lawsuits and give the public clearer information about toxic chemicals."
"Federal judges wrestled today with whether U.S. EPA ran afoul of the law in directing states to implement regulations to address climate change."
"A coalition of progressive groups is pulling its ads from Facebook in protest over political positions taken by the organization started by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg."
"Scott Lee, an ardent fisherman from Oak Ridge, Tennessee, has an opinion as to whether Barack Obama should sell the federally chartered Tennessee Valley Authority to private investors: Don't do it."
"NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. — Inside a warehouse near the Canadian border, boneless hams bound for Philadelphia are coming off a tractor-trailer from Toronto under the gaze of a federal food inspector. Each week, about 20 of the 150 food trucks from Canada are rejected because of paperwork problems or contaminated meat."
"Methane emissions from coal mines escaped being curbed by the Environmental Protection Agency, which said mandatory U.S. budget cuts didn't leave it with the resources to determine if the pollution is a significant risk."
"President Obama's comments over the weekend about his looming decision on whether to expand natural gas exports are the clearest indication yet that the White House intends to greenlight broader global sales of U.S. natural gas, a prospect that has attracted strong backing in states that produce or process the fuel while drawing criticism from some environmentalists and from energy-intensive manufacturers concerned that energy costs would dramatically rise as a result."
