Chemicals

"Gov. Peter Shumlin on Tuesday signed into law a program to regulate toxic chemicals in children’s products."

"Pesticide use is surging among U.S. corn farmers who are worried that some insects have become resistant to genetically modified versions of the crop."

"Most babies born prematurely and one-third of full-term infants are exposed to chemicals found in vinyl 'at a potentially harmful level,' according to new research in Finland."

"Spokane is taking what’s described as another big step toward improving water quality."

"ASHEVILLE – It was almost 15 years ago when Bob Taylor first smelled the rancid chemical stench emanating from a spring basin on his friend’s property off Mills Gap Road."

"A federal working group released a report Friday that details how the government can improve chemical plant safety and security, more than a year after the deadly explosion at a West, Texas, fertilizer plant."

"Pregnant women exposed to lead had newborns who scored slightly lower on tests measuring reflexes and other skills tied to brain development, according to a new study from China."

"The push to rid our bodies and the environment of toxic flame retardants just got a powerful boost from a major health care system, according to experts."

"Venom from one of the world's most poisonous spiders may help save the world's honeybees, providing a biopesticide that kills pests but spares the precious pollinators."

"A trial in federal court in Bangor beginning Tuesday will decide whether a chemical company responsible for dumping mercury from a now-closed plant in Orrington will be required to clean up the contamination that still remains decades later along the banks of the Penobscot River and the mouth of Penobscot Bay."