"HOUSTON -- A federal agency investigating a deadly explosion at a Texas fertilizer plant told a Senate committee Thursday that regulation of the dangerous chemicals used in the industry fall under a 'patchwork' of standards that are decades old and are far weaker than rules used by other countries."

"In response to a massive bumblebee die-off blamed on pesticides, the Oregon Department of Agriculture issued a temporary restriction Thursday on 18 insecticides with the active ingredient dinotefuran."

"COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Federal environmental regulators are investigating a January chemical emergency at an Ohio oil well and asking why an inventory of the facility's chemicals wasn't available to local authorities, according to a letter released Wednesday by a coalition of activists."

"Detectable levels of a large number of environmental chemicals have been found in the cord blood of some newborns, raising concerns that Canadian children already carry toxins in their bodies at birth, a report says."

"The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has concluded that current testing of hormone-altering chemicals is adequate for detecting low-dose effects that may jeopardize health."

In January 2013, representatives of some 140 nations met in Geneva to finish a treaty to minimize emissions of mercury. In the end, they gave an exemption to the use of a mercury compound, thimerosol, as a preservative in some children's vaccines.

"Childhood lead exposure is costing developing countries $992 billion annually due to reductions in IQs and earning potential, according to a new study published today."

"Kish, the visible form of mill's pollution, 'invaded' homes, leaving residents to worry about health effects."

"In 2006, the EPA’s Chicago office told Midwestern fertilizer dealers it found problems with nearly all their safety plans for poisonous anhydrous ammonia. Fix them, the EPA wrote the dealers, or face possible fines."

"To protect profits threatened by a lawsuit over its controversial herbicide atrazine, Syngenta Crop Protection launched an aggressive multi-million dollar campaign that included hiring a detective agency to investigate scientists on a federal advisory panel, looking into the personal life of a judge and commissioning a psychological profile of a leading scientist critical of atrazine."

"Could your driveway be making you sick? Mounting research suggests it could. It's prompting more cities, states and businesses to ban a common pavement sealant linked to higher cancer risks and contaminated soil."

"There's fresh evidence that the chemical bisphenol A, or BPA, may play a part in childhood obesity."

"State and federal investigators in Louisiana are working to uncover what caused fatal blasts at two different chemical plants in the span of two days."

"GEISMAR, La. -- A bomb-like explosion ignited a raging fire at the Williams Olefins chemical plant early Thursday, killing one man and injuring dozens as terrified workers sought shelter from the sprawling flames."

"Syria has crossed a 'red line' with its use of chemical weapons, including the nerve agent sarin gas, against rebels, a move that is prompting the United States to increase the 'scale and scope' of its support for the opposition, the White House said Thursday."