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"Exxon's Secrecy Over Ruptured Pipeline Could Mask National Dangers"
InsideClimate News, 07/18/2013"Reports that would reveal whether Exxon properly maintained its Pegasus pipeline are being kept from the public. The data has national ramifications."
Organophosphate Insecticide Said To Cause Indian School Lunch Deaths
LA Times, 07/18/2013"ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Indian authorities on Wednesday were trying to determine how food served as part of a free school lunch program got tainted with insecticide, leading to the deaths of at least 22 children and the hospitalization of more than two dozen others."
"Fertilizer Industry Grows Despite Safety Concerns"
AP, 07/18/2013"TUSCOLA, Ill. -- In years past, Brian Moody's efforts to bring economic development to his small Illinois town focused on modest projects: merging an old hardware store whose owner was retiring with another shop to preserve 30 jobs or pointing artists to a vacant downtown building."
"Steam Detected at Damaged Fukushima Reactor"
The Diplomat, 07/18/2013"TOKYO — The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant stood ready Thursday to inject boric acid into one of its most heavily damaged reactors after it found steam emanating from the reactor building. The preventive measure would stave off sustained nuclear reactions in the reactor’s damaged core, though officials stressed that such reactions were a remote possibility."
"Ageing Nuclear Reactors Pose Safety Challenge: IAEA"
Reuters, 07/17/2013"Significant progress was made last year in strengthening nuclear safety around the world, the U.N. atomic watchdog said in its annual review, despite the 'challenge' posed by a large number of ageing reactors."
"Survivors of Quebec Train Crash To File Class Action Suit"
Reuters, 07/17/2013"LAC-MEGANTIC, Quebec -- Two residents of the Quebec town of Lac-Megantic, where a runaway train derailed and exploded into a wall of fire that killed 50 people, have launched a class action lawsuit to win compensation for the small community."
"PUC Staff Recommends $300 Million Fine For PG&E Over San Bruno Blast"
Oakland Tribune, 07/17/2013"SAN BRUNO -- Taking a tougher stand against PG&E, a revamped state regulatory body on Tuesday recommended that the utility be fined at least $300 million -- the largest ever imposed by the Public Utilities Commission -- as part of a $2.25 billion penalty for the company's role in the deadly San Bruno natural gas explosion."
"Chemical Board to Rebuke Unacceptable Delay on U.S. Rules"
Bloomberg, 07/16/2013"The Obama administration’s lack of action to impose recommended changes to make refineries, chemical factories and sugar plants safer is set to get a public rebuke from the U.S. Chemical Safety Board."
"Many Mishaps Among Drillers, But Few Fines"
EnergyWire, 07/16/2013"If Kristi Mogen causes a crash on the road, she knows she'll probably get a ticket and have to pay a fine. So she's frustrated that Wyoming officials didn't fine Chesapeake Energy Corp. for an April 2012 blowout near her home outside Douglas, Wyo. The ruptured gas well spewed gas and chemicals for three days, forcing her and her neighbors to evacuate their homes." ...
Full Extent of Heavy Metal Contamination in Exxon Spill Still Unknown
InsideClimate News, 07/16/2013"Levels of manganese, a neurotoxin, in the cove and in a nearby creek were 10, 20 or nearly 30 times above the EPA's safety standard for tap water."
"TEPCO's Plan To Halt Spread of Radioactive Water Based on Shaky Theory"
Asahi Shimbun, 07/15/2013"Tokyo Electric Power Co. has started taking measures to contain highly radioactive groundwater at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, but its strategy is based on a theory that is disputed by industry experts."
Louisiana Seafood: Did BP Spill and River Diversions Strain Oysters?
New Orleans Times-Picayune, 07/15/2013"It’s difficult to talk about Louisiana seafood these days without the BP oil spill working its way into the conversation. It wasn’t that long ago, after all, that television screens were filled with high-def images of fouled coastal marsh and angry fishermen forlornly staring at their idled fleet."
"Confirmed: Fracking Triggers Quakes and Seismic Chaos"
Mother Jones, 07/12/2013"Major earthquakes thousands of miles away can trigger reflex quakes in areas where fluids have been injected into the ground from fracking and other industrial operations, according to a study published in the journal Science on Thursday."
"Leaner BP Blanches at Bill for Cleanup"
NY Times, 07/12/2013"HOUSTON — Three years after its disastrous oil rig accident in the Gulf of Mexico, BP has managed to strengthen its finances by divesting itself of less profitable operations, ramping up new oil production in the North Sea and Angola and reducing its exposure to volatile investments in Russia."
Maine Oil Spill Cleanup Fund Tanks, Leaving State Vulnerable: Experts
Reuters, 07/12/2013"AUGUSTA, Maine -- A steep decline in revenues from pipeline tariffs and a loophole that allowed companies shipping crude by rail to avoid payment have slashed Maine's oil-spill fund to levels experts say could hurt its ability to respond to an accident."

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