"California lawmakers have rejected a bill seeking to ban plastic shopping bags, after a contentious debate over whether the state was going too far in trying to regulate personal choice."

"A study released on Thursday finds that 39 sites in 21 states where coal-fired power plants dump their coal ash are contaminating water with toxic metals such as arsenic and other pollutants, and that the problem is more extensive than previously estimated."

The application of sewage sludge (renamed "biosolids" by industry PR) to fields has created worries about smell, disease, and toxic contaminants. Federal efforts to track sludge problems have been fragmented, haphazard, and delayed -- which does not inspire confidence in industry-backed federal assurances that sludge is safe. The assurances have preceded the evidence that would support them.

"Chemtura Corp, a producer of specialty chemicals, will pay $26 million to clean up 17 contaminated sites located in 14 U.S. states, under an agreement announced Tuesday by the U.S. Department of Justice."

"In the first case settled under the U.S. EPA's national enforcement push into the mining and mineral processing industry, a Florida fertilizer manufacturer will spend $12 million to reduce and manage hazardous wastes from its Plant City phosphoric acid and ammoniated fertilizer manufacturing facility."

"It's simply known as 'the wall,' a steel-and-concrete structure costing about $22 million that will be pounded deep into the floor of the Elizabeth River near one of the worst toxic-waste sites in Hampton Roads."

"The Army Corps of Engineers wants to use ash cast off from coal-fired electrical generation to shore up dozens of miles of Mississippi River levees, drawing fire from environmentalists worried that heavy metals from the filler might make their way into the river."

"Waste Management on Wednesday began dumping oil-coated materials from Mississippi coast beaches into the Pecan Grove landfill, which it is permitted to do, but which is an activity local officials are against."

"American troops going home from Iraq after seven painful years are leaving behind a legacy that is literally toxic."

"Dutch prosecutors accused Trafigura AG of putting profits ahead of safety at the start of the company's criminal trial Tuesday, saying the oil trader hid hazardous waste in a ship that docked in Amsterdam in 2006 and then exported it illegally."

"Identifying and implementing a worldwide strategy to combat the illegal traffic in electronic waste was the focus of an INTERPOL Global E-Waste Crime Group meeting which concluded today."

"A local agency that's completed hundreds of lead paint remediation projects across San Diego has halted two jobs and launched an internal inquiry as it acknowledges that it may have improperly dumped lead waste for the last decade."

"Electronic waste is the fastest growing category of trash in the U.S. and yet unlike paper and plastic recycling, there are no government-issued labels to tell you where your recycled e-waste goes. Industry leaders and environmental groups are trying to change that with new e-waste recycling certifications. Here's what you need to know about the new labels."

"Ontario’s high-profile electronic waste disposal program is failing to recycle millions of computers and televisions it promised to keep out of landfill."

"Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has agreed to pay $27.6 million to settle allegations that it improperly handled and dumped hazardous waste at stores across California in a case that led to changes in the retailer's practices nationwide, prosecutors said Monday."