"As nearly a dozen states consider legislation that would ban toxic flame retardants, Illinois apparently will remain on the sidelines of a growing debate about chemicals linked to cancer, developmental problems and impaired fertility."

"The U.S. drinking water and sewage infrastructure earned a barely passing grade of D from the American Society of Civil Engineers today, which said at least $1 trillion is needed to fix the problem."

"The Obama administration is leaning toward revising its landmark proposal to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from new power plants, according to several individuals briefed on the matter, a move that would delay tougher restrictions and could anger many environmentalists."

"The number of people living in extreme poverty could increase by up to 3 billion by 2050 unless urgent action is taken to tackle environmental challenges, a major UN report warned on Thursday."

After CDC researchers confirmed that dengue fever had returned to the U.S., a Key West health officer said no new cases had been reported since October 2010.

"The rotting bodies of about 6,000 pigs in a river that supplies tap water to Shanghai has drawn attention to an ugly truth -- China's pig farms are often riddled with disease and one way or another, sick animals often end up in the food chain."

"Within weeks of setting off a geiger counter and scrubbing three layers of skin off his hands and arms, former Navy quartermaster Maurice Enis recalled being pressured to sign away U.S. government liability for any future health problems."

"TSAWWASSEN, B.C. — With five coal export terminals under consideration in Washington and Oregon, Northwest residents are grappling for the first time with issues that are old hat in coal states like West Virginia and Kentucky. One of those issues: coal dust."

"The EPA has not revised key hazard standards that protect children from lead poisoning since 2001, despite science showing harms at far lower levels of exposure than previously believed."

"ATLANTA, Ga. -- Drug-resistant germs called carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, or CRE, are on the rise and have become more resistant to last-resort antibiotics over the past decade, warns a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."

"Marika Holmgren will never be sure why she was diagnosed with breast cancer at 37. She was a devoted athlete and vegetarian. Cancer ran in her family, but not breast cancer."

"The number of Detroit children with lead levels exceeding a newly revised federal guideline has dropped more than 70 percent, from about 10,000 kids to 2,900 since 2004. Nevertheless, the number of children with elevated lead levels in Detroit and other Rust Belt cities remains much higher than the national average, and low-income people of color are most at risk."

"The rate of advanced breast cancer for U.S. women 25 to 39 years old nearly doubled from 1976 to 2009, a difference too great to be a matter of chance, a study finds."

Researchers and campaigners claim that some 40 percent (19,200) of the children born to mothers taking the epilepsy drug Epilim have developed physical or mental problems.

"High levels of a dangerous toxin found in bagged dog food on a grocery store shelf in Iowa have highlighted the prevalence of a problematic mold in last year's U.S. corn crop, as state and federal officials work on limiting the food safety concern."