Chemicals

"On Thursday, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ordered rail operator Norfolk Southern to begin testing for dioxins."

"The Environmental Protection Agency is expected to propose restrictions on harmful “forever chemicals” in drinking water after finding they are dangerous in amounts so small as to be undetectable. But experts say removing them will cost billions, a burden that will fall hardest on small communities with few resources."

"President Biden on Thursday threw his support behind a bipartisan bill that would tighten federal oversight of trains carrying hazardous materials in the aftermath of a derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, that spilled toxic chemicals."

"A settlement between environmental groups and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency could for the first time impose regulations on hundreds of coal ash sites nationwide that are not covered by 2015 federal coal ash rules."

"Railroads including the one whose train derailed and caught fire in Ohio would have to follow new safety rules under bipartisan legislation introduced Wednesday by the state’s two U.S. senators, even as regulators plan to step up inspections on tracks carrying the most hazardous materials."

"Federal officials sued a Louisiana chemical maker on Tuesday, alleging that it presents an unacceptable cancer risk to the nearby majority-Black community and demanding cuts in toxic emissions."

"A pair of House Democrats on Tuesday unveiled a bill that would tighten regulations for trains with hazardous materials, a direct response to the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, earlier this month that spilled chemicals into the area."

"All fish caught in Michigan rivers and tested for toxic PFAS contained the chemicals – and at levels that present a health risk for anyone eating them, according to a new study."

"Critics are describing the Biden administration’s opening position in a United Nations effort to reach a global treaty or agreement to end plastic waste as vague and weak, despite its recognition of a need to end plastic pollution by 2040."

"Plastic use in G20 countries is on course to nearly double by the middle of the century unless a comprehensive and legally binding global treaty to curb consumption is drawn up, according to research published on Monday."