Federal agents from several agencies arrested 12 in a sweep targetting illegal imported pesticides in New York's Chinatown. The unlabelled or mislabelled pesticides were especially dangerous because they could be mistakenly consumed and were potent enough to kill a child.
"As an investigation by the Center for Public Integrity’s iWatch News has shown , oil refining is one of the country’s most dangerous industries, where even seemingly small recurring events such as equipment breakdowns and fires can have fatal consequences. Yet an easily manipulated regulatory system allows companies to delay or avoid improvements. While the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration occasionally appears to take a tough stance, identifying perils and proposing fines, the fines are often small and can be appealed for long periods of time, delaying fixes."
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"Nationwide, water is screened for lead by checking the first sample of water from homeowners' faucets. But results of recent federal testing in Chicago show that although all homes passed that first test, nearly 45 percent had lead levels spike when more water samples were taken directly afterward."
"The White House is under pressure from two democratic senators to release a list of chemicals the Environmental Protection Agency says could endanger human health or the environment. This so-called chemicals of concern list would include eight phthalates, polybrominated diphenyl ethers, and bisphenol A."
"The chemical industry has attempted to block release of EPA’s proposed list over the past year.
After the 9/11 attacks, government and industry warned that chemical plants were a prime terrorist target that could kill thousands of Americans. They moved quickly to make it harder for the public to know how large a threat the plants posed to nearby communities. But a decade later, the nation has yet to adopt a comprehensive anti-terrorism program for chemical plants.
"BRIDGEWATER, NJ -- The floodwaters deposited by Hurricane Irene have submerged a chemical dump in Bridgewater — one of the most toxic sites in the nation — raising serious concerns and spurring several dozen contractors into action even though some sections remain 13 feet underwater."
"Operation Helping Hands, the Catholic ministry that employed thousands of volunteers to rebuild nearly 200 homes after Hurricane Katrina, said Wednesday it will shut down next summer, sooner than expected, because of its disastrous encounter with toxic Chinese drywall."
"Ten years after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, public health and safety watchdogs are increasingly concerned that the country's program for securing chemical facilities from terrorists and thefts contains significant loopholes and leaves millions of Americans at risk."
"Ten years later, responders who breathed the toxic dust and noxious fumes at New York City’s Ground Zero while searching for survivors are still suffering the effects of the attacks. The environmental hazards at the World Trade Center disaster site – mercury from fluorescent light bulbs, dioxin and benzene emitted as the jets burned, asbestos from the building materials, and more – have caused post-traumatic symptoms, severe respiratory ailments, immune problems and, some suspect, a greatly increased cancer risk."
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