Chemicals

"Environmental regulators on Thursday directed six natural gas drillers to disclose how they dispose of or recycle waste water in Pennsylvania after a recent Chesapeake Energy Corp accident."

"Sockeye salmon are exposed to a soup of chemicals in the Fraser River, and some of the ingredients are accumulating to potentially lethal levels in eggs, while others may be disrupting the sexual function of fish, according to a scientific review conducted for the Cohen Commission."

Phosphorus, mined primarily from phosphate rock, is a key fertilizer ingredient that maintains U.S. farm productivity. But once it runs off into lakes and streams it can be too much of a good thing.

"On a quiet back road near Turtle Lake, a metaphorical battle is being waged between neighbors Katrina Blair and Scott Sallee. The two fight over city contracts, but the differences are philosophical, ecological and – for Blair, at least – almost religious."

"Washington has become the first state to ban pavement sealants that contain coal tar. The state made the move in response to recent studies that show runoff from macadam treated with these products can pollute lakes and streams."

"Representatives from 127 governments have agreed to add endosulfan to the United Nations' list of persistent organic pollutants to be eliminated worldwide. The action puts the widely-used pesticide on track for elimination from the global market by 2012."

A 14-year-old federal loan program, the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, has helped managers of community water systems like Steven Meade in Atlanta, Idaho, provide safe and clean water for their customers via loans. No more. Republican-led budget cuts mean Meade's community can't make its water fit to drink.

EPA's work on possible limits to hexavalent chromium (the 'Erin Brockovich' contaminant) in drinking water may spark a battle like the one over arsenic.

"Four authors of a new report concluding that bisphenol A is safe have ties to companies and groups that benefit from the controversial chemical."