Environmental Health

"Lawsuit helped force an update of emissions standards for dangerous chemicals that went unchanged nearly 30 years."

"TEXAS CITY, Texas — Renetta Trylas had not heard about plans to build one of the world’s largest methanol plants less than 3 miles from her neighborhood, even though it has been more than six months since the land was leased by Chinese entrepreneurs behind the project."

"The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is concerned that a House proposal to reform the nation’s toxic chemical laws could “delay evaluations for some of the most dangerous chemicals indefinitely,” a top official said Tuesday."

"Massive legal loophole means companies can add new ingredients to foods with no government safety review".

"At least nine oil workers have died since 2010 from inhaling toxic amounts of vapors while measuring crude oil in storage tanks at well sites, according to new findings by federal researchers."

"HINKLEY, Calif. -- Maneuvering his pickup through this Mojave Desert town, resident Daron Banks pointed at empty lot after empty lot."

"Home improvement chain Lowe's Cos Inc will stop selling a type of pesticide suspected of causing a decline in honeybee populations needed to pollinate key American crops, following a few U.S. retailers who have taken similar steps last year."

"The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has sounded the alarm on a common foodborne illness that has acquired a new and challenging type of drug resistance—and the discovery betrays the difficulty, not just of finding new treatments, but of tracking resistance as it moves around the world."

"Traceability in the food system is the goal, but questions remain since the E. coli outbreak in spinach nine years ago."

"After thousands of people were sickened by tainted eggs, peanut butter and spinach, Congress passed a sweeping food safety law in 2010 that gave the Food and Drug Administration new powers to prevent additional outbreaks. But lawmakers have not provided enough money for the mission."