"Critics call on FDA and EPA to review popular anti-microbial's safety in light of new science."

"We’ve come a long way since the days when kids played in clouds of DDT, gas stations sold leaded gasoline, and smoking near youngsters was commonplace."

"The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency banned 12 rodent poisons made by the United Kingdom-based Reckitt Benckiser Inc. because the products failed to abide by safety regulations, the agency announced Wednesday."

"Pesticides blamed for killing bees have been removed from the shelves of Britain's biggest gardening chains, prompting calls for similar chemicals widely-used on farms to be banned completely."

"Levels of PFOS, a chemical manufactured by 3M Co. for a variety of commercial uses until about 10 years ago, have improved significantly in the Mississippi River between Hastings and St. Paul -- except for the area around the company's Cottage Grove plant, where they have worsened."

"The mining of rare earth metals, used in everything from smart phones to wind turbines, has long been dominated by China. But as mining of these key elements spreads to countries like Malaysia and Brazil, scientists warn of the dangers of the toxic and radioactive waste generated by the mines and processing plants."

"PepsiCo Inc. will remove a controversial chemical that is added to orange Gatorade in response to customer complaints. Outcry over the chemical, known as brominated vegetable oil, or BVO, had been building over the past year."

ExxonMobil is the last defendant in a landmark lawsuit in New Hampshire over contamination of drinking water withthe gasoline additive MTBE. Citgo is in talks to settle out of court.