"Some concrete plants and sand facilities in Bayview-Hunters Point have had only draft permits for years. An air district spokesman said finalizing permits have taken longer “than we would have liked.”"

"Raymond Tompkins thinks the high efficiency air filters in his old, gold Mercedes are among the car’s best features. They trap dust and tiny pollution particles, and they’re fitted with activated charcoal to help remove odors—an invaluable function for a longtime resident of San Francisco’s most polluted neighborhood.

"New York State will strengthen its lead poisoning prevention law, reducing the amount allowed in drinking water at public schools and increasing testing frequency, under legislation signed Thursday by Gov. Kathy Hochul (D)."

"Illegal gold mining in the north Amazonian territory of Brazil's indigenous Munduruku people has led to more than half of several hundred people tested showing unsafe mercury levels in their bodies, including children, health researchers say."

"Of the Montana schools that have met the state’s program deadline, most show high levels of lead in school drinking water."

"The world’s largest chemical maker, BASF, produces ingredients for America’s most popular products, from soaps to surface cleaners to dishwasher detergent. Emissions from their U.S. plants elevate cancer risks for an estimated 1.5 million people."

"Engineers know how to protect people from tornadoes like the ones that recently devastated parts of Kentucky, but builders have headed off efforts to toughen standards."

"Lowndes County, Alabama, which sits between Selma and Montgomery, was once called Bloody Lowndes for its central role in the struggle for civil rights. Today people in Lowndes are fighting for another basic right: access to sewage treatment."

"EPA is expanding testing efforts for "forever chemicals" in the nation’s drinking water systems."

"Wood burning stoves in urban areas are responsible for almost half of people’s exposure to cancer-causing chemicals found in air pollution particles, new research has shown."

"The already perilous desert crossing from Mexico to the US will become more dangerous as the climate warms, new research says."