"With the new year, Maryland becomes the first state to ban the use of additives containing arsenic in chicken feed, a practice already prohibited by Canada and the European Union."

"A group of community organizations has sued the Environmental Protection Agency about new rules on pesticide emissions, saying the regulations do too little to protect public health."

"The calls to the city of Houston's 311 help line came in the early morning and the middle of the night - complaints of red smoke, yellow smoke, explosions, fire, a child having trouble breathing."

"A new strain of MRSA has been found in British milk, indicating that the superbug is spreading through the livestock population and poses a growing threat to human health."

"Early next year, a sophisticated air quality monitor is expected to go into operation near O.D. Wyatt High School in Fort Worth, the 11th such device deployed to measure pollutants in the Barnett Shale."

"Salmon that has been genetically engineered to grow twice as fast as its natural counterpart inched a little closer toward the nation’s dinner tables on Friday."

"A landmark Environmental Protection Agency report concluding that children exposed to toxic substances can develop learning disabilities, asthma and other health problems has been sidetracked indefinitely amid fierce opposition from the chemical industry."

"Most livestock moved across state lines will have to be identified and tracked under a U.S. Department of Agriculture rule that aims to rapidly trace diseased animals to their origin."

"The Lancet recently unveiled a major overview of global health risks -- and one of the most eye-catching papers highlighted just how deadly air pollution has become over the past two decades."

"In late November, the city council of South Jordan, Utah, approved construction of a large indoor shooting range despite appeals from local residents and physicians worried about increases in lead exposures and gun violence."