Environmental Health and Safety


Pressure Increases on FDA to Ban Toxic BPA from Food Packaging

Backed by health and consumer-safety groups, a Massachussetts representative petitions FDA to take action.

Rules Proposed to Limit New Uses of Potentially Harmful Chemicals

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed that companies be required to report to EPA all new uses, including in domestic or imported products, of five groups of potentially harmful chemicals. EPA also calls for additional testing on health and environmental impacts of PBDEs.

Lung Doctors Expect Respiratory Diseases will Worsen with Global Climate Change

Worldwide increases in the incidences of asthma, allergies, infectious and cardiovascular diseases will result from a variety of impacts of global climate change, including rising temperatures, worsening ozone levels in urban areas, the spread of desertification, and expansions of the ranges of communicable diseases as the planet heats up, the professional organization representing respiratory and airway physicians stated in a new position paper.

Kids Go Green with EPA Partnership Programs

Kids Go Green with EPA Partnership Programs

The EPA partners with the Boys and Girls Clubs of America and Scholastic Inc. to bring environmental education to those most likely to bring it home.

Sewage Pollution Continues to be a Major Problem in New Jersey

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved the 2010 list of waters in New Jersey that are considered either impaired or threatened by pollutants.

FDA Approves Revising Regulations for BPA

A 60-day public comment period has been opened by the FDA regarding revisions to regulations on BPA. The chemical is no longer used in bottles or sippy cups.

New Study Shows No Evidence of Groundwater Contamination from Hydraulic Fracturing

Wait. What? Hydraulic fracturing of shale formations to extract natural gas has no direct connection to reports of groundwater contamination, based on evidence reviewed in a study released by the Energy Institute at The University of Texas at Austin.

Even Moderate Air Pollution Can Raise Stroke Risks

Air pollution, even at levels generally considered safe by federal regulations, increases the risk of stroke by 34 percent, according to researchers from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, a patient care, teaching and research affiliate of Harvard Medical School.



Children At Risk for Ingestion of PAHs from Pavement Sealant

A recent study found that children living near coal-tar-sealed pavement are likely to receive a far higher dose of carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from incidental ingestion of house dust than do children living near unsealed pavement, and that dose is more than two times higher than the PAH dose children are estimated to receive from food.

EPA Health Assessment for Popular Dry Cleaning Solvent

In an effort to protect public health, the EPA completed an assessment of the popular dry cleaning solvent - perc. The final assessment determined that perc is a "likely human carcinogen."

Potato Company Pays EPA Penalty for Failing to Report Ammonia Release

Oregon Potato Company failed to report an anhydrous ammonia release at their facility in Warden, Wash., and will pay the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) a $66,235 penalty.

EPA Environmental Justice Grant to Help Farm Workers Reduce Pesticide Risks

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is providing a $25,000 grant to the Comite de Apoyo a los Trabajadores Agrícolas (CATA) to reduce exposure to pesticides for farm workers in southern New Jersey.

EPA Recognizes January as National Radon Action Month

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is encouraging Americans this January, as part of National Radon Action Month, to take simple and affordable steps to test their homes for harmful levels of radon gas.

Walmart Pulls Powdered Infant Formula from Stores after Boy's Death

After the death of a newborn Missouri boy who consumed Enfamil Newborn powdered infant formula, Walmart pulled the product from more than 3,000 of its stores nationwide.

Predicted Rise of Wildfires in Parts of Canada

Large forest regions in Canada are apparently about to experience rapid change. Based on models, scientists can now show that there are threshold values for wildfires just like there are for epidemics. Large areas of Canada are apparently approaching this threshold value and may in future exceed it due to climate change.

Researchers Assess Radioactivity Released to the Ocean from the Fukushima Nuclear Facility

With news this week of additional radioactive leaks from Fukushima nuclear power plants, the impact on the ocean of releases of radioactivity from the plants remains unclear. But a new study by U.S. and Japanese researchers analyzes the levels of radioactivity discharged from the facility in the first four months after the accident and draws some basic conclusions about the history of contaminant releases to the ocean.

City of East Palo Alto, Calif., Cleans Toxic Dump Site to Create Nature Park

Soil in the project area is contaminated with mercury, arsenic, polycyclic biphenyls (PCB's), lead, DDT, dioxins and a host of other chemicals.

American Lung Association Calls for Tougher Soot Limits

Up to 35,700 premature deaths can be prevented in the United States every year if the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) strengthens the health standards for fine particulate matter—also known as soot—according to a new report, Sick of Soot: How the EPA Can Save Lives by Cleaning Up Fine Particle Pollution, prepared by the American Lung Association, Clean Air Task Force, and Earthjustice.

Kawasaki Disease Linked to Wind Currents

Kawasaki Disease (KD) is a severe childhood disease that many parents, even some doctors, mistake for an inconsequential viral infection. In fact, if not diagnosed or treated in time, it can lead to irreversible heart damage. After 50 years of research, including genetic studies, scientists have been unable to pinpoint the cause of the disease.

feature pet waste

DNA Lab Aims to Reduce Your Pet's Carbon Footprint

There’s an unsuspecting culprit contributing to U.S. water pollution: pet poop.