The EPA has classified Colorado as a 'serious' violator of federal air laws for ozone. Colorado has been failing ozone air pollution standards since 2004, creating a greater presence of asthma in the Denver and Front Range communities. Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment plans to issue 600 new permits that will set limits on [...]
Ohio is home to some of the nation’s most natural lands, with acres of beautiful forests, countless national parks and glistening water systems. It is a well sought after spot for a natural getaway. On the other hand, it is also a well sought after spot for industry that has placed the state as the [...]
Two weeks after the TPC plant explosion, the Environmental Protection Agency has transferred the site cleanup oversight to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). Response efforts have been focused on site equipment recovery. TPC will continue to monitor the air surrounding the facility; however, current reports conclude that there is no actionable levels of butadiene [...]
The National Library of Medicine is retiring access to helpful resources in toxics identification, including TOXNet and TOXMap. Both data resources were developed to make it easier for the public to view chemicals being released from plants located in their own neighborhoods. Access to these databases will end on Monday, December 16, 2019. Read More.
The Environmental Working Group has created an interactive map displaying 305 U.S. military sites that are known to have discharged firefighting foam containing PFAS. Each site includes information about the base, key findings associated with PFAS contamination and additional resources. Read More. View the interactive map here.
The Environmental Integrity Project has released a report examining the budget trends and staffing levels for state public health and environmental protection agencies from the years 2008 to 2018. The report found that of the 48 states examined (Hawaii and Alaska not included) 31 states reduced funding for environmental agencies with 25 states creating cuts up [...]
Albany, New York Governor, Andrew Cuomo signed a bill yesterday, December 9, that will ban the sale of certain cleaning products, cosmetics and personal care products. The purpose of the ban is to reduce the risk of drinking water contamination from the 1,4 - dioxane chemical that can still be found in some consumer products. This [...]
The Environmental Defense Fund has created a new mapping resource to locate onshore oil and gas wells that release methane. The tool was developed in response to the EPA's proposal to rollback regulations on methane emissions within the oil and gas industries. The map reports emissions data and demographic information to visualize the sensitive populations that might [...]
On Wednesday (December 4), residents of Port Neches were asked to voluntarily evacuate their homes in response to the TPC Group plant explosion that occurred early last week. Originally ordered to shelter-in-place, residents are now being asked to temporarily vacate the area surrounding the plant to reduce risk of exposure to harmful chemicals still lingering in the [...]
The California Breast Cancer Research Program, in partnership with the California Department of Public Health, the Occupational Health Branch and the University of California, San Francisco, has developed a tool to research women’s exposure to chemicals in the workplace. The goal of the research and the basis behind this tool is to provide women with [...]
