12/22/08
USA Today's New Article on Schools, Toxic Air Pollution and Asthma

USA Today has identified over 20,000 schools located within half a mile of major industrial plants spewing sulfuric acid, naphthalene, ammonia, benzene and other toxins into the air. These chemicals have been shown to cause respiratory ailments such as asthma. Reporters look at plants located near early education centers and the vulnerability of young children's developing lungs. Click here.

12/18/08
Just Released! Green Purchasing Tool Kit

Find out the best local and state green purchasing programs promoting environmentally-friendly products. CHEJ's Green Purchasing Tool Kit includes model policies, resources and fact sheets on How to Pass a Green Purchasing Policy. From start to finish, this Took Kit helps you support policies to green the marketplace and promote healthy, safe products. Click here.

12/08/08
USA TODAY Releases New Study on ‘Toxic Hot Spot’ Schools

USA TODAY has just released a new study of schools where the outside air poses an unacceptable health risk from chemical contamination to young children and school staff.
The report identifies 435 schools as ‘toxic hot spots.’ CHEJ has been a leader in the fight against toxic schools and worked for the passage of National School Siting Guidelines. Join our campaign for safer schools today.

Click here to read the article and take action against toxic schools.

12/01/08
New Study on Real Costs of Nuclear Waste Cleanup

Economists and scientists revealed the true costs of nuclear waste cleanup in a ground-breaking state-funded study released by CHEJ, NIRS, CEC and CWVNW on December 2nd.
The Real Costs of Cleaning Up Nuclear Waste has startling new information on the long-term consequences of leaving buried nuclear waste onsite—it can cost $27 billion or more while endangering public health for thousands of years. The first-ever study looks at the West Valley site in NY comparing the costs of digging up waste versus leaving buried waste onsite for 1,000 years and finds buried waste is both high risk and very expensive. The site of the country's only failed commercial reprocessing facility; these findings have national implications for proposed reprocessing facilities and reactors. Download Report, News Release and Fact Sheets

11/24/08
Just Released! The PVC-Free Guide for Your Family & Home

Worried about toxic chemicals in toys, baby products, and your home? Just in time for the holidays, CHEJ is proud to announce our latest resource - Pass Up the Poison Plastic – The PVC-Free Guide for Your Family & Home. The guide lists the most common consumer products made out of PVC and safer PVC-free products including baby products, children’s toys, electronics, and more. Download your copy today. You can help promote the guide by posting a web banner

on your blog, website, Facebook, or Myspace page letting consumers know about this new resource.

If you make a donation to CHEJ of $100 or more to support our work on this issue, we’ll mail you a hard copy of the guide – printed on recycled, chlorine-free paper with soy ink – and a special wallet-sized plastics guide.

11/17/08
TOWN OF LYNDHURST, N.J. ADOPTS THE PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE

The town of Lyndhurst, N.J. adopted a precautionary principle ordinance Nov. 11
by a unanimous vote of the township Commission, to guide municipal policy. Lyndhurst is only the second municipality in the U.S. to adopt the precautionary principle as an overarching guide to municipal policy, and the first on the East Coast to do so. The City and County of San Francisco (Calif.) adopted the precautionary principle in June, 2002.
For more information:
click here