pollution

What's in Your Water?

Tue, 22 Dec 2009 13:00:42 -0500

by Elaine Shannon

In the context of the ongoing climate and health care debates, one of the season's big environment stories has been tainted tap water, which was the subject of the New York Times series, "Toxic Waters", a recent Senate committee hearing, as well as the focus of dozens of newspaper and broadcast stories on local water quality.

Broken Promises Follow Tennessee Coal Ash Disaster

Tue, 22 Dec 2009 11:32:43 -0500

by Sue Sturgis

It was one year ago today that a 60-foot-tall dam broke at holding pond at the Tennessee Valley Authority's Kingston power plant in Roane County, Tenn., dumping more than a billion gallons of toxic coal ash onto a nearby community and into the Clinch and Emory rivers.

Chevron and Cultural Genocide in Ecuador

Mon, 14 Dec 2009 11:49:00 -0500

by Kerry Kennedy

LAGO AGRIO, Ecuador - Traces of paradise are still visible. From the air, the rainforest region in northern Ecuador – known as the Oriente – appears as silvery mist and swaths of verdant green.

But beneath the cloud cover and canopy, the jungle is a tangle of oil slicks, festering sludge, and rusted pipeline. Smokestacks sprout from the ground, spewing throat-burning fumes into the air. Wastewater from unlined pits seeps into the groundwater and flows into the rivers and streams.

Cap and Fade

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 10:23:14 -0500

by James Hansen

AT the international climate talks in Copenhagen, President Obama is expected to announce that the United States wants to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to about 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2020 and 83 percent by 2050. But at the heart of his plan is cap and trade, a market-based approach that has been widely praised but does little to slow global warming or reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. It merely allows polluters and Wall Street traders to fleece the public out of billions of dollars.

Study Finds Weed Killer Affects Frogs Sexually

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 10:10:48 -0500

OTTAWA - The widely used weed killer atrazine affects the sexual development of frogs, raising questions about the effects of its use in the environment, the University of Ottawa said on Thursday.

A study by researchers at the university found that at low levels comparable to those measured in the Canadian environment, fewer tadpoles reached the froglet stage and the ratio of females to males increased.

"Atrazine is one of the top-selling herbicides used worldwide and was designed to inhibit weed growth in cornfields," the university said in a statement.

EPA Petitioned to Cap Carbon Dioxide Under the Clean Air Act

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 14:11:06 -0500

WASHINGTON, DC - Two advocacy groups have filed a petition asking the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to set national limits for carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act. They say there is no need to wait for Congress to pass a law limiting greenhouse gases because the Clean Air Act already contains the comprehensive, science-based, flexible,and immediately available tools necessary to address the climate crisis.

Shell Must Clean up Its Act in Nigeria

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 09:57:58 -0500

by Chima Williams

A court in The Hague is considering whether Shell can be held liable for alleged pollution in Nigeria, and a ruling is expected on 30 December.

Cabot Oil and Gas Faces Lawsuit in Marcellus Shale Drilling

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 11:36:16 -0500

by Adam Federman

Of all the towns that have been subjected to drilling for natural gas in Pennsylvania since the opening up of the Marcellus Shale, none have suffered more than Dimock. In just over a year several drinking water wells have been contaminated (one of which exploded on New Years Day, ripping through an 8 foot slab of concrete), numerous spills have dumped highly toxic wastewater, diesel fuel, and fracking fluid into local streams and rivers, and residents have been exposed to dangerously high levels of methane gas and heavy metals.

Report Says Nuclear Plants Are Poisoning Our Water

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 10:15:19 -0500

by Mike De Souza

Nuclear facilities and power plants are contaminating local Canadian food and water with radioactive waste that increases risks of cancer and birth defects, says a new report to be released today.

Will South Carolina Become the Nation's New Yucca Mountain?

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 10:53:03 -0500

by Sue Sturgis

Earlier this year President Obama canceled the federal government's plans to store high-level radioactive waste from nuclear power plants and weapons facilities at the controversial Yucca Mountain site in Nevada -- but now there are concerns that South Carolina could become a permanent dumping ground for the dangerous waste.