Nuclear waste fracas that just won't go away. Like a science fiction fantasy, the Yucca Mountain repository was intended as a permanent store for a small mountain of lethal waste accumulated in more than half a century of American nuclear activity, civilian and military. Sydney Morning Herald 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
Clean air measure faces uncertain future. The future air quality in Allegheny County may be determined by pending federal standards concerning air pollution that crosses state lines. Aspinwall Herald 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
N.Y. town still baffled by teens' mysterious tics. In the tiny New York town of LeRoy, one thing is for sure; since October, 16 people suddenly have developed uncontrollable twitching and verbal tics. Three months later, they -- and the rest of the town -- are still wondering why. CNN 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
Idaho mine understates impact on fish deformities: US. Selenium contamination from a phosphate mine in southeastern Idaho is linked to fish deformities such as two-headed trout, and the problem would worsen if discharge limits were eased, a new government report found. Reuters 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
The world's largest environmental cleanup has problems. The Hanford nuclear facility in Washington state is the largest, most complex and most expensive environmental cleanup effort in the world. USA Today’s investigative reporter, Peter Eisler, says the project is over-due, over-budget and still quite dangerous. Living On Earth 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
D-Day looms for illegal dump. For once, the sound of construction trucks is music to the ears of Lake Barrington residents who have complained for decades about a sprawling, illegal dump that is now undergoing a final cleanup by the Illinois EPA. Chicago Tribune 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
South Dakota to debate product ban. A state House panel is considering a bipartisan measure that would ban the sale of baby products that contain bisphenol A, an organic chemical that has been linked to reproductive problems in laboratory animals. Sioux Falls Argus Leader 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
More toxic pollution detected in brook at DuPont's Pompton Lakes site. Tests reveal parts of the Acid Brook, which run through the former site of the DuPont explosives factory, have been recontaminated with toxic metals and chemicals – more than 15 years after the company and the federal government said the tributary was entirely cleaned. Bergen County Record 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
Hundreds of gallons of diesel fuel spill into Greenwich pond. A tank at a Verizon facility on King Street leaked nearly a thousand gallons of diesel fuel into a nearby pond that straddles the Connecticut/New York border, prompting a cleanup response from both states, a Connecticut official said Friday. Greenwich Time 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
Man admits selling illegal and dangerous pesticides. A man charged with distributing illegal and potentially lethal Chinese pesticides like “The Cat Be Unemployed” — apparently a reference to the poison’s rodent-killing ability — pleaded guilty to two misdemeanors on Friday. New York Times 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
CWM claims it will not accept waste from LeRoy site. Unknown sensitive materials, set to be transferred by an order from the Environmental Protection Agency from LeRoy to Lewiston, will not be accepted by the CWM facility in Lewiston. Niagara Gazette 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
Cabot: Recording error caused false arsenic result . A high arsenic reading that a natural gas driller mistakenly attributed to the Montrose public water supply this week was in fact caused by a recording error when handwritten field notes were typed into the driller's database, Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. said Friday. Scranton Times-Tribune 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
Bill would register, set limits on Allegheny shale well sites. Two Allegheny County councilmen will introduce legislation on Tuesday that would create a registry of permits issued for Marcellus shale gas well sites and set restrictions on where drilling operations can be situated on county-owned property. Pittsburgh Tribune-Review 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
West Lebanon water tainted with oil. West Lebanon officials are close to solving the mystery of a hazardous chemical that polluted the township's water system, but the problem is far from resolved. Lebanon Daily News 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
Fort Monroe cleanup continues. The Army Corps of Engineers continues to oversee testing, and in some cases, cleanup of more than a dozen contaminated sites on Fort Monroe. The Army is addressing areas of concern that have so far yielded soil contaminated with metals, mercury and other chemicals. Newport News Daily Press 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
Arlington fire chief to request fee on gas wells. Fire Chief Don Crowson plans to ask the City Council to impose an annual fee of $2,400 per gas well to help pay for additional firefighters, specialized training and equipment that he said is needed to prevent and better respond to incidents at well sites. Fort Worth Star-Telegram 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
Commission's new hydraulic fracking chemical disclosure rules take effect. Effective February 1, the state's new disclosure rules for chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing took effect across Texas. The new rule requires disclosure of ingredients used in hydraulic fracturing, along with water volumes used, on the FracFocus.org website. Midland Reporter Telegram 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
Worn pipes shut California reactors. The two reactors at the San Onofre nuclear-power station near San Clemente, Calif., will remain shut down this weekend while federal safety officials investigate why critical—and relatively new—equipment is showing signs of premature wear. Wall Street Journal 2012-02-04T09:00-05:00
High levels of mercury found in Minnesota's North Shore babies. One in 10 babies along Minnesota's North Shore are born with unhealthy levels of mercury in their bodies, according to a new report on contamination around Lake Superior, the first to look for the pollutant in the blood of U.S. infants. Minneapolis Star Tribune 2012-02-03T09:00-05:00
Movement to banish copper from brake pads gains momentum. While government has been preoccupied with fuel economy, what about smaller environmental causes like mercury in car switches and lead weight wheel balances? Add to these copper brake pads, which produce metal dust that environmental advocates say reaches waterways and harms aquatic life. New York Times 2012-02-03T09:00-05:00
Latest effect of Gulf spill: Waves of cash. At least $100 million, and possibly much more, will be funneled to Texas as part of the cleanup financing from BP after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. Although the Deepwater Horizon rig explosion occurred hundreds of miles from Texas shores, Texas has been affected indirectly. Texas Tribune 2012-02-03T09:00-05:00
Is your orange juice safe? Low levels of a banned pesticide found in orange juice imported from Brazil is safe for sale in the domestic supply, says the Food and Drug Administration after conducting new tests. The juice is tainted with the fungicide carbendazim, and will soon reach American grocery stores. ABC News 2012-02-03T09:00-05:00
Could an infection cause Tourette's-like symptoms in teenage girls? Over the weekend Erin Brockovich made the news yet again as she and her nonprofit team descended on the village of Le Roy, N.Y., determined to test for environmental toxins that might be giving the town's teenagers symptoms of Tourette's syndrome. Scientific American 2012-02-03T09:00-05:00