IN THE NEWS /
JAN 18
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Five years after being told to do more, Texas regulators are still seen as lenient toward polluters. Austin American-Statesman, Texas
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Some worry that many top officials leave to go to work with companies they once regulated. Austin American-Statesman, Texas
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Ammonia mixed toxic gas and urea dust emitted from Jamuna Fertiliser Factory in Jamalpur have allegedly been wreaking havoc on the local environment and causing debilitating illnesses among the locals. Dhaka Daily Star, Bangladesh
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Every day when Israel pauses its bombardment of the Gaza Strip, Palestinians launch a ground assault on the territory's public fountains to try to lay their hands on precious supplies of water. At home, for many families, the taps have run dry.
Agence France-Presse
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The hearing in the case against W.R. Grace & Co will begin Wednesday in Missoula as dozens of lawyers begin hammering out critical evidentiary details in one of the most far-reaching environmental crimes prosecutions ever brought by the federal government. Missoula Missoulian, Montana
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While clean stream laws over the past 50 years have helped the river immensely, it still harbors a lot of sewer water, environmentalists say. Beaver County Times, Pennsylvania
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Metro Atlanta’s plan for meeting its water needs through 2035 may be most remarkable for what it doesn’t include.
There’s no high-tech proposal to turn sewage water into drinking water, nor a master plan to cut back on the region’s biggest water wasters. Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Georgia
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Are these new fields really a gift—or a curse? In order to save maintenance money in the short term, Albemarle County is taking a gamble on a new product that may (or may not) have health risks.
Charlottesville C-ville Weekly, Virginia
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Attacking climate change through a complex greenhouse gas trading system is a centerpiece of the incoming Obama administration’s energy policy.
But many are saying a better approach to getting a cleaner atmosphere might involve a political dirty word — tax. Houston Chronicle, Texas
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Armed with big potential for wind and solar generation, Native America says it's ready to help Obama build a green economy. A policy statement--signed by 250 tribes and tribal organizations--outlines ways to tackle global warming, while addressing unemployment and fuel poverty on tribal lands. Living On Earth
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When Sydneysiders flick on the power, there's every chance some of the electricity has come from a couple of coal-guzzling power plants in the Hunter Valley. It's much less clear, however, where our future electricity will come from. Sydney Morning Herald, Australia
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A new Washington Post analysis shows that local homes and businesses used about 2 percent less electricity in the first nine months of 2008 than they did in 2007. Electric power is the region's largest single source of greenhouse gas emissions. Washington Post
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So many people want to scatter the ashes of family and friends in beauty spots that the government has been forced to step in with anti-pollution rules. London Observer, England
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Ecologist Marina Rikhvanova is trying to protect Siberia's Lake Baikal. She is up against a Kremlin and business elite intent on exploiting natural resources. Los Angeles Times, California
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By David Case
Fast Company
Jan 18, 2009
How a handful of consultants used Big Tobacco's tactics to sow doubt about science and hold off regulation of BPA, a chemical in hundreds of products that could be harming an entire generation To some degree, the BPA controversy is a story about a scientific dispute. But even more, it's about a battle to protect a multibillion-dollar market from regulation. In the United States, industrial chemicals are presumed safe until proven otherwise. As a result, the vast majority of the 80,000 chemicals registered to be used in products have never undergone a government safety review. Companies are left largely to police themselves.
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By Patricia Doxsey
Kingston Daily Freeman
Jan 18, 2009
J.P. Myers
A Maine-based environmental organization has found an alarming accumulation of mercury in the blood and feathers of both juvenile and adult bald eagles in the Catskills The study has found mercury levels to be close to those associated with neurological and reproductive problems in the common loon.
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New Science
Understand the latest scientific findings
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A new study finds that widely used flame retardant chemicals known as PBDEs can cross the placenta barrier, passing readily from mother to fetus, where they accumulate in the liver.Researchers found that the chemicals accumulated in the liver of the fetus, which had higher levels of the widely used chemicals than did the placental tissue. PBDE concentrations exceeded those of the more well-known PCBs and organochlorine pollutants. more…
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Women with potential exposure to pesticides at work or at home took longer to get pregnant than women without pesticide connections.
The findings agree with past studies and add more evidence to this sometimes confusing mix of research outcomes. more…
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Research with mice reveals that the phthalate DEHP can increase the severity of allergic reactions in young animals when they are exposed neonatally to the contaminant via their mother's milk.Rates of allergic skin conditions -- called dermitits -- are increasing in people. These new results may shed light on one of the drivers of this trend. more…
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Media Review
Scientists critique media coverage
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BBC's short report puts discovery in perspective but is overly focused on tobacco.
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The recent recall of Irish pork was driven by dioxin contamination, though several media outlets incorrectly referred to these chemicals as 'PCBs.'
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The USA Today series "Toxic Air and America’s Schools" (beginning 8 December 2008) is simply stunning in its scope and breadth.
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Widespread coverage of a report by the US Geological Survey on contamination in tap water could have done a better job at challenging the Survey’s reassurances that the exposures are safe.
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Four out of five of the nation’s top newspapers missed a key point about the state of the science when they covered an important new report that found cancer rates have declined for the first time.
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Editorial sampler
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By
Anchorage Daily News
As ice disappears from arctic waters, fishing fleets may be tempted to push into the newly opening area. But nobody knows much about the region's marine environment, how arctic warming is changing it, and what damage, if any, commercial fishing might inflict.
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By
London Observer
Between denial to hysteria lies the rational response to climate change - urgency.
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Opinion
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By
London Independent
In Silicon Valley, there are few doubts as to where the future lies. "Remember the internet? Green tech is bigger," says John Doerr, the world's most influential venture capitalist.
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By Brian Moench
Salt Lake Tribune
Last Tuesday the Utah Division of Air Quality held a public hearing on approving a petroleum coke-burning power plant in Woods Cross. Regardless of their ultimate decision, this plant will never be built—but only because of fierce citizen opposition.
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By Marla Cone
Editor in Chief
Changes in doctors' diagnoses cannot explain the sevenfold increase in autism since 1990, a new California study shows. Environmental factors are probably to blame.
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By Andrew McGlashen
Daily Climate
Excess nitrogen mitigates carbon dioxide's effects – but with considerable risk, scientists say.
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By Matthew Cimitile
Environmental Health News
Consumers have long been exposed to antibiotics in meat and milk. Now, new research shows that they also may be ingesting them from vegetables, even ones grown on organic farms.
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IN THE NEWS (CONTINUED) / JAN 18
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Despite the most up-to-date statistics, prognosis for the future of tropical forests varied widely, and on Monday, nine scientists dusted off their crystal balls, weighing in on the future of the world's tropical forests. Mongabay.
More news from today •>160 more stories, including:
•Bird flu in China, Nepal
•Climate: Highly unusual warming; Win the power struggle; Obama has 4 years to save the earth
•Energy: Balloon power; Maine opens 2nd major wind farm; America's most fuel-efficient mid-size car
•Stories from UK, Malta, Gaza, S Africa, Chad, Nigeria, Bangladesh, China, India, Australia, Mexico Canada
•US stories from MA, CT, NJ, PA, MD, MN, WI, MI, IN, IL, TN, LA, TX, UT, CO, WA, CA
•Editorials: Arctic fishing?; Heathrow: A failure of courage and imagination; Thanks, Senate
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