drinking water

By Kate Melges Much of the stuff that accumulates during the holidays comes with single-use plastic packaging. We open a gift, rip it out of the package and toss the plastic into a bin, hoping it will get recycled and not end up polluting our oceans. Unfortunately, the vast majority of single-use plastic is not […]

The long-awaited plan by the Trump administration to “wage a war against lead” and protect children from exposure to the potent neurotoxin is a woefully unacceptable response to this public health crisis, said Environmental Working Group. The administration’s Lead Action Plan—announced Wednesday by Andrew Wheeler, acting administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)—is nothing […]

During the holiday season, people often drink toasts to health. There’s something more we can do to ensure that we and others will enjoy good health now and into the future: combat climate change. “Climate change is the biggest global health threat of the 21st century, and tackling it could be our greatest health opportunity,” […]

By Jake Johnson In a move environmentalists are warning will seriously endanger drinking water and wildlife nationwide, President Donald Trump‘s U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is reportedly gearing up to hand yet another gift to big polluters by drastically curtailing the number of waterways and wetlands protected under the Clean Water Act. “As a result […]

Seasonal spikes of atrazine–a weed killer that can disrupt hormones and harm developing fetuses–contaminate drinking water in corn-growing areas of the Midwest and beyond, according to an analysis of federal records by the Environmental Working Group (EWG). U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) data show that in some Corn Belt communities, atrazine levels can spike three […]

If global temperatures rise above 1.5° Celsius above pre-industrial levels—the ideal temperature limit set by the Paris agreement—global sea levels will rise by more than 40 centimeters (approximately 15.7 inches) by 2100. If temperatures top 2° Celsius, sea level rise will be more than 50 centimeters (approximately 20 inches) by century’s end. This could be […]

House and Senate leaders included a provision in legislation to fund the Federal Aviation Administration and strengthen disaster programs that will give commercial airports the option to switch to firefighting foams that do not include the highly toxic fluorinated chemicals known as PFAS. Under current law, airports are required to use firefighting foams that contain […]

Shale-gas company Cuadrilla announced Wednesday it would begin fracking in northwest England within weeks following government approval of a second well at its New Presto Road site, Reuters reported. British energy and clean growth minister Claire Perry approved the first well in July, the day before parliament headed to summer recess, The Independent reported. The […]