pesticides

Chemical Spill in Virginia ​Kills Tens of Thousands of Fish

Chemical Spill in Virginia ​Kills Tens of Thousands of Fish

About 165 gallons of an agricultural-use chemical leaked into a Roanoke-area creek over the weekend, resulting in fish kill estimated in the tens of thousands, Virginia officials announced Monday. The chemical was identified as Termix 5301, a type of surfactant (detergent-like substance) added to herbicide and pesticide products before application, according to the Virginia’s Department […]

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    Why Consumers Need to Force Ben & Jerry’s to Go Organic

    Why Consumers Need to Force Ben & Jerry’s to Go Organic

    The most important thing we can do today as conscious consumers, farmers and food workers is to regenerate public health, the environment and climate stability. We can do this most readily by moving away from industrial, GMO and factory-farm food toward an organic, pasture-based, soil-regenerative, humane, carbon-sequestering and climate-friendly agriculture system. What’s standing in the […]

    Bee Study Author Fights Back Against Bayer and Syngenta Accusations

    Bee Study Author Fights Back Against Bayer and Syngenta Accusations

    By Joe Sandler Clarke The lead author of a major study which found that neonicotinoid pesticides harm honey bees has hit back against criticism from the chemical companies that part-funded the work. Dr. Ben Woodcock from the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH), said Bayer and Syngenta, which produce the controversial pesticides, had looked to […]

    States Sue EPA for Failing to Ban Toxic Pesticide

    States Sue EPA for Failing to Ban Toxic Pesticide

    By Farron Cousins In late March, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt decided that his agency would not place an outright ban on a pesticide manufactured by Dow Chemical called chlorpyrifos. The decision came after a federal court ordered the EPA to make a final decision on whether or not to ban the […]

    New Evidence Shows Bayer, Syngenta Tried to Influence Scientists on Bee Study

    New Evidence Shows Bayer, Syngenta Tried to Influence Scientists on Bee Study

    By Joe Sandler Clarke Bayer and Syngenta repeatedly asked scientists to give them raw data on a major new study which found that neonicotinoid pesticides cause harm to bees before it was published, according to emails obtained under Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Both companies cited their position as co-funders to try to get information […]

    Court to EPA: You Overstepped ​Your Authority​ on Methane Rule​

    Court to EPA: You Overstepped ​Your Authority​ on Methane Rule​

    The Trump administration cannot block an Obama-era rule restricting methane leaks from oil and gas wells, a federal appeals court ruled Monday. In a 2-1 decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has overstepped its authority in attempting to suspend the rule’s […]

    Major New Study Shows Pesticide Risk to Honey Bees

    Major New Study Shows Pesticide Risk to Honey Bees

    By Joe Sandler Clarke Scientists have found for the first time that neonicotinoid pesticides can harm honey bees in the real world. The major new study from the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH) found that pesticides called neonicotinoids can cause harm to bees, a development that is likely to increase calls for a ban […]

    EPA Chief Met With Dow Chemical CEO Before Deciding Not to Ban Toxic Pesticide

    EPA Chief Met With Dow Chemical CEO Before Deciding Not to Ban Toxic Pesticide

    U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Scott Pruitt met with Dow Chemical CEO Andrew Liveris before deciding to reverse an earlier EPA decision to ban the company’s toxic and widely used pesticide, chlorpyrifos. According to records obtained by the Associated Press, the EPA boss met with Liveris for about 30 minutes at a Houston hotel […]

    Neil deGrasse Tyson Fans Deserve More Than Twisted Tale on GMOs

    Neil deGrasse Tyson Fans Deserve More Than Twisted Tale on GMOs

    By Stacy Malkan Neil deGrasse Tyson has inspired millions of people to care about science and imagine themselves as participants in the scientific process. What a hopeful sign it is to see young girls wearing t-shirts emblazoned with the words, “Forget princess, I want to be an astrophysicist.” His devoted fan base, as I’ve discovered […]