The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in the U.S. on March 21 overturned previous orders by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that banned the use of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, in product packaging by a plastics treatment company, Inhance Technologies. In December 2023, the EPA issued two orders for Houston-based Inhance Technologies […]
In a historic move, the Biden administration has announced new tailpipe emissions regulations, which call for a 56% reduction in the average carbon dioxide emissions of passenger cars, medium-duty vehicles and light-duty trucks by 2032. The new rules will apply to vehicles with model years from 2027 to 2032 and beyond, a press release from […]
Swiss air quality monitoring company IQAir has released its sixth World Air Quality Report, detailing 2023’s most polluted countries and territories in the world. In compiling the report, more than 30,000 monitoring stations in 134 nations, territories and regions were examined by IQAir scientists, a press release from IQAir said. Of these, 124 — 92.5 […]
A new study warns that athletes playing sports on artificial turf could become covered in per- and polyfluorinated substances, or PFAS, present in the turf. Researchers from Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) conducted a small-scale study of young athletes, as well as their coaches, who played soccer on an artificial turf field. The results […]
According to a new report by European scientists, plastics — from food packaging to furniture, clothing and medical equipment — contain thousands more chemicals than environmental agencies had previously estimated, raising concerns about consumer safety and pollution, reported Reuters. More than 13,000 plastic chemicals had been identified by the United Nations Environment Programme, but the […]
A new study led by researchers at the University of Surrey in England has identified methods that, when applied together, could reduce air pollution in classrooms by up to 36%. Researchers tested air purifying methods for two classrooms in a school located about 10 meters from a highway that has an average of 31,067 cars […]
Following the hottest year on record, complete with a megadrought in Arizona that led to construction restrictions to reserve groundwater around Phoenix, Arizona has added a new chief heat officer to its Department of Health Services. The officer’s role is to help with extreme heat preparedness in the state. Dr. Eugene Livar, a physician who […]
Indigenous communities in California are exposed to disproportionate levels of particulate matter in amounts much greater than previously thought, a new study has found. Using a new technique of measuring prolonged exposure to wildfire smoke, the researchers discovered that the Indigenous communities were exposed to an average of roughly 1.7 times the smoke that would […]
Nano- and microplastics (NMPs) have become so pervasive in air, water and soil that they have made their way into the bodies and blood of humans and animals. While many methods have been attempted to remove the tiny plastic particles, a new study has found that a simple solution for reducing their presence in drinking […]