POLLUTION

CURRENT NEWS

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Why the government fails to limit many dangerous chemicals in the workplace

By Sharon Lerner 12/15/22

Before his shift at the Goodyear Tire and Rubber plant in Niagara Falls, N.Y., in May 2021, a worker peed in a cup. Before he clocked out, he did it again. Goodyear shipped both specimens…

The New York Times

Who’s Driving Climate Change? New Data Catalogs 72,000 Polluters and Counting

By Raymond Zhong 11/09/22

A nonprofit backed by Al Gore and other big environmental donors says it can track emissions down to individual power plants, oil fields and cargo ships.

The New York Times

Democrats designed the climate law to be a game changer. Here’s how.

By Lisa Friedman 08/22/22

In a first, the measure legally defines greenhouse gases as pollution. That’ll make new regulations much tougher to challenge in court.

AP News

Federal study: New climate law to slice carbon pollution 40%

By Seth Borenstein 08/18/22

Clean energy incentives in the new spending package signed this week by President Joe Biden will trim America’s emissions of heat-trapping gases by about 1.1 billion tons (1 billion metric tons) by 2030, a new…

CommonWealth Magazine

Your gas stove is dangerous to your health

By Wynne Armand 07/16/22

In January, groundbreaking research from Stanford showed that gas stoves release concerning levels of indoor air pollutants such as nitrogen oxides “within a few minutes of usage” and continuously leak methane even when they are…

Forbes

How wildfires impact our health, as well as the environment

By Jamie Hailstone 07/13/22

It is a sad truth that many parts of the world - including various parts of the United States - are now facing an increased risk of wildfires.

Los Angeles Times

Pollution from California’s 2020 wildfires likely offset decades of air quality gains

By Tony Briscoe 06/17/22

In an analysis published this week in the annual Air Quality Life Index, researchers found that wildfire smoke probably offset decades of state and federal antipollution efforts, at least temporarily.

The Washington Post

Block-by-block data shows pollution’s stark toll on people of color

By Darryl Fears 05/25/22

Finding the most polluted places in the San Francisco Bay area is simple, a new air quality analysis shows: Locate places where mostly Black, Latino, Asian and low-income residents live, and pay them a visit.

The Washington Post

Pollution caused 1 in 6 deaths globally for five years, study says

By Kasha Patel 05/17/22

In 2015, 1 in 6 deaths worldwide stemmed from poor air quality, unsafe water and toxic chemical pollution. That deadly toll — 9 million people each year — has continued unabated through 2019, killing more…

Forbes

Switching to electric vehicles could save lives, study finds

By Jamie Hailstone 03/30/22

Moving to zero-emission vehicles and energy could help prevent up to 110,000 deaths in the United States, according to a new report.

The Washington Post

EPA announces ‘bold’ action to monitor pollution in ‘Cancer Alley’

By Darryl Fears 01/26/22

Two months after touring “environmental justice” communities in three southern states, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan on Wednesday announced bold steps to address complaints from residents about tainted drinking water, chemical plants near homes…

The Guardian

Hospitals try to curb astronomical emissions as pandemic brings new challenges

By Yara L. Murr 04/07/21

Lois Wessel used to work as a labor and delivery nurse in community clinics in Maryland. She remembers that every time a baby was born, she would see a beautiful little creature – and then…

KEY RESOURCES

EWG’s Tap Water Database

11/09/21

Since 2013, water utilities' testing has found pollutants in Americans' tap water, according to an EWG drinking water quality analysis of more than 31 million state water records.

The Most Detailed Map of Cancer-Causing Industrial Air Pollution in the U.S.

11/02/21

ProPublica’s analysis of five years of modeled EPA data identified more than 1,000 toxic hot spots across the country and found that an estimated 250,000 people living in them may be exposed to levels of…

Coming Storms: Climate Change And The Rising Threat To America’s Coastal Seniors

03/21/21

A new Climate Central sea-level-rise analysis identifies the assisted living and nursing homes at risk in five states. Experts say waiting to evacuate during storms is not the answer.

Clean Air Task Force

Raising Awareness of the Health Impacts of Coal Plant Pollution

07/30/20

In 2000, 2004 and again in 2010, the Clean Air Task Force issued studies based on a methodology and model created by Abt Associates, U.S EPA’s own health benefits consultant, based on peer-reviewed, published studies…

Nature Conservancy

Planting healthy air: Trees, particulate matter pollution and extreme heat

10/31/16

This study from the Nature Conservancy reviews the positive cooling effects of urban trees planting on hot city climates and the quality of their air.

Phys.org

Climate change is making people sick: A U.S. medical report

03/15/17

From rising levels of air pollution to increased water contamination and a widening range for disease-carrying mosquitoes, climate change is making people sick, a coalition of 11 US medical groups said Wednesday.

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MORE NEWS

The Counter

Climate change has direct negative impacts on farmworker health

By Lela Nargi 03/30/21

Research confirms the various ways that climate impacts on food and agriculture are adversely affecting our health: Rising CO2 levels lead to less nutritious crops; increased incidence of diseases and pests may cause some farmers to use…

Environmental Health News

Rising CO2 will leave crops—and millions of humans—less healthy

By Brian Bienkowski 08/28/18

Increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere will render some major crops less nutritious and leave hundreds of millions of people protein and zinc deficient over the next three decades, according to a new…