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California set to loan $400 million to controversial nuclear power plant
By Benjamin Purper
California will loan $400 million to utility Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) to keep the state’s last nuclear power plant running, according to the final budget deal between the Legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Baby bottle makers deceived parents over dangers of plastic products, lawsuits allege
By Carey Gillam
Two US baby bottle makers have been engaging in a “campaign of reckless deceit” about the dangers microplastics in their products pose to infants and young children, according to a new lawsuits filed Tuesday.
Postcard from California: The human cost of living with wildfires
By Bill Walker
The toll of wildfire in California is staggering: In the last 10 years, wildfires have burned more than 13.6 million acres of the state and taken the lives of 144 people, including 15 firefighters. The state estimates property damages from the more than 93,000 wildfires in those years at nearly $250 billion.
New test finds more than 50 common chemicals may be linked to infertility
By Lydia Larsen
Using a new testing tool, US researchers said this week they have found more than 50 chemicals that pose a strong risk to fertility, including chemicals used in plastic water bottles and other common products.
Biofuels manufacturing found to be a significant source of hazardous air pollution
By Dana Drugmand
Hazardous air pollutants emitted in the manufacturing of biofuels is nearly as bad as air pollution stemming from oil refineries, and for several types of dangerous pollutants such as formaldehyde the emissions from biofuel production are far greater, a new report finds.
Worries in wine country: Napa Valley wrestles with chemical contamination controversy
By Shannon Kelleher
Famous for its lush vineyards and cherished local wineries, Napa Valley is where people go to escape their problems. What the more than 3 million annual tourists don’t see, however, is that California’s iconic wine country has a problem of its own – one that has spurred multiple ongoing government investigations and created deep divisions among residents and business owners, with some fearing the region’s reputation and way of life may be in peril.
EPA enabled widespread contamination of farmland from PFAS in fertilizer, lawsuit alleges
By Shannon Kelleher
US regulators failed to prevent toxic PFAS in fertilizers from contaminating farmland across the country, alleges a lawsuit filed this week by a watchdog group on behalf of two Texas farm families who suffered health problems after their properties were polluted.
Lawsuit alleges company illegally discharged cancer-causing TCE for decades
By Shannon Kelleher and Carey Gillam
A Mississippi auto parts company illegally dumped toxic waste for more than 50 years, poisoning workers and sparking a cluster of cancer cases, according to a lawsuit filed this week by a group of former employees.
Battles brew over radioactive wastewater discharge from shuttered nuclear plants
By Dana Drugmand
An effort by New York to ban radioactive waste from polluting the Hudson River has embroiled the state in a bitter legal battle emblematic of challenges facing communities across the country as they wrestle with what to do with the waste from shuttered nuclear power plants.
“Taking on Big Oil”; Vermont enacts Climate Superfund Act
By Dana Drugmand
Vermont has enacted a first-in-the-nation law that holds major fossil fuel companies financially responsible for the climate pollution associated with their products, a move applauded by environmental advocates.