Guest Column: Paraquat and the deliberate production of ignorance
Nearly 60 years ago, a chemical company found that skin exposure to very high doses of its weedkiller paraquat caused “weakness and incoordination” in rabbits.
environment
California pushes ahead with its new pesticide-reduction plan
By Pam Strayer and Carey Gillam
Amid mounting evidence of the risks some synthetic pesticides pose to human and environmental health, California regulators this week were pushing ahead with a recently announced “roadmap” aimed at transitioning the state to more sustainable options for managing weeds and insects.
A near-daily disaster; hazardous chemical accidents common across US
By Carey Gillam
Amid fears about the toxic chemicals released in the East Palestine train derailment, public officials have clamored to reassure community members that the resulting contaminated air, water and soil is being cleaned up, and their tiny Ohio town made safe.
Citing birds and bees, groups petition EPA to close pesticide loophole
By Carey Gillam
The US should overhaul regulation of a class of insecticides tied to excessive honeybee and bird deaths, according to a citizen petition filed Wednesday with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) by a coalition of more than 60 nonprofit groups.
An “urgency to this” – microplastics posing human health risks, report warns
By Carey Gillam
Growing plastic pollution not only poses a threat to wildlife and the environment, but increasingly also to human health due to pervasive microscopic plastic particles that people are ingesting through their diet, according to a research report released Monday.
New US research finds “worrying” evidence linking Monsanto weedkiller to cancer
By Carey Gillam
New research by top US government scientists has found that people exposed to the widely used weed killing chemical glyphosate have biomarkers in their urine linked to the development of cancer and other diseases.
Fishing fans take note: New study shows eating what you catch could be hazardous to your health
By Grace van Deelen
People who eat just one US freshwater fish a year are likely to show a significant increase of a cancer-causing chemical in their bloodstream, new research warns.
EPA unveils new proposed air pollution standard; some say it falls short
By Carey Gillam
US officials said Friday that they are moving to strengthen a key air quality standard, acknowledging a wealth of scientific evidence that demonstrates the dire health dangers posed by air pollution – and the lack of adequate protection provided by current US standards.
Postcard from California: Big Oil’s campaign to kill drilling ban near homes and schools
By Bill Walker
In September, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a landmark bill banning new oil and gas wells within 3,200 feet – about two-thirds of a mile – of homes, schools, day care centers, healthcare facilities, parks, and businesses open to the public. The measure also banned “reworking” old, unproductive wells lying within the buffer zones.
Climate change brings new urgency to threats posed by abandoned California gold mines
By Leah Campbell
On the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in California sits the small town of Nevada City, a historic Gold Rush community where prospectors once mined for riches in the creek that ran alongside town. Today, it’s a popular tourist destination known for its easy access to the picturesque Yuba River and the region’s famed ski resorts.