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5/13/12
U.S. Senator Dick Durbin calls for reform on flame retardant chemicals. Reacting with outrage to the Chicago Tribune’s investigation of deceptive tactics that have fueled the rise of toxic flame retardants in American homes, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin on Thursday demanded answers from two federal agencies, urging them to act aggressively to rid homes of chemicals that pose health risks but don’t stave off fires. Chicago Tribune, Illinois.
USDA to test beef for more strains of E. coli. Next month, the Agriculture Department will begin testing raw ground beef for the “Big Six” at meat plants in order to keep these E. coli pathogens off people’s plates. The decision comes four years after experts warned of the dangers these germs pose to the nation’s food supply. Washington Post [Registration Required]
Trade groups with Dow, Monsanto backing lobby for GMO corn. As the USDA readies its decision whether to approve use of GMO corn, Dow Chemical Co. is touting a broad coalition of support among farmers to increase the likelihood that the agency approves the product. International Business Times
Carbon capture and storage: A shiny new pipe dream. Capturing the carbon dioxide from power stations is not hard. But it is expensive. A new project in Norway aims to make it cheaper. Economist
Peru’s coffee growers turn carbon traders to save their farms from climate change. Global warming threatens the future of Peru’s poorest coffee farmers, but one brand thinks it has found an answer on the financial markets. London Observer, United Kingdom.
Meth messing up Cass County, Indiana. It’s addictive, smelly and hazardous, but it also leaves a big mess. Often discovered in abandoned homes, methamphetamine labs can cause major headaches for property owners when they are faced with structural or land contamination. Pharos-Tribune, Indiana.
5/12/12
Silent spring for Bay Area’s raptors? Biologists report a rising toll of secondary-poisoning cases involving predatory birds and mammals, many from second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides. San Francisco Chronicle, California.
‘Big Farma’ companies seek Canadian federal approval of 2,4-D-resistant corn, soybean seeds. Dow Chemical and Monsanto want federal approval to sell corn and soybeans seeds genetically fortified to withstand concentrated spraying with 2,4-D and other potent herbicides to repel advancing “superweeds” on Canadian farms. Ottawa Citizen, Ontario.
Prenatal smoking tied to worse asthma in kids. Children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy may have a tougher time controlling their asthma than other kids do, a new study suggests. Reuters
Doctor fired for helping tobacco companies fight tax. Under pressure from health advocates, Gov. Jerry Brown on Thursday removed a controversial physician from a state health board after she appeared in an industry-funded ad against a tobacco tax hike on the June ballot. Sacramento Bee, California.
Isotopes help clear up concerns about chloroform in groundwater. When communities in Denmark pump groundwater for drinking water, officials monitor the levels of chemicals such as chloroform that might signal the presence of industrial contaminants. But not all chloroform travels with human-made pollution. Chemical & Engineering News
EPA red lights palm oil. The Environmental Protection Agency says that palm oil based biofuel does not meet renewable fuel standards. Some say that palm oil fuel emits more greenhouse gas emissions than other vegetable oils, and that the creation of palm plantations leads to deforestation. Living On Earth
Interview with Greenpeace head Kumi Naidoo: ‘We are losing the planet.’ The environmental movement is losing momentum and governments around the world are ignoring their responsibility for slowing climate change. Greenpeace head Kumi Naidoo, however, remains optimistic. Der Spiegel
5/11/12
Household chemicals’ ‘cocktail effect’ raises cancer concerns for watchdog. Europe’s environmental watchdog, the European Environment Agency, has warned that products containing endocrine disrupting chemicals should be treated with caution until their true effects are better known. The Guardian, United Kingdom.
How international chemical regulations are changing American supply chains. Arguments against chemical regulation have been top of mind recently; the odds seem to be stacked against large-scale reform of US legislation. But that doesn’t mean US companies are off the hook when it comes to toxic chemicals. Forbes
REACH chemical safety review: Re-opening a can of worms? Five years after its adoption, the European Commission is preparing to review the controversial REACH regulation, which for the first time required chemical manufacturers to justify that their products are safe for consumers before placing them on the market. Euractiv, Belgium.
Scientists urge action on world’s biggest problems. Scientists from 15 countries are calling for a better political response to the provision of water and energy to meet the challenge of feeding a world of 9 billion people within 30 years. For the first time, the scientists argue that looming shortages in water and energy supplies should be treated as a single issue. Reuters
Super weeds no easy fix for US agriculture – experts. A fast-spreading plague of “super weeds” taking over US farmland will not be stopped easily, and farmers and government officials need to change existing practices if food production is to be protected, industry experts said on Thursday. Reuters
Bees are being killed: Beekeepers take first step to sue EPA over pesticides. The battle of the bees and the deadly insecticides killing them en masse has taken a first step in a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency for negligence in not protecting the bees. Washington Times, District of Columbia.
Many kids exposed to smoke despite parents’ claims. More than half of kids who were part of a new study from California tested positive for secondhand smoke exposure – despite only a handful of their parents admitting to lighting up. Reuters
Everything that’s fit to eat. According to the story, US president Theodore Roosevelt threw his breakfast sausages out of the window after reading about conditions in Chicago’s meatpacking industry – a reaction that also apparently contributed to the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act. Now Chinese webmaster Wu Heng is hoping to draw the same attention to food safety issues here. China Daily
PG&E’s new EV proposal lays groundwork for $1-per-gallon fuel Yesterday, the biggest electric utility in California, the largest car market in the country, took an important step to give drivers access to a cleaner fuel that’s roughly the equivalent of buck-a-gallon gasoline. Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) has submitted a proposal for new and improved rate plans that encourage electric car drivers to charge when there’s plenty of spare capacity on the electrical grid, at a price that, in real dollars, is less than half what gas cost in 1949, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
ConAgra Foods’ green strategy: Award employees for sustainability efforts Last year, ConAgra Foods—the U.S. packaged-foods company behind such well-known brands as Hunt’s Ketchup and Reddi-Wip—saved millions of dollars while dramatically cutting its energy consumption. It accomplished this by not relying on major process changes or heavy investments hailing from top executives. Instead, it turned to its employees
Firm uses mushrooms to make eco-friendly packaging Mushrooms are a key ingredient in pale, soft blocks produced by the thousands in an upstate New York plant. The blocks are used to cushion products ranging from Dell servers to furniture for Crate and Barrel. More precisely, the packaging blocks are made with mycelium — the hidden “roots” of the mushroom that usually thread beneath soil or wood.
5/10/12
Toxic roulette. By the early 2000s, the flame retardant known as penta had become a villain. The only U.S. company that made penta soon introduced a replacement, hailing it as the beginning of an eco-friendly era. EPA promised that the new flame retardant had none of the problems of the old one. But documents obtained by the Tribune show that scientists within the EPA were deeply skeptical about the safety of Firemaster 550. Chicago Tribune, Illinois.
Flame retardants investigation: Chemical industry distorts science. Twenty-five years ago, scientists gathered in a cramped government laboratory and set fire to specially designed chairs, TVs and electrical cables packed with flame retardants. For the next half-hour, they carefully measured how much the chemicals slowed the blaze. Chicago Tribune, Illinois.
Chemical industry lobbyists keep stronger oversight plan at bay. With efforts to revamp the nation’s chemical safety law stalled in Congress, the Obama administration’s top environmental regulator vowed three years ago to act on her own to beef up the oversight of toxic substances. But key parts of the initiative by Lisa Jackson are still bottled up in an obscure White House office under intense pressure from industry lobbyists to back off. Chicago Tribune, Illinois.
US scientist: ‘Many routes of exposure’ to endocrine disruptors. Shanna H. Swan, a renowned scientist specialising in reproductive medicine, has warned about the health effects of endocrine disrupting chemicals known as phthalates which can end up in food via pesticides or plastics. In an interview with EurActiv, she calls on regulators to better protect consumers against those “hidden chemicals”. Euractiv, Belgium.
Radiation risks: Raiders of the lost archive. Fearful of a nuclear attack in the 1950s, the Soviet Union wanted to understand how radiation causes diseases such as cancer. Massive secret animal experiments were conducted, with scientists carefully recording their findings. Now, researchers hope to save these and other archives in the US, Europe, and Japan, hoping they could answer modern-day questions about the dangers of radiation. Nature
The most sustainable colleges In America. Aspiring higher eduction students have all sorts of reasons for picking a college: academic performance, cost of tuition, and alcohol availability among them. But, according to a new survey, one consideration is rising fast amid all the others: environmental performance. Fast Company
State warns of shellfish bacteria in Cape Cod Bay. Scientists have always warned there would be a price to pay for global warming and five people last year paid heavily. Warming ocean waters in the eastern part of Cape Cod Bay have created a more favorable environment for the Vibrio parahaemolyticus bacteria, state officals say. Cape Cod Times, Massachusetts.
Chikungunya disease in NYC? Warming could make it happen. The name describes the posture of its victims: Chikungunya, or “that which bends” is a viral disease that leaves people bent over by severe joint pain. Once a sporadic problem in Africa and Asia, it has been expanding its range since 2004. With some help from global warming, New York City could be next, researchers say. LiveScience
Tyler environmental prize winners: Pollution’s effects far-reaching. Two California scientists received the $200,000 Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement, one for his research on household cooking using biomass fuels such as wood or dung, used by nearly half of the world’s people. He found that it produces as much smoke as 1,000 cigarettes burning per hour, leading to nearly two-million premature deaths a year. Voice of America
Organic certifications for Canadian fish farms unveiled. Canadian farmed fish can now be certified as organic with the release of made-in-Canada standards. The inaugural Canadian Organic Aquaculture Standard prohibits the use of antibiotics, herbicides and genetically-modified organisms, and severely restricts the use of parasiticides. But some say it will threaten the integrity of all organic labels. Postmedia News
How P2 can change the state of green manufacturing When it comes to reducing the environmental impacts of a business, the concept of pollution prevention is one of the most fundamentally important ideas in the sustainability guidebook.
Why organic food isn’t as green as you think Instead of wondering how and where an agricultural product was grown, we should be asking different questions, Navin suggested: “Is it good for the environment? Can it feed people? Is it good for the farmer?” To answer those last two questions—can it feed people and is it good for the farmer—you have to understand yields. Land is scarce and expensive, and if organic methods require more land (because they produce fewer calories per hectare), they will drive up food costs. That’s troubling in a world where hunger is a bigger problem than obesity.
5/9/12
UCSF Repeats Impressive Energy Savings Being a leader in energy efficiency isn’t just a one-and-done exercise. It requires an ongoing commitment.That’s the lesson from UCSF, which three years ago received almost $2 million in PG&E incentives for implementing energy-saving measures. PG&E representatives returned to UCSF on April 23 to celebrate another milestone — $2.7 million more in incentives that the University earned for reducing annual energy consumption by 367,000 therms of natural gas, nearly 10 million kilowatt hours and 1.4 megawatts of electricity. That’s the equivalent of avoiding 7,600 tons of carbon dioxide each year or taking more than 1,000 cars off the road.
Adults exposed to low levels of a toxic gas released by natural and industrial sources may experience wheezing, coughing and asthma attacks that require medication, finds a three-year study in Iceland. This is one of the first studies to find a connection between hydrogen sulfide - best known for its rotten egg smell - and respiratory health effects.
Pacific Ocean has 100 times more plastic particles in it than ‘70s. Thousands of miles off the coast of California, millions of tons of plastic make up the so-called “Great Pacific Garbage Patch”. A new report estimates that particles of “microplastic”—pieces of plastic smaller than 5 mm in diameter—have increased by more than 100 times since the early 1970s. US News & World Report
Cap and trade for water pollution - ‘trendy, hip, glitzy’ and controversial. While a cap-and-trade plan for U.S. greenhouse gases is off the table and out of sight in Washington, a market-based plan for cleaning up water pollution in the Chesapeake Bay has emerged as topic A in the sprawling watershed. Greenwire
Vermont poised to be first state to outlaw fracking. Vermont will be the first state to outlaw a controversial oil and gas drilling method known as fracking when Governor Peter Shumlin signs a bill banning the practice – a largely symbolic move given the state’s apparent lack of energy reserves. Reuters
US completes warmest 12-month period in 117 years. As far back as records go (1895), never has the U.S. strung together 12 straight months warmer than May 2011 to April 2012 according to new data released today by NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center. The average temperature was 2.8 degrees F above the 20th century average. Washington Post [Registration Required]
Climate change threatens crucial marine algae. Without major reductions in the use of fossil fuels, sunlight is to kill an unknown number of ocean phytoplankton, the planet’s most important organism, a new study reports this week. Inter Press Service
Climate change ‘is harming eye health.’ It may be difficult to pin symptoms to global warming, but scientists agree that increased levels of ultraviolet radiation reaching the surface of the Earth, resulting from ozone depletion at high altitude, and a toxic mix of air pollutants are responsible for serious eye disorders. London Times, United Kingdom. [Subscription Required]
FDA moves to cut kids’ radiation exposure. In a move that acknowledges the higher risks that kids face from medical imaging tests, the Food and Drug Administration today will announce a proposal to protect children from unnecessary radiation exposure. USA Today
Fewer toxic toys and textiles in EU stores. Europe last year saw its first drop in the number of toxic toys and skin-irritating textiles stacked on its supermarket shelves – more than half of them made in China – the EU said Tuesday. Agence France-Presse
An effort to bury a throwaway culture one repair at a time. At Amsterdam’s first Repair Cafe, people can bring in whatever they want to have repaired, at no cost, by volunteers who just like to fix things. To some, the project’s social benefits are as appealing as its ecological mission. New York Times [Registration Required]
Whole Foods stops selling unsustainable seafood Whole Foods recently became the first major North American retailer to stop selling unsustainable, or red-listed, seafood. The red listing, as determined by the Monterey Bay Aquarium and the Blue Ocean Institute, indicates that the fish species is being overfished or that current fishing methods harm non-target marine life or habitats. Fish that’ll no longer be available: gray sole, skate, Atlantic cod (trawl-caught), Atlantic halibut, octopus, sturgeon, tautog, turbot, imported wild shrimp, and several species of tuna. Fortunately, a wide range of similar, but sustainable, alternatives will continue to be.
Hope for S cleantech jobs: Bloom Energy plans Delaware factory - Over the last year, the media coverage of clean technology in the United States has been dominated by stories such as the high-profile bankruptcy of solar maker Solyndra and the emergence of China as the leader in the global solar market, leaving many (including investors and national policy leaders) to question the future of the industry within our borders.
5/8/12
Health Care Professionals Return From CleanMed Ready to Green Health Care Health care professionals from across the country are returning to work today with renewed energy and tools for engaging in sustainable health care after attending CleanMed, the nation’s most important conference on health care sustainability. With information on new products, procedures and tools to help hospitals green their operations, including a new free program developed by the Healthier Hospitals Initiative, plus a strong business case, hospitals now have every incentive to begin reducing their environmental footprint.
Air pollution, asthma burden unevenly shared among U.S. children. By pairing census data with air pollution levels from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s monitoring network, researcher Christopher Paul found that low-income and minority groups—in particular, poor children of color—tend to be most exposed to air pollution. Huffington Post
Food-packaging chemical could lead to breast cancer, study finds. A new study of fetal exposure to BPA, a plastic additive found in some food packaging, shows that the chemical altered the mammary gland development in monkeys, reinforcing concerns that BPA - bisphenol A - could contribute to breast cancer in women. McClatchy Newspapers
Big Tobacco wins fire marshals as allies in flame retardent push. The problem facing cigarette manufacturers decades ago involved tragic deaths and bad publicity, but it had nothing to do with cancer. It had to do with house fires. The industry insisted it couldn’t make a fire-safe cigarette and instead promoted flame retardant furniture. Chicago Tribune, Illinois.
FDA calls for ‘judicious’ antibiotic use on farms. After decades of debate, federal regulators have condemned the practice of using antibiotics on healthy farm animals, trying to stem the rise in so-called “superbugs” that pose a dire threat to human health. San Jose Mercury News, California.
As beef cattle become behemoths, who are animal scientists serving? Scores of animal scientists employed by public universities have helped pharmaceutical companies persuade farmers and ranchers to use antibiotics, hormones, and other drugs to make their cattle grow bigger ever faster. Critics say some scientists have become so closely tied to the drug companies that they may be working more in the companies’ interests than in those of farmers and ranchers. Chronicle of Higher Education
Drug-defying germs from India speed post-antibiotic era. India’s $12.4 billion pharmaceutical industry manufactures almost a third of the world’s antibiotics, and people use them so liberally that relatively benign and beneficial bacteria are becoming drug immune. Poor hygiene has spread resistant germs into India’s drains, sewers and drinking water, putting millions at risk of drug-defying infections. Bloomberg Markets Magazine
Public support slips for steps to curb climate change. From gas-mileage standards to tax breaks for windmills, public support for “green” energy measures to tackle global warming has dropped significantly in the past two years, particularly among Republicans, a new poll suggests. USA Today
Genetic sequencing center to be added to WATER Institute. For scientists trying to unmask indicators of human pathogens in waterways or determine the health effects of chemical contaminants on aquatic life, the answers are found in genes. And the planned Great Lakes Genomics Center will help find those answers faster than ever. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Wisconsin.
Vaccination rates: Herd at risk. “They hang out in pockets,” says Richard Pan, a Sacramento pediatrician and member of California’s legislature, referring to parents who opt not to give their children the state-recommended vaccinations. These local concentrations of unvaccinated children pose a growing risk to public health. Economist
Obesity to afflict 42 percent of American adults by 2030. The ranks of obese Americans are expected to swell even further in the coming years, rising from 36% of the adult population today to 42% by 2030, experts said. And the cost of treating related medical conditions will add up to $550 billion. Los Angeles Times [Registration Required]
A window into Microsoft’s quest to become ‘carbon neutral’ Microsoft today announced a commitment to achieve “carbon neutrality” for its energy use companywide during its upcoming fiscal year, beginning July 1. It’s a bold and somewhat unusual plan, but consistent with the software giant’s other recent sustainability initiatives, which favor sophisticated, IT-fueled projects conducted in a transparent and accountable fashion.
5/7/12
Fears of gene pollution emerge in Tijuana River. It’s the kind of scenario that might evolve in Hollywood: A college professor detects drug-resistance genes collecting in local wetlands, where they survive for weeks and are spread far and wide by seabirds. San Diego Union-Tribune, California.
Fire reveals gaps in information on chemicals, other hazards. Dispatched to a one-story brick warehouse in flames on Baylis Street in Canton last month, firefighters did not know it contained 8,000 gallons of corrosive chemicals. But not because it wasn’t known to the Baltimore City Fire Department. Baltimore Sun, Maryland.
BP oil spill settlement grants will pay for health, mental health services on Gulf coast. Health care services in southeastern Louisiana will get a major share of the $104 million in grant money included in the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill settlement. Another $15 million will be used to expand environmental health expertise and literacy. New Orleans Times-Picayune, Louisiana.
Previously unreleased photographs show impact of BP oil on endangered sea turtles. Previously unreleased photographs from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico show boxes and bags full of oil-covered and dead endangered sea turtles and a group of sperm whales swimming through an oil sheen. Washington Post [Registration Required]
Air pollution, asthma burden unevenly shared among U.S. children. By pairing census data with air pollution levels from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s monitoring network, researcher Christopher Paul found that low-income and minority groups—in particular, poor children of color—tend to be most exposed to air pollution. Huffington Post
Food-packaging chemical could lead to breast cancer, study finds. A new study of fetal exposure to BPA, a plastic additive found in some food packaging, shows that the chemical altered the mammary gland development in monkeys, reinforcing concerns that BPA - bisphenol A - could contribute to breast cancer in women. McClatchy Newspapers
Big Tobacco wins fire marshals as allies in flame retardent push. The problem facing cigarette manufacturers decades ago involved tragic deaths and bad publicity, but it had nothing to do with cancer. It had to do with house fires. The industry insisted it couldn’t make a fire-safe cigarette and instead promoted flame retardant furniture. Chicago Tribune, Illinois.
Could a changing climate set off volcanoes and quakes? A British scientist argues that global warming could lead to a future of more intense volcanic eruptions and earthquakes. And while some dismiss his views as preposterous, he points to a body of recent research that shows a troubling link between climate change and the Earth events. Yale Environment 360
Changed climate. On a dreary spring afternoon, with rain clouds rolling in from the Atlantic, New Jersey is not the most obvious place to make a bet on solar power. Yet Ikea, the Swedish furniture retailer, has been doing exactly that. Financial Times, United Kingdom.
Tribal farmers are unlikely recruits helping loggers chop down pine beetle-infested trees. Joe Shark’s Native American heritage taught him to be leery of the timber industry on the South Dakota reservation where he grows apples and gooseberries, but a threat from an enemy no larger than a fingernail impelled him to grab a saw and join the loggers. Associated Press
New Hampshire Senate to take up bill to ban BPA in baby-related products. The New Hampshire Senate is scheduled to vote Wednesday on a measure sponsored by a local lawmaker that would ban the sale of baby food products containing the chemical Bisphenol A, or BPA. For the bill’s supporters, getting the bill this far has been, to borrow the phrase from baseball legend Yogi Berra, a case of “déjà vu all over again.” Portsmouth Herald, New Hampshire.
The 7 Lessons learned from 24 million EV miles In the world of electric vehicles, nothing attracts as much speculation or disagreement as the debate over exactly how EV drivers behave. Do they need 100 miles of range or will 30 miles do? How many public recharge stations do they need? Do energy prices influence charging? And so on.
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