EPA

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EPA Throws Hammer Down on 2 Toxic Chemicals

Full ban announced for TCE, partial ban of dry-cleaning staple perc—both tied to various cancers

(Newser) - Bans of two toxic chemicals first proposed last year have finally come to fruition. On Monday, the Environmental Protection Agency barred the use of trichloroethylene (aka TCE) and perchloroethylene, also referred to as perc—both solvents used in consumer products and industrial settings and that have been tied to various...

ProPublica: All of the US Is at Risk to Formaldehyde

Investigation finds too-high levels of the ubiquitous chemical across the country

(Newser) - Ask most people what they know about formaldehyde, and they might harken back to a high school frog dissection. A ProPublica investigation provides a far more sobering take: The outlet reports that the chemical is both pervasive—it's "virtually everywhere"—and dangerous, causing more "far more...

EPA to Set Deadline for Replacing Nation's Lead Pipes

Biden is expected to announce new 10-year EPA rule during stop in Wisconsin on Tuesday

(Newser) - A decade after the water crisis in Flint, Michigan, raised alarms about the continuing dangers of lead in tap water, President Biden is setting a 10-year deadline for cities across the nation to replace their lead pipes, finalizing an aggressive approach aimed at ensuring that drinking water is safe for...

In 40-Year First, EPA Issues Emergency Suspension

Say goodbye to DCPA, a herbicide found to pose 'serious risks' to unborn babies

(Newser) - The Environmental Protection Agency has issued its first emergency suspension in more than four decades to ban a common weedkiller that poses "serious risks" to unborn babies. Tuesday's action applies to dimethyl tetrachloroterephthalate or DCPA, sold under brand name Dacthal, which is used on grasses, artificial turf, and...

SCOTUS Puts Brakes on EPA's 'Good Neighbor' Pollution Plan

5-4 ruling goes against Biden administration, blue states' attempt to rein in upwind air pollution

(Newser) - The Supreme Court is putting the Environmental Protection Agency's air pollution-fighting "good neighbor" plan on hold while legal challenges continue, the conservative-led court's latest blow to federal regulations. The justices in a 5-4 vote on Thursday rejected arguments by the Biden administration and Democratic-controlled states that the...

Railroad, Government Reach a Figure on Ohio Derailment

Cleanup, claims, and safety upgrades to cost Norfolk Southern $500M

(Newser) - Norfolk Southern has reached an agreement with the federal government to pay more than $310 million to settle claims and cover costs stemming from the derailment last year of a freight train carrying hazardous materials in Ohio. The railroad also will spend $200 million on safety upgrades, Politico reports. In...

EPA Aims to Relax Limits on Common Pesticide
EPA Aims to Relax
Limits on Common Pesticide
LONGFORM
Apr 28, 2024 3:15 PM CDT

EPA Aims to Relax Limits on Common Pesticide

ProPublica reports on how critics say the agency is working too closely with chemical industry

(Newser) - "It's exactly what we recommended against." That's the view of Veena Singla, a member of a scientific advisory panel tapped by the EPA, on the agency's plan to loosen restrictions on a pesticide called acephate. Sharon Lerner of ProPublica digs into the issue and how...

EPA Puts Companies on the Hook for PFAS Cleanup

Rule change could cost companies that release toxic substances billions

(Newser) - The Environmental Protection Agency has announced a change that will shift the burden for cleaning up two "forever chemicals" from government to the companies responsible for the pollution. The rule designates the manmade compounds as hazardous substances under the Superfund law, the New York Times reports. The Biden administration'...

Big Trucks Face Strict Emissions Rules by 2032

New EPA guidelines are designed to boost electric sales

(Newser) - The EPA on Friday set strict emissions standards for heavy-duty trucks, buses, and other large vehicles, an action designed to boost sales of electric vehicles and clean up some of the nation's largest sources of planet-warming greenhouse gases, per the AP .
  • The new rules, which take effect for model
...

EPA Issues Strongest-Ever Car Pollution Standards
New EPA Rules Will Change
the 'Menu' for Car Buyers
THE RUNDOWN
Mar 20, 2024 2:30 PM CDT

New EPA Rules Will Change the 'Menu' for Car Buyers

But some restrictions have been loosened from last year's proposal

(Newser) - The Biden administration has finalized Environmental Protection Agency rules that usher in the "strongest-ever pollution standards for cars," according to the agency. The rules, described by the Washington Post as Biden's "most far-reaching climate regulation yet," require steep emissions cuts that will speed up the...

129K Kids in Chicago Exposed to Lead in Water
68% of Kids
in Chicago
Exposed to
Lead in Water
NEW STUDY
Mar 19, 2024 7:33 AM CDT

68% of Kids in Chicago Exposed to Lead in Water

That's 129K children under 6, researchers say

(Newser) - More than two-thirds of kids aged 5 or younger in Chicago are exposed to lead in drinking water, which can mean many harmful consequences, according to a new study. The Guardian previously analyzed 24,000 city water tests, finding water from a third of homes contained lead above 5 parts...

US Bans Last Type of Asbestos in Use Here

Chrysotile asbestos, a carcinogen, is used in bleach, brake pads, and more

(Newser) - The EPA on Monday announced a comprehensive ban on asbestos, a carcinogen that's still used in some chlorine bleach, brake pads, and other products and that kills thousands of Americans every year, per the AP . The final rule marks a major expansion of EPA regulation under a landmark 2016...

Smuggling Greenhouse Gases Is Now a Thing

Michael Hart is first in US to be hit with such a charge after alleged transport of HFCs from Mexico

(Newser) - A Southern California man was arrested Monday on suspicion of smuggling refrigerants into the US from Mexico, and federal prosecutors said he's the first person to be charged with violating regulations intended to curb the use of greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change. The indictment alleges Michael Hart...

EPA Tightens Rules on One of Deadliest Forms of Air Pollution

It's the first time the regulations on particle matter have been changed since 2012

(Newser) - The Biden administration is setting tougher standards for deadly soot pollution, saying that reducing fine particle matter from tailpipes, smokestacks, and other industrial sources could prevent thousands of premature deaths a year, reports the AP . The Environmental Protection Agency rule finalized Wednesday is the first change to the limits in...

EPA Sets Fees to Cut Oil, Gas Industry Methane Emissions

The gas is responsible for one-third of global warming

(Newser) - With US gas and oil production at record highs, the Biden administration on Friday announced moves to counter the resulting release of methane gas. For the first time, oil and gas companies would have to pay a fee to the Environmental Protection Agency for emitting methane during production, the New ...

Food Waste Accounts for 58% of Methane in Landfills

More than 50 local officials are asking the EPA to help accelerate food scrap recycling

(Newser) - More than one-third of the food produced in the US is never eaten. Much of it ends up in landfills, where it generates tons of methane that hastens climate change. That's why more than 50 local officials signed onto a letter Tuesday calling on the Environmental Protection Agency to...

Biden Administration Weakens Wetlands Protections

Feds say SCOTUS ruling left them with no choice

(Newser) - The Biden administration weakened regulations protecting millions of acres of wetlands Tuesday, saying it had no choice after the Supreme Court sharply limited the federal government's jurisdiction over them. A new rule requires that wetlands be more clearly connected to other waters like oceans and rivers, a policy shift...

Supreme Court Limits EPA Power on Water Pollution

Majority sides with couple who sought to build home on wetlands in Idaho

(Newser) - The Supreme Court on Thursday made it harder for the federal government to police water pollution in a decision that strips protections from wetlands that are isolated from larger bodies of water, per the AP . It's the second decision in as many years in which a conservative majority of...

EPA Wants End Date on Emissions From Power Plants

Supreme Court blocked attempt during Obama administration

(Newser) - The Environmental Protection Agency wants power plants to almost eliminate their carbon dioxide emissions, an effort blocked by the Supreme Court during President Barack Obama's administration. The Biden administration proposal, which is still being developed, probably would force fossil fuel-burning plants to capture the carbon dioxide emissions from their...

Judge Freezes Clean Water Rule in 24 States

Opponents call the federal regulation a burden on farmers and ranchers

(Newser) - A federal judge on Wednesday temporarily blocked a federal rule in 24 states that is intended to protect thousands of small streams, wetlands, and other waterways throughout the nation. US District Judge Daniel L. Hovland in Bismarck, North Dakota, halted the regulations from the EPA and Army Corps of Engineers...

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