Chemicals

"On the eve of the opening of what would have been a bellwether US trial over allegations that a widely used weed killer causes Parkinson’s disease, paraquat-maker Syngenta reached a settlement with the retired landscaper who blamed the company for his diagnosis with the incurable brain disease."

"A leading European chemical safety institute has ousted the director of its cancer research center after the director led an extensive testing program into the safety of the pesticide glyphosate, sparking concerns about chemical industry influence into what has been an independent research institution."

"Police and prosecutors from Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana and Suriname have arrested nearly 200 people in their first-ever joint cross-border operation targeting illegal gold mining in the Amazon region, authorities said Thursday."

"The deep rift between Democrats and Republicans over the future of the nation’s premier chemical safety law was on full display on Thursday in a hearing designed to kickstart legislation that would allow faster federal approvals for new chemicals. "

"A highly toxic pesticide that was banned in California more than two decades ago is still widely used across the state, potentially endangering communities near farm fields and bustling shipyards, according to a new study."

"The global skin-lightening market is worth over $10 billion and growing, but the unregulated products driving it contain dangerous chemicals linked to serious health risks."

"Though a direct cause is unknown, the jump renews concerns over antibiotic resistance and cuts to the federal agencies that work to reduce it."

"A federal appellate court panel did not seem swayed by industry groups’ plea to toss EPA’s hazardous substance designations for two types of PFAS."

"Republicans this week are planning to use a rule-killing law to undo Biden-era restrictions on mining near more than 1 million acres of Minnesota wilderness."

"House Democrats asked the Interior Department’s inspector general on Tuesday to investigate whether Karen Budd-Falen, the agency’s third highest ranking official, played a role in the federal approval of a lithium mine after her husband entered into a $3.5 million financial relationship with the mine’s developer."