A serious air pollutant prevalent in underserved communities, Superfund hazardous waste sites nearby, public drinking water systems out of compliance. All are new or enhanced insights found in an improved version of the federal government’s EJScreen data tool. The latest Reporter’s Toolbox reviews the changes and how they can be used to tell stories of real people’s daily lives.
"In 2017, two United Nations experts called for a treaty to strictly regulate dangerous pesticides, which they said were a “global human rights concern”, citing scientific research showing pesticides can cause cancers, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s, and other health problems. Publicly, the industry’s lead trade association dubbed the recommendations “unfounded and sensational assertions”. In private, industry advocates have gone further."
"Using EPA funds, Colorado will deploy cutting edge technology for detecting methane emissions from its 80 landfills, making it a leader among states."
"In a first-of-its-kind ruling, a federal district court said teeth-strengthening chemicals added to drinking water pose an “unreasonable risk,” a designation prompting EPA regulations under the nation’s premier toxics law."
"Officials were working Wednesday to assess the scene the day after a chemical leak from a railcar prompted the evacuation of hundreds of residents in southwestern Ohio."
"In a quiet patch of forest in Nova Scotia, a company is building a machine designed to help slow global warming by transforming Earth’s rivers and oceans into giant sponges that absorb carbon dioxide from the air."
"An estimated 189 compounds linked to breast cancer are found in food packaging and tableware, according to a new study."
“Paper or plastic” will no longer be a choice at grocery store checkout lines in California under a new law signed Sunday by Gov. Gavin Newsom that bans all plastic shopping bags."
"The landmark lawsuit is the first time a state has targeted an oil company over claims that recycling could solve the plastic pollution crisis."
Biodiversity loss can seem like a remote and abstract problem that pales in comparison to climate worries. But award-winning author David Quammen sees them as coequal threats, along with emerging diseases, and encourages journalists to illuminate the relationships between them. His advice includes getting out of big cities to see the extinction crisis firsthand and weaving humor and hope into your writing.
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