Latest Pollution Headlines
All the headlines from our Pollution Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Oklahoma Lawmakers not so Happy About Purdue Pharma Settlement
Apr 7 2019 // A $270 million settlement between the state of Oklahoma and the maker of OxyContin praised last week as an innovative way to help combat opioid addiction is facing bipartisan criticism from Oklahoma lawmakers who say the...
Despite Explosion, Company Will Keep Using Toxic Chemical at Wisconsin Refinery
Apr 5 2019 // Husky Energy said that it will invest more than $400 million to rebuild its oil refinery in Superior, Wisconsin, and will continue its use of a highly toxic chemical that raised fears in the community after an explosion at...
Trump Deregulation Plan Facing Court Challenge by 3 States
Apr 5 2019 // California, Oregon and Minnesota sued President Donald Trump and several top cabinet officials over the administration’s requirement that federal agencies delete two regulations for every one they add. Lodged by...
The Lowdown: May is National Safety Stand-Down Month
Apr 3 2019 // What’s coming up for your construction clients? The 6th annual National Safety Stand-Down takes place May 6-10, 2019. First initiated by OSHA in 2014, the week encourages construction companies of all sizes to...
North Carolina Orders Duke Energy to Excavate All Coal Ash
Apr 3 2019 // The country’s largest electric company was ordered Monday to excavate coal ash from all of its North Carolina power plant sites, slashing the risk of toxic chemicals leaking into water supplies but potentially adding...
U.S. Investigators to Begin Search for Cause of Texas Petrochemical Disaster
Apr 2 2019 // U.S. investigators hope this week for the first time to enter the site of a massive fuel fire and chemical spill outside Houston to begin the hunt for a cause and to determine whether the operator followed safety...
Houston-Area Chemical Disaster Zone Remains No-Go Zone 2 Weeks After Blaze
Apr 1 2019 // Two weeks after a chemical storage complex near Houston erupted in flames and menaced tens of thousands of people with dangerous fumes, the site remains too hazardous for investigators to approach. Intercontinental...
China Factory Explosion Kills 7 People in Second Deadly Blast During March
Apr 1 2019 // A plant explosion in China’s Jiangsu province killed seven people on Sunday, authorities said, the second deadly blast in the province this month as Beijing begins a nationwide industrial safety inspection...
Duke University to Settle Whistleblower Suit Over Faked-Research for $112M
Mar 29 2019 // Duke University will pay $112 million to settle a whistleblower lawsuit after federal prosecutors said a research technician’s fake data landed millions of dollars in federal grants, the school and the government...
Storage Tank Owner Sued by State, County Over Texas Petrochemical Fire
Mar 28 2019 // Texas officials on Tuesday sued owners of a Houston area petrochemical storage facility over a fire last week, alleging violations of environmental laws and seeking damages to cover response costs for the disaster that...
Bayer Must Pay $80 Million in Monsanto Roundup Cancer Trial, Says Jury
Mar 27 2019 // A U.S. jury on Wednesday awarded $80 million to a man who claimed his use of Bayer AG’s glyphosate-based weed killer Roundup caused his cancer, in the latest legal setback for the company facing thousands of similar...
Environmental, Economic Damage a Concern Following Texas Petrochemical Fire
Mar 27 2019 // Businesses and residents expressed concern on March 25 about the environmental and economic fallout from a fire at a Houston-area petrochemical storage farm that sent huge plumes into the air for days and prompted the...
Shipping Resumes in Houston Channel Closed After Chemical Tank Fire
Mar 26 2019 // The U.S. Gulf Coast’s most important industrial waterway partially reopened on Monday after it was polluted with cancer-causing benzene and toxic runoff from the region’s worst chemical disaster in more than a...
California to Waive Environmental Rules to Prep for Wildfire Season
Mar 26 2019 // California Gov. Gavin Newsom has moved to bypass environmental regulations to prepare for the next wildfire season, a move he said was necessary to prevent further loss of life even as it frustrated activists in a state...
Bills on Tap at Massachusetts Statehouse Target Lead in School Water
Mar 26 2019 // Lawmakers on Beacon Hill are pushing legislation aimed at improving the safety of drinking water in schools in part by requiring schools and child care centers to test every drinking water outlet each year for elevated...
Analysis: Warren Buffett Champions an Inferior Product in THREE Policy
Mar 25 2019 // Warren Buffett, often ahead of the curve, sounded like a disrupter in a 2004 shareholder letter. Fifteen years ago, Buffett wrote, “Insurers have generally earned poor returns for a single reason: They sell a...
Houston Channel Still Closed as Chemical Fire Cleanup Continues; Texas Sues ITC
Mar 24 2019 // Vessels will be allowed to enter a tributary to the Houston Ship Channel this morning, a workaround allowing some shipping in the area as the main route into the region remains closed as a result of a cloud of...
New Coalition Cyber Policy for Manufacturers Covers Security Failures, Data Breaches
Mar 22 2019 // Coalition, a cyber insurance company for small and midsize businesses, has launched a full-spectrum coverage to insure manufacturers against security failures and data breaches. The Coalition policy encompasses the...
Bank of England to Issue Rules for How Banks, Insurers Should Manage Climate Risk
Mar 22 2019 // The Bank of England will soon spell out how it wants banks, insurers and investment companies to manage the financial risks from climate change, Governor Mark Carney said on Thursday. The central bank under Carney has been...
Analysis: Jury Upends Bayer’s Roundup Defense Strategy
Mar 22 2019 // Bayer AG had hoped a new trial strategy focusing jurors on scientific evidence could stem a burgeoning tide of U.S. lawsuits over its glyphosate-based weed killer Roundup, but a second jury finding on Tuesday that the...
