Latest Pollution Headlines
All the headlines from our Pollution Topic Page, ordered by recency.
West Virginia Chemical Spill Settlement for Community Projects Dropped
Mar 27 2015 // Lawyers for businesses and people affected by a massive chemical spill last year say a settlement to fund community projects is no longer being considered. In June 2014, lawyers for the groups affected by the Freedom...
Va. Retailer Lumber Liquidators Faces Safety Inquiry
Mar 26 2015 // The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said Wednesday it is investigating Lumber Liquidators Chinese-made laminate flooring following a national TV broadcast raised concerns over levels of formaldehyde. Chairman...
Duke Energy to Appeal $25M Fine by North Carolina Regulators
Mar 26 2015 // Duke Energy will appeal a $25.1 million fine by North Carolina environmental regulators over pollution that has been seeping into groundwater for years from a pair of coal ash pits at a retired power plant. The fine, which...
JLT Specialty USA Creates Environmental Brokerage Team
Mar 25 2015 // JLT Specialty USA said it has added an environmental team to provide environmental brokerage and advisory services in energy, construction, environmental professional, finance and aerospace sectors. The individuals...
Oil Industry Sues to Block U.S. Fracking Regulations
Mar 23 2015 // U.S. drillers already reeling from a six- month drop in oil prices denounced new U.S. fracking regulations as costly and unnecessary, and quickly met them with a lawsuit. After three years of debate, the U.S. Interior...
Obama Administration Releases Regulations on Fracking on Federal Lands
Mar 22 2015 // The Obama administration issued the first federal regulations for fracking since the drilling technique fueled a domestic energy boom, requiring extensive disclosures of the chemicals used on public land. After years of...
North Carolina Governor Signs Air Pollution Mandate Change for Fracking
Mar 20 2015 // Environmental legislation that gives leeway to a North Carolina state panel in creating air pollution rules for fracking has been signed into law by Gov. Pat McCrory. The governor signed the measure soon after the Senate...
ACE Enhances Pollution Liability Portfolio Coverages
Mar 19 2015 // ACE Group has enhanced its premises pollution liability (PPL) and premises pollution liability portfolio (PPL Port) insurance policies to provide additional coverages for environmental day-to-day operational exposures...
Duke Coal Ash Case Goes Before North Carolina Supreme Court
Mar 19 2015 // North Carolina’s highest court is weighing whether state environmental rules require Duke Energy to clean up its leaky coal ash dumps immediately, or years down the road. The North Carolina Supreme Court heard...
Former Freedom Owners Plead Guilty in West Virginia Chemical Spill Case
Mar 18 2015 // Two former owners of Freedom Industries pleaded guilty on Monday to environmental violations stemming from last year’s Charleston chemical spill that prompted a temporary tap water ban for 300,000 residents. At...
Despite Collision, Closure, Business Continues on Houston Ship Channel
Mar 13 2015 // Goods are being unloaded and commerce traded along the Houston Ship Channel, even though part of the waterway remained closed on March 11 amid cleanup efforts following a collision that spilled a flammable chemical. About...
North Carolina Fines Duke Energy $25M over Coal Ash Pollution
Mar 13 2015 // North Carolina environmental officials are fining Duke Energy $25 million over pollution that has been seeping into groundwater for years from a pair of coal ash pits at a retired power plant. The state Department of...
U.S. Dominates Climate Change Litigation
Mar 12 2015 // It’s almost counterintuitive if you think about it. There is far more litigation related to climate change in the U.S. compared with Europe, which is usually considered more progressive on the issue. For an example...
West Virginia Lawmakers Send Rollback of Chemical Spill Law to House Floor
Mar 12 2015 // A West Virginia House panel narrowly approved a bill to scale back protections to prevent chemical spills from sullying water supplies. The January 2014 chemical spill that contaminated drinking water for 300,000 residents...
Group Requests Investigation Into Whether Florida Banned Climate-Change Terms
Mar 12 2015 // Did Florida Gov. Rick Scott’s administration ban state environmental scientists from using the terms “climate change” and “global warming” in their work? Scott says no, but some former...
Part of Houston Ship Channel Closed After Tanker, Carrier Collide
Mar 11 2015 // A portion of the busy Houston Ship Channel was shut on March 9 after two ships collided in fog, causing a leak of flammable liquid. Methyl tertiary-butyl ether, or MTBE, a gasoline additive aboard the Danish-flagged...
Proposed North Carolina Permit Rules Would Allow Duke Pollution to Continue
Mar 9 2015 // Duke Energy could legally leak pollutants from some of its coal ash dumps under new wastewater permits proposed Friday by North Carolina regulators. Just days after federal prosecutors filed criminal charges against Duke...
Transport Company Agrees to Restoration Plan After West Virginia Train Derailment
Mar 9 2015 // Federal regulators say CSX Transportation has agreed to a long-term plan for cleaning up and restoring the area around a fiery oil-train derailment in southern West Virginia. Under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency...
UCPM Environmental Launches Program for Indoor Air Quality, Mold Liability
Mar 4 2015 // UCPM, Inc., an environmental insurance provider, has partnered with Great American Insurance Co. to offer the IAQ Advantage package for indoor air quality and mold liability coverage. This online program targets real...
West Virginia’s Coal Country Split as New Law Pits Owners, Workers: Commodities
Mar 4 2015 // Mike Caputo, one of the top Democrats in the West Virginia legislature, began working in the state’s coal mines at age 19. It helped put his kids through school, he said, and helped him pay for his family home. Now...
