Latest Pollution Headlines
All the headlines from our Pollution Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Climate Change Bottom-Line Talk Grows, S&P Director Says
Jun 18 2014 // Companies and governments worldwide are changing their behaviors and examining their risks in the face of climate change, a managing director for Standard & Poor’s said as he held up the insurance industry as a...
North Carolina Bill Would Force Duke to Close Coal Ash Sites Over 15 Years
Jun 18 2014 // A bill backed by key North Carolina lawmakers would require Duke Energy to close all of its coal ash dumps across the state within 15 years, with much of the toxic material going into lined landfills. The Associated Press...
Citizens Near North Carolina Coal Ash Sites Fear Health Effects
Jun 18 2014 // The sweet tea served in the tidy kitchen of Joanne Thomas’ antebellum home in Dukeville, North Carolina, comes with an ominous warning. “It’s made with bottled water,” says Thomas, a spry...
West Virginia Chemical Firm Facing New Environmental Charges
Jun 16 2014 // A Charleston company faces state violations after a storm water collection trench overflowed at the same site where chemicals spilled into West Virginia’s largest water supply in January. The Department of...
West Virginia Storage Tank Rules Make Some Fear Citizen Lawsuits
Jun 16 2014 // Industry groups are jittery that if state regulators require the wrong type of permit, companies could be subject to citizen lawsuits under a new environmental law that regulates storage tanks. State regulators disagree,...
University of Alabama Researchers Show Small Changes Can Make Big Difference During Tornadoes
Jun 16 2014 // Surviving a tornado in a wood-frame residential home is enhanced by an intact roof and standing walls, but light-weight garage doors can be the weak link to allowing high winds and pressure changes into a home that can...
Proposed Environmental Rules in N.J. Would Ease Some Coastal Development
Jun 12 2014 // In its first major rewrite of coastal protection rules since Superstorm Sandy, New Jersey is proposing changes that would make it easier for some new or expanded development along the Jersey shore and the state’s...
Judge Allows Coal Ash Suit Against Duke Energy in North Carolina
Jun 12 2014 // A federal judge says a lawsuit accusing Duke Energy coal ash pits of polluting a lake near Wilmington can move forward. The Southern Environmental Law Center filed a lawsuit last year on behalf of environmental groups,...
Virginia-Based Beacon Hill Associates Hires Assistant VP
Jun 9 2014 // Beacon Hill Associates Inc., a wholesale insurance broker and program administrator based in Charlottesville, Virginia, has hired Ursula Knowles as assistant vice president, information development. Knowles will be...
Vermont AG Sues 2 Dozen U.S. Refiners Over Pollution
Jun 6 2014 // BP Plc, Chevron Corp. and Exxon Mobil Corp. are among two dozen U.S. refiners sued by Vermont Attorney General William Sorrell and accused of polluting the state’s groundwater with a gasoline additive. Sorrell filed...
EU Notes Its Success in Climate Change Goals as UN Talks Start
Jun 4 2014 // The European Union touted its success in cutting greenhouse gases at U.N. talks on climate change on Wednesday, where a U.S. plan to cut power plant emissions has lifted hopes for a global deal in 2015. An adviser to the...
Will Energy Firm Executives Be Sued for Ignoring Climate Change?
Jun 4 2014 // Environmental groups said executives of coal, oil, gas and other “fossil fuel” companies could be held liable and risk lawsuits if they support groups that deny climate change and resist policies to fight...
Industries Want West Virginia to Delay Storage Tank Regulations
Jun 2 2014 // Months after state officials approved a law to safeguard against chemical spills, West Virginia industry groups want some requirements delayed and some of their storage tanks shielded from added oversight. Though the new...
North Carolina Senate Votes to Make Disclosure of Fracking Chemicals Illegal
May 23 2014 // The North Carolina Senate on Thursday voted to make it a crime to disclose the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, even as big U.S. oil companies elsewhere consider releasing more information about the...
Report Faults U.S. Oversight of Chemical Plants
May 23 2014 // The government has no way of fully knowing which U.S. chemical facilities stock ammonium nitrate, the substance that exploded last year at a Texas fertilizer plant and killed 14 people, congressional investigators say....
Safety Agency to Probe Fracking Risks After Deaths of 4 Workers
May 20 2014 // The Obama administration is investigating the health risks of hydraulic fracturing after at least four deaths among oilfield workers since 2010 in North Dakota and Montana. The National Institute for Occupational Safety...
Survey Reveals Public Attitudes on West Virginia Chemical Spill
May 13 2014 // About one-third of those who responded to a survey conducted three months after a chemical spilled into the Elk River indicated a member of their household had a spill-related illness, Kanawha County’s health officer...
In Charleston, Business Interruption Losses from Chemical Spill Take Toll
May 12 2014 // Restaurants and storefronts are buzzing again in West Virginia’s capital city of Charleston, but many still haven’t filled a financial hole after chemicals sullied their running water and forced them to close...
EPA Seeks Input on Requiring Fuller Disclosure on Fluids Used in Fracking
May 9 2014 // The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said it wants to gather public comment on whether it should require chemical manufacturers to disclose the content of fluids used for oil and gas production, a possible step toward...
Rockhill Insurance Opens Environmental Office in Chicago
May 8 2014 // Rockhill Insurance Group, a member of the State Auto Insurance Group, has opened a new Chicago office located at 150 S. Wacker, Suite 2400. Christine Triche and Michael Klima join the office as AVP-underwriting director...
