Latest Pollution Headlines

All the headlines from our Pollution Topic Page, ordered by recency.

China’s Ping An Teams up with Travel Site to Sell Smog Insurance

Mar 19 2014 // Ping An Insurance Group Co., China’s second-biggest insurer, is collaborating with Ctrip.com International Ltd. to sell smog insurance to tourists traveling to Beijing and six other Chinese cities. Travelers in...

ACE Adds Crisis Management Services to European Environmental Risks Coverage

Mar 19 2014 // ACE announced from London that it has “expanded its environmental risk insurance proposition to add crisis management cover, as part of its strategy to support the evolving environmental cover needs of companies in...

West Virginia Lawmakers OK Chemical Spill Bill As Session Ends

Mar 11 2014 // Leading up to a midnight deadline, West Virginia lawmakers scrambled Saturday to give teachers raises and hike the minimum wage. A Jan. 9 chemical spill into the water supply loomed over the session, which began three days...

Florida Joins Multistate Environmental Suit Against BP

Mar 10 2014 // Florida has joined a multistate lawsuit stemming from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, seeking to hold British oil company BP accountable for damage to the state’s natural resources. The complaint was filed last...

Report: Texas Accounts 40% of U.S. Oil Field Deaths

Mar 10 2014 // Texas accounted for about 40 percent of the 663 workers the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said were killed nationwide in oil field-related industries between 2007 and 2012, according to a Houston Chronicle investigation...

Only 2 Inspectors For Asbestos Projects in Iowa

Mar 7 2014 // Two inspectors are responsible for making sure thousands of asbestos-removal projects are being properly handled in Iowa each year. The Des Moines Register reported that the lack of inspections at asbestos removal projects...

Judge OKs Settlement in Deadly 2010 West Virginia Plant Explosion

Mar 7 2014 // A judge has approved a settlement that resolves federal workplace and environmental civil charges at a plant in Hancock County where an explosion killed three workers in 2010. Under the settlement, metal recycler AL...

Connecticut Bill to Require Study of Road Treatments

Mar 6 2014 // Connecticut Transportation Commissioner James Redeker said on Feb.28 he’s willing to review whether it makes sense to add rust inhibitors to chemical road treatments used to clear ice and snow on state roads and...

Only 2 Inspectors Monitor Asbestos-Removal Projects in Iowa

Mar 4 2014 // Two inspectors are responsible for making sure thousands of asbestos removal projects are being properly handled in Iowa each year. The Des Moines Register reports that the lack of inspections at asbestos removal projects...

West Virginia Lawmakers Amend Chemical Spill Bill As Session Nears End

Mar 3 2014 // As time ticks away, West Virginia lawmakers are suggesting another face-lift for a bill that would tighten aboveground storage tank regulations and safeguard water systems against chemical spills. The House of Delegates...

Report: Texas Accounts 40% of U.S. Oil Field Deaths

Feb 24 2014 // Texas accounted for about 40 percent of the 663 workers the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said were killed nationwide in oil field-related industries between 2007 and 2012, according to a Houston Chronicle investigation...

Cape Fear Residents Deal with Fear of Coal Ash Dumps

Feb 24 2014 // From his modest home in Wilmington, North Carolina near the Cape Fear River, Sam Malpass can glimpse the tall stacks of Duke Energy’s Sutton Steam Electric Plant, a looming reminder of the environmental dangers...

Urbanization, Mobility, Gridlock and Predictions of ‘Peak Car’

Feb 24 2014 // The world that Henry Ford put on wheels is poised for a stall. In the globe’s growing megacities, pollution and gridlock are putting a damper on driving. In India, some commuters are leaving their cars at home to...

Industry Update: Riding the Wave in the Marina Marketplace

Feb 24 2014 // As the $4.2 billion marina industry continues to expand, independent agents who seek to leverage their specialization and partner with experienced carriers have a significant opportunity to grow their businesses. With the...

West Virginia Denied FEMA Grant for Chemical Spill

Feb 14 2014 // Federal officials have denied West Virginia’s request for emergency grants to reimburse first responders, nonprofits and public agencies that assisted during last month’s chemical spill. FEMA said in a letter...

Minnesota to BP: Insurance Money Plus State Funds Equals Double Dipping

Feb 12 2014 // Minnesota is suing British Petroleum for $25 million, alleging the company double dipped when it sought state funds on top of insurance payments to clean up contamination from leaking petroleum storage tanks. The...

North Carolina Seeks to Halt Duke Coal Ash Settlement After Spill

Feb 12 2014 // North Carolina has asked a state judge to put a controversial settlement deal with U.S. power company Duke Energy over pollution on hold after a massive coal ash spill into a local river raised fresh concerns about water...

Environmentalists Hit North Carolina Politics Behind Duke’s Coal Ash Pollution

Feb 11 2014 // Over the last year, environmental groups have tried three times to use the federal Clean Water Act to force Duke Energy to clear out leaky coal ash dumps like the one that ruptured last week, spewing enough toxic sludge...

Senate to Take Up Chemical Safety Bill After West Virginia Spill

Feb 6 2014 // U.S. senators said they will take up a bill as soon as this week to require inspections and clean-up plans for chemical storage tanks, over the objection of industry, after a West Virginia spill tainted drinking...

Lockton Adds Wasilchuk as Account Executive in Chicago

Feb 5 2014 // Lockton has hired John Wasilchuk as an account executive in its Chicago office focusing on environmental risk management. He is responsible for placement of environmental insurance coverage for Lockton clients and...