"A coal company has challenged an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) power plant pollution regulation in court after the agency recently finalized changes that weaken the standards' legal underpinnings."
Unheeded warnings are the hallmark of many disasters. And with coronavirus still hobbling the nation, communities and journalists must now watch for all the ways COVID-19 could make even the most familiar hazards far worse. Prepare with this extensive Backgrounder, which touches on issues around evacuations and emergency readiness when facing storms, fires, toxic releases and more.
Regulations that sprang from cornerstone environmental laws in place for decades are now under attack by the Trump administration, per legal experts in a recent webinar co-sponsored by the Society of Environmental Journalists and Columbia University’s Earth Institute. Get key takeaways and resources from the event from SEJ’s Dale Willman. Plus, watch the full webinar video.
"A small-scale certification effort could offer a path forward."
"Urging residents to evacuate and saying downtown Midland could be under 9 feet of water by Wednesday afternoon, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer late Tuesday declared a state of emergency for Midland County after the Edenville and Sanford dams breached."
"When the chemical company Brenntag received a fine in 2017, the National Association of Chemical Distributors asked for help from two new Trump administration appointees who previously worked in chemical lobbying, according to emails obtained by The Hill through a Freedom of Information Act request."
"The EPA is modifying one of its rules to increase the supply of products to clean food-contact surfaces due to disinfectant shortages during the coronavirus crisis."
"This isn’t the first time Vicki Dobbins’s town has been forced to shelter in place. Last year, the Marathon Petroleum refinery that looms over her neighborhood near Detroit emitted a pungent gas, causing nausea and dizziness among neighbors and prompting health officials to warn people to stay inside."
"The Trump administration will not impose any limits on perchlorate, a toxic chemical compound that contaminates water and has been linked to fetal and infant brain damage, according to two Environmental Protection Agency staff members familiar with the decision."
"The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposal to address lead in water isn’t as aggressive as it could be, the agency’s independent science advisers, as well as outside groups, said Monday."
Advertisement 
