"On April 17, 2013, an explosion and fire at the West Fertilizer Company plant in West, Texas, killed 15 people and injured hundreds. It also destroyed more than 150 buildings around the plant. Among these were the West Intermediate School for 4th and 5th graders, located about 550 feet (170 meters) away from the fertilizer plant, and West High School, about 1,150 feet (350 meters) away."
When dangerous liquid wastes are pumped into deep wells, it's the Safe Drinking Water Act's Underground Injection Control program that aims to keep the practice safe. But does it work? Our weekly TipSheet looks beyond fracking to other kinds of injection wells, and shows how you can track stories on the practice in your state.
"Testing for residues of an herbicide developed by Monsanto Co. that has been linked to cancer has turned up high levels in honey from the key farm state of Iowa, adding to concerns about contamination that have triggered at least two lawsuits against honey industry players and prompted scrutiny by regulators."
"Trichloroethylene, formerly a widely used solvent, will be listed as a 'known human carcinogen' in a federal Report on Carcinogens to be published Nov. 3."
"The Environmental Protection Agency once again gave its stamp of approval to a new weed-killing pesticide from Dow Chemical Co. following a review a court granted in response to an agency request."
"Rep. Dan Kildee has asked Congressional leaders to launch an investigation into a pharmaceutical company accused of raising prices of its lead treatment drug in the wake of Flint's lead water crisis receiving international attention."
"The controversy over genetically modified crops has long focused on largely unsubstantiated fears that they are unsafe to eat. But an extensive examination by The New York Times indicates that the debate has missed a more basic problem — genetic modification in the United States and Canada has not accelerated increases in crop yields or led to an overall reduction in the use of chemical pesticides."
"Rajiv Singh started thinking about how to do his part to fight global warming 15 years ago."
"More than 100 people were treated for respiratory problems after a chemical spill at an MGP Ingredients Inc facility on Friday generated a chemical cloud over the northeastern Kansas city of Atchison before authorities declared the threat over."
"The Environmental Protection Agency was slated to hold four days of public meetings focused on essentially one question: Is glyphosate, the world’s most widely used herbicide and the lynchpin to Monsanto’s fortunes, as safe as Monsanto has spent 40 years telling us it is? But oddly, the EPA Scientific Advisory Panel (SAP) meetings, called to look at potential glyphosate ties to cancer, were 'postponed' just four days before they were to begin Oct. 18, after intense lobbying by the agrichemical industry."
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