Chemicals

"Without DDT and the other now-banned pesticides that kept bedbugs in check for more than 50 years, the United States is as vulnerable as parts of the world where the insects remain a plague."

"Trains carrying deadly chemicals rumble through our backyards every day, but railroad companies hauling them refuse to publicly disclose exactly what those substances are, or how often they travel through the area."

"BP has agreed to pay a record $50.6 million fine to the federal government for safety violations found by regulators last year at its troubled refinery in Texas City, Tex., where 15 workers died in a 2005 explosion."

"It may be one of the most beloved activities of hyperactive children and the parents who love them: bouncing in a bounce house [Ed. Note: aka 'Moon Bounce']. But, according to Attorney General Jerry Brown of California, it may also be toxic."

Scientists are now studying the effects of Prozac in water on shrimp. After being secreted by humans, drugs like Prozac find their way through sewage systems and into waterways. Their effects on shrimp could be fatal.

"Farmers and other pesticide users would not need to secure Clean Water Act (CWA) permits before spraying over water under Senate legislation offered late last week in response to a pivotal federal court ruling."

"A new study finds that girls are more likely today than in the past to start developing breasts by age 7 or 8."

"BP Plc, Chevron Corp. and Royal Dutch Shell Plc units were among dozens of energy companies that agreed to pay $42 million to settle claims brought by communities on New York’s Long Island alleging contamination of water with a gasoline additive."

"The dispersants used to break up the BP PLC oil spill came under new scrutiny Wednesday in the U.S. Senate, where a panel warned that the U.S. government lacks critical information about whether the chemicals threaten sea life in the Gulf of Mexico."