Still covering aspects of the BP Gulf of Mexico oil spill? SEJ's tracker blog The Daily Glob has compiled a list of important Gulf-related research programs: institutes, academic programs, and labs working on marine science, gulf ecology, oil spill response and recovery, coastal ecosystems, wetlands, and more.
"The federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry has been under tough Congressional scrutiny over the last two years for what critics assert are flawed evaluations of health risks at the nation’s worst contaminated sites. Now the Government Accountability Office has issued a report detailing some problems with the agency’s internal policies and inconsistent monitoring by its management."
"The nation's premier public health agency knowingly used flawed data to claim that high lead levels in the District [of Columbia]'s drinking water did not pose a health risk to the public, a congressional investigation has found. And, investigators determined, the agency has not publicized more thorough internal research showing that the problem harmed children across the city and continues to endanger thousands of D.C. residents."
Canada's asbestos industry continues to push the message that asbestos is not toxic. Health experts think the truth will eventually prevail.
"More than half of the students tested in Detroit Public Schools have a history of lead poisoning, which affects brain function for life, according to data compiled by city health and education officials."
"A landmark study will include some evidence that those who regularly hold long conversations on handsets are at increased risk of developing potentially fatal brain tumours."
"A cancer report that concludes Americans are under constant assault from carcinogenic agents has heartened activists, who hope that finally government and policymakers will pay attention to their concerns. But the report from the President's Cancer Panel on Thursday has underwhelmed most mainstream cancer experts and drawn only a puzzled response from the White House."
"The true burden of environmentally induced cancers has been grossly underestimated," says the President's Cancer Panel in a strongly reported report that urges action to reduce people's widespread exposure to carcinogens."
The exact ingredients of the chemical mixture being sprayed on and pumped into the spreading BP oil spill are secret, even though some are rated toxic and may endanger the health of Gulf residents and ecosystems.
"Insecticides such as DDT have long been used to combat the scourge of malaria in the developing world. But with the disease parasite becoming increasingly adept at resisting the chemical onslaught, some countries are achieving striking success by eliminating the environmental conditions that give rise to malarial mosquitoes."
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