"Appeals Court Hands EPA Big Victory on Smelter Curbs"
"Federal judges [Tuesday] rejected challenges from both industry and environmental groups to U.S. EPA's air standards for lead smelters."
Source: Greenwire, 05/29/2013
Laws & Regulations
"Texas Prohibits Nearly 70% of Its Counties From Having a Fire Code"
"Victoria County, a little slice of the Texas chemical coast, has nearly 39 million pounds of concoctions that can poison and nearly 11 million pounds that can catch fire."
Source: Dallas Morning News, 05/27/2013
"Bipartisan Senate Bill Would Give EPA Power To Ban Dangerous Chemicals"
"In a rare display of bipartisanship on Capitol Hill, a group of key senators unveiled legislation Wednesday that would require chemical companies to provide more health and safety information about their products and give regulators more power to force harmful compounds off the market."
Source: Chicago Tribune, 05/23/2013
State 'Ag-Gag' Laws Spreading, Protect Misdeeds from Scrutiny
While a Tennessee governor vetoed "ag-gag" legislation in that state, bills criminalizing the collection of information about abuses in livestock operations are still being pushed in other states — and the mechanism may be extended to stifle reporting on other environmental abuses.
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Secret White House Review Paralyzes Chemical Safety
An EPA initiative to protect American consumers from toxic chemicals, especially endocrine disruptors, has run into a brick wall put up by the Obama White House three years ago due to secret urging of the chemical industry — even though the law requires information and arguments on which federal regulations are based to be open and on the record.
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Obama Admin Says It Won't Charge Reporters with Conspiracy to Commit Journalism
In the wake of the Justice Department's chilling seizure of AP phone records, the Department asserted that a Fox reporter violated the law by reporting the news. The unprecedented assertion was made by FBI agent Reginald B. Reyes in a search warrant application that was ultimately approved by a judge, allowing Reyes to snoop through the phone records of Fox News correspondent James Rosen.
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"Clock Is Ticking, Slowly, on Rules for Coal-Fired Power Plants"
"The fate of many coal-fired power plants may rest on how boldly Obama tries to fulfill his pledge to cut greenhouse gas emissions."
Source: LA Times, 05/15/2013
Supreme Court rules for Monsanto in Farmer's GM Soybean Seed Case
"Farmers must pay Monsanto each time they plant the company’s genetically modified soybeans, the Supreme Court ruled Monday, rejecting an Indiana farmer’s argument that his unorthodox techniques did not violate the company’s patent."
Source: Wash Post, 05/14/2013
"Study Finds an Increase in Arsenic Levels in Chicken"
"Researchers at Johns Hopkins University said they found levels of arsenic in chicken that exceeded amounts that occur naturally, and warned that they could lead to a small increase in the risk of cancer for consumers over a lifetime."
Source: NY Times, 05/13/2013
"Chemical Depots Fall Under a Patchwork of Rules"
"NEW BRAUNFELS, TX — Off a dirt road connected to ever-flowing Interstate 35, a little metal sign on a wooden fence is the only indication of what lies ahead. Nearby, Buckley Powder, a mining and construction supply company, stores large quantities of ammonium nitrate, the source of the explosion at a fertilizer depot that killed at least 14 people and injured hundreds more last month in West."
Source: NY Times, 05/13/2013
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