Chemicals

After an investigation, EPA's Inspector General is saying the agency is not enforcing lead paint abatement rules adequately.

"Sterigenics is a step closer to reopening its sterilization plant in west suburban Willowbrook, but local officials and community groups are pushing new measures that could drive the company out of town."

"Air quality regulators on Friday killed a years-long push for stronger regulation of a dangerous acid used at two South Bay refineries that has frightened many neighbors, voting instead to accept a voluntary, oil industry pledge to enhance safety measures."

"Louisiana activists battling a polluting chemical and plastics industry are claiming a victory in a community just outside Reserve, where the Guardian has investigated high cancer rates and toxic emissions from a nearby factory."

"Germany has said it will phase out the controversial weedkiller glyphosate because it wipes out insect populations crucial for ecosystems and pollination of food crops."

"The plastics industry is responsible for nearly a fourth of the industrial air pollution in the Houston area, a share that is expected to rise as the number of new plants and expansions doubles in the next few years, a new study found."

"The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) won’t tweak a recent blog post environmentalists say is inaccurate because the agency argues its blog is not considered public information."

"Wells of nearly two dozen Southern California water agencies have reportable levels of PFAS, a chemical family increasingly linked to cancer, liver and kidney damage, thyroid disease, high cholesterol, low fertility, low birth weight and ulcerative colitis."

"The Tennessee Valley Authority, long respected for providing good jobs and cheap electricity, is facing a growing backlash over its handling of a massive coal ash spill a decade ago, with potentially serious consequences for an industry often opposed to environmental regulation."

"The Trump administration is set to announce on Thursday that it intends to sharply curtail the regulation of methane emissions, a major contributor to climate change, according to an industry official with knowledge of the plan."