Pollution

"Nearly half a century after a Gold Rush-era quicksilver mining operation shut down in northern California, mercury continues to flow into a nearby creek, and federal officials blame the mine’s state landmark status for cleanup delays."

"BP, Shell, and other companies say they’ll address climate change. But their pledges fall far short of what's needed to meet global climate goals."

"The U.N. environment chief said Wednesday that “time is running out” to avert an environmental, economic and humanitarian catastrophe from a deteriorating oil tanker loaded with 1.1 million barrels of crude oil that is moored off the coast of Yemen."

"Iraq is the rare country that imports gas but also burns natural gas from oil wells into the air. The wasted gas is enough to power 3 million homes. Burning it is making people sick."

"Researchers link air pollution from burning off excess natural gas to preterm births for babies; with the most pronounced impacts among Hispanic families."

"Fifteen states and the city of Washington, D.C., on Tuesday announced an agreement that aims to make all new truck and bus sales emission-free by 2050."

"Global emissions of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, soared to a record high in 2017, the most recent year for which worldwide data are available, researchers said Tuesday." "Scientists expect emissions, driven by fossil fuels and agriculture, to continue rising rapidly."

"The Environmental Protection Agency is proposing to retain Obama-era air quality limits for ozone after rushing through a review of the standards that were set in 2015."

"More than 350 facilities nationwide have taken advantage of a temporary Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule that lets companies forgo monitoring their water pollution during the pandemic."

"Formosa Plastics, a Taiwanese plastics company, intends to build a complex St. James Parish, Louisiana, a region already known as "Cancer Alley." Environmental activist Anne Rolfes faces criminal charges for a protest action she took to call attention to the company's history of harm." "From Southeast Asia to the United States, activists have called attention in recent years to the harmful impact of chemical companies such as Formosa Plastics Corporation, a Taiwanese petrochemical company that operates throughout the world, including the US."