PROTECTING ACCESS TO ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION

RTKnet: Air

Indoor and Outdoor: drinking water, sewage, beaches, etc

Urban Air Pollutants May Damage Unborn Babies' IQs (Environmental Health News)

Recent studies of over 400 women in New York City and Krakow have found that 5 year olds exposed in the womb to above-average levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are created from the burning of fossil fuels, score lower on IQ tests. A pregnant woman involved in the New York City study asserted, "It’s scary and alarming that we can live in a society where these things are happening and they go unnoticed."

(26 Jul 2010)

TAKE ACTION - Tell Your Representatives To Support the FRAC Act (Food & Water Watch)

Companies that are threatening our drinking water with hydraulic fracturing can't be held accountable under the Safe Drinking Water Act, and they don't have to disclose the 596 chemicals that they are injecting into the ground. Ask your representative to close the loophole and require companies to disclose the chemicals they are using by passing the FRAC Act.

(15 Jul 2010)

EPA Proposes Trade Secrets Protections for GHG Reports (EPA)

The EPA is seeking public comment on their  national greenhouse gas reporting program  to determine which industry-related greenhouse gas information should be made public and which non-emission data should be entitled to confidential treatment. The agency is now requiring underground coal mines, industrial water treatment systems, industrial waste landfills, and magnesium production facilities to report their emissions. The EPA is planning to provide data to the public by March 2011.

(09 Jul 2010)

Emissions Often Underestimated, EPA Standards Old (Associated Press)

An AP investigation suggests "pollution from petrochemical plants is at least 10 times greater than what is reported to the government and the public." The formulas and equipment EPA and facilities use to track emissions are old and unreliable.

(14 May 2010)

Spreading the Word on the Oil Spill (Federal Computer Week)

"Federal agencies are employing their Web sites and social media tools to release emergency response and health information about the leak from BP’s Deepwater Horizon rig off the coast of New Orleans." Tools include an EPA webpage, a NOAA website, a Facebook page, and Twitter.

(05 May 2010)

GHG Emissions Down in 2008 (U.S. EPA)

The EPA has released the U.S. greenhouse gas inventory report, which shows a drop in overall emissions of 2.9 percent from 2007 to 2008. The downward trend is attributed to fewer emissions associated with fuel and electricity consumption. Emissions are still 13.5 percent higher than they were in 1990.

(15 Apr 2010)

New Report Lists 50 Worst Power Plants for Mercury Pollution (Environmental Integrity Project)

A new report from the Environmental Integrity Project identifies the top fifty mercury-polluting power plants. The report shows that more than half of the top fifty actually increased their mercury emissions from 2007 to 2008. The report uses Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data to analyze mercury releases.

(25 Mar 2010)

EPA Moves to Expand Greenhouse Gas Registry (OMB Watch)

The EPA has proposed several changes to its greenhouse gas (GHG) registry, a new mandatory program requiring thousands of facilities economy-wide to monitor and report their emissions of global warming gases. EPA is proposing to add oil and natural gas facilities and facilities that inject carbon dioxide (CO2) underground for storage, along with other facilities.

(25 Mar 2010)

EPA Seeks Public Comment on Annual U.S. Greenhouse Gas Inventory (U.S. EPA)

EPA is accepting comments on its most recent inventory of US GHG emissions. The draft report shows overall GHG emissions decreased by 2.9 percent from 2007 to 2008. Total emissions from GHGs were about 6,946 million metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent. However, emissions have grown by 13.6 percent from 1990 to 2008.

(09 Mar 2010)

Manure Becomes Pollutant As Its Volume Grows Unmanageable (Washington Post)

"The way that modern megafarms produce it, [one activist] said, 'Manure is no longer manure. Manure is a toxic waste now.'" Another activist stated, "You know, somebody had to talk about this. It's like this dirty little secret.'"

(01 Mar 2010)