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| Above the fold. News aggregated by www.EnvironmentalHealthNews.org | Read today's editorials |
| Daily links to top stories in the news about environmental health. China's rural pollution problem. Industrialization has turned much of the Chinese countryside into an environmental disaster zone, threatening not only the food supply but the legitimacy of the regime itself. Wall Street Journal [Subscription Required] Colorado ballot initiative to ban fracking in Lafayette garners enough signatures to move forward. Oil and gas opponents in Lafayette have collected enough valid signatures to put a fracking ban in front of voters on the November ballot, the city confirmed Friday. Broomfield Enterprise, Colorado. Living a nightmare in China's city of sinkholes. Jining is one of China's "coal cities," whose mineral wealth helps light up the night skies of the world's most energy-hungry country. The land there is honeycombed with coal mines, which can form massive sinkholes that leave thousands of homes uninhabitable every year. CNN Breathing isn't getting any easier. Lead pollution in Bangkok's air is now at safe levels, but new menaces to residents' health continue to emerge. Bangkok Post, Thailand. UK government bee scientist behind controversial study joins pesticide firm. A key government scientist whose research was used by ministers to argue against a ban on pesticides thought to harm bees is to join Syngenta, the chemical giant which manufactures one of the insecticides. The Guardian, United Kingdom. Delay in disclosing leaks at Fukushima is criticized. Foreign nuclear experts harshly criticized the operator of the devastated nuclear power plant at Fukushima on Friday for its delay in disclosing that highly contaminated groundwater has been leaking from the site into the ocean. New York Times [Registration Required] FDA says importers must audit food safety. More than two years after Congress passed a landmark law meant to prevent the importation of contaminated food that sickens Americans, the Food and Drug Administration proposed rules on Friday that for the first time put the main onus on companies to police the food they import. New York Times [Registration Required] Drought worsens child malnutrition in Cameroon. Prolonged drought in northern Cameroon, an aspect of the changing climate that is affecting the whole Sahel region, has reduced food output, pushed up prices and increased the severity and prevalence of malnutrition among children, experts say. Reuters On rooftops, a rival for utilities. Alarmed by what they say has become an existential threat to their business, utility companies are moving to roll back government incentives aimed at promoting solar energy and other renewable sources of power. At stake, the companies say, is nothing less than the future of the American electricity industry. New York Times [Registration Required] Challenges for the new EPA chief. The race is on for the recently confirmed head of the EPA, Gina McCarthy, to get rules in place that restrict global warming emissions from power plants, before President Obama leaves office. Living On Earth Reuters' climate-change coverage 'fell by nearly 50 percent with sceptic as editor.' A sharp decline in Reuters' climate-change coverage since 2011, recorded by an advocacy group, reinforces charges from a former staffer that Reuters cut back on climate stories under the influence of Paul Ingrassia, who is now the agency's managing editor. The Guardian, United Kingdom. Blue tape marks climate risks for coastal businesses. Small businesses owners in South Carolina are placing tape, decals and posters in shop windows to mark where high tide would reach in 2100 if the worst climate change scenarios come to pass. It's part of a larger effort to draw attention to the risks that climate change poses to small businesses. Business Week Police arrest 18 fracking protesters in UK. Sixteen protesters have been arrested as a blockade at a rural site earmarked for exploratory oil drilling by a fracking company was cleared. Sky News, United Kingdom. Coming clean: Historic agreement reached for Navajo Generating Station. The electricity delivery from the Navajo Generating Station will continue well into the future while achieving significant air pollution reductions, according to an announcement made Friday by the Department of the Interior. Indian Country Today Media Network Arctic drilling: UK 'complacent', say MPs. The UK is "complacently standing by" as firms start drilling for oil and gas in the Arctic, a group of MPs has said. The Environmental Audit Committee said this was despite oil companies being unable to prove "they could clean up an oil spill in such harsh conditions". BBC EPA cracks down on Billings air pollution. The federal government is pressing ahead with plans to crack down on air pollution in Montana's Yellowstone County, despite protests from the state. Billings Gazette, Montana. Tap water goes high-tech as Cincinnati seeks a safer drink. Greater Cincinnati Water Works has invested $30 million in a project that treats water with ultraviolet light. It’s an effort 20 years in the making, sparked by a nasty outbreak of cryptosporidium in Milwaukee in 1993 that sickened more than 400,000 people and killed several dozen whose immune systems couldn’t handle the relentless diarrhea the outbreak unleashed. Cincinnati Enquirer, Ohio. Texas study finds higher levels of arsenic in groundwater near gas wells. A study organized by a University of Texas at Arlington chemistry professor finds that heavy metals, including arsenic, that are commonly found in groundwater tend to be present in higher concentrations near natural gas wells in the Barnett Shale. Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas. Lake Okeechobee dumping spells pollution problems for coastal rivers. With Lake Okeechobee two feet too high and still rising after a month of heavy rain, federal engineers on Thursday cranked opened the flood gates on the big lake, spilling tens of billions of gallons of polluted water down rivers on both coasts. Miami Herald, Florida. US appeals court upholds $105 million Exxon payout in NYC case. A U.S. appeals court on Friday upheld a ruling against Exxon Mobil Corp ordering the company to pay $105 million in damages for polluting New York City's groundwater with a toxic gasoline additive. Reuters Weedkillers tied to depression in farmers. Farmers who used weedkillers were more than twice as likely to be treated for depression than farmers who didn't use the chemicals in a new study from France. Reuters Health Number of catfish inspectors drives a debate on spending. Deep-fried catfish served with a side of hush puppies and coleslaw has been a regional specialty for years and a cash crop for states in the Deep South. Now, catfish is at the heart of a dispute as the House and Senate prepare to work out their differences on a new five-year farm bill. The current bill expires on Sept. 30. New York Times [Registration Required] More news from today Shortcuts to stories from today about The good news, Avian flu, Climate, Children's health, Air pollution, Cancer, Reproductive disorders, Endocrine disruption, Birth defects, Learning and developmental disabilities, Immune disorders, Environmental justice, Superfund, Water treatment/sewage, Food safety, Integrity of science, Green chemistry. You can also read last weekend's news. Plus: If you were on vacation last week, don't miss last week's top stories... Would you like to display the news stories from EnvironmentalHealthNews.org on your own web site? Check out our RSS feeds. 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