Latest Pollution Headlines
All the headlines from our Pollution Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Georgia County to Sue BioLab Over Chemical Fire and Toxic Fumes
Oct 25 2024 // CONYERS, Ga. (AP) — A Georgia county is preparing a federal lawsuit that aims to shut down the BioLab chemical factory where a fire sent a toxic chemical cloud over Atlanta’s suburbs last month, the latest in a...
Tennessee Pollution Exclusion Confusion: Courts Differ But Clauses Can Apply
Oct 23 2024 // Insurers often include exclusions within their liability policies to prohibit coverage for claims arising out of pollution exposure. The exact wording of the exclusion can differ significantly, but the key issue is whether...
Walmart to Pay $7.5M to Resolve California Hazardous Waste Charges
Oct 23 2024 // Walmart will pay $7.5 million to resolve charges that the largest U.S. retailer illegally disposed of hazardous and medical waste from its facilities into California municipal landfills. The settlement was announced on...
Supreme Court Allows EPA Power Plant Pollution Curbs for Now
Oct 17 2024 // The US Supreme Court let the Environmental Protection Agency move ahead with its stringent new emissions limits for power plants, rebuffing businesses and Republican-run states that complained the rule will impose...
EPA Proposes $4.2M Settlement Related to 2019 Explosion at Philadelphia Refinery
Oct 10 2024 // The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has reached a tentative $4.2 settlement with a firm that owned and operated a major East Coast refinery that was shuttered after an explosion and fire in 2019. The deal with...
Court Reviews Civil Rights Lawsuit Alleging Environmental Racism in Louisiana Parish
Oct 9 2024 // NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A federal appellate court is reviewing a civil rights lawsuit alleging a south Louisiana parish engaged in racist land-use policies to place polluting industries in majority-Black communities. The...
California Household Goods Seller to Pay EPA $250K for Unregistered Disinfectants
Oct 9 2024 // The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency got a settlement from Gardena, California-based U.S. Jaclean Inc. over claims of illegal distribution or sale of unregistered and misbranded disinfectants and other pesticide...
How Texas Weakened Its Own Air Pollution Monitoring Team
Oct 8 2024 // When disaster affects the sprawling industrial complexes of Texas, the state’s environmental authority often posts pictures online of its white vans patrolling public streets, verifying the local air is safe to...
Environmental Group Turns to Oyster Shells to Rebuild Sinking Louisiana Coastline
Oct 3 2024 // Jonathan Phillips says he thinks about Louisiana’s disappearing coastline every day. As a commercial fisherman and member of the Atakapa-Ishak/Chawasha tribe, he sees water levels rising in Plaquemines Parish...
Federal Agency Resumes Sending Hazardous Waste to Michigan From Ohio
Oct 1 2024 // VAN BUREN TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — A federal agency said it has resumed sending hazardous waste to a Michigan landfill from Ohio while communities in suburban Detroit continue their legal fight to bar waste from a World...
Residents in East Palestine Express Distrust Over EPA’s Reporting Practices After Train Derailment
Sep 30 2024 // The way the Environmental Protection Agency has reported its test results since a Norfolk Southern train derailed and officials released and burned chemicals that spewed a toxic cloud over East Palestine, Ohio, makes it...
British Water Companies Fight $2 Billion Lawsuits Over Sewage Pollution
Sep 24 2024 // Six British water companies under-reported sewage discharges and overcharged millions of customers up to 1.5 billion pounds ($2 billion) as a result, lawyers bringing a landmark lawsuit told a London tribunal on...
Environmental Groups, California Sue Exxon Over Global Plastic Pollution
Sep 24 2024 // California and several environmental groups sued Exxon Mobil on Monday and accused the oil giant of engaging in a decades-long campaign that helped fuel global plastic waste pollution. Speaking at an event during Climate...
Environmental Activist ClientEarth Sues Germany Over Pesticides Use
Sep 23 2024 // Environmental activist charity ClientEarth launched a lawsuit against Germany on Friday to push Berlin to implement an EU law to limit pesticide use in farming, the group said on Friday. The group said in a statement...
Methane Emissions Still Rising After Pledges to Curb Pollution
Sep 23 2024 // Methane releases from some of the world’s major fossil fuel hubs are continuing to rise, as key polluters make little progress on pledges to curb the potent greenhouse gas. Emissions of the gas across 13 large fossil...
Environmental Group Sues Tyson Foods for Alleged False Climate Claims
Sep 19 2024 // An environmental group is suing Tyson Foods for allegedly misleading consumers by saying it will reach net-zero emissions by 2050 and marketing climate-friendly beef without meaningful plans to achieve those goals. The...
People Moves: Mosaic Builds Out Environmental Liability Team With 13 US Hires
Sep 11 2024 // Mosaic, headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda, has added 13 U.S. environmental risk specialists to its team. Team members include Assistant Vice President Iraj Dehnavi, Senior Vice President Maureen Domenicone, Vice President...
Iowa Manufacturer to Pay $51K Fine For Alleged Hazardous Waste Violations
Sep 10 2024 // Hawkins Inc., a chemical manufacturer based in Camanche, Iowa, will pay $51,158 in civil penalties and purchase equipment for local emergency responders to resolve alleged violations of the federal Resource Conservation...
Update: US Warns Leaking Oil Tanker Poses Growing Red Sea Pollution Risk
Aug 28 2024 // An abandoned oil tanker attacked in the Red Sea by Iran-backed Houthi rebels a week ago appears to be burning and leaking, raising the specter of an environmental disaster, a Pentagon spokesman said on Tuesday. The...
Judge: EPA Can’t Use Civil Rights Act to Fight Industrial Pollution in Louisiana
Aug 26 2024 // A federal judge has weakened the Biden administration’s effort to use a historic civil rights law to fight industrial pollution alleged to have taken a heavier toll on minority communities in Louisiana. U.S. District...
