Latest Pollution Headlines
All the headlines from our Pollution Topic Page, ordered by recency.
NYC Planners With Sandy Nightmares Say Barrier May Come Too Late
Jun 21 2017 // The warming Atlantic Ocean has raised the risk of another Hurricane Sandy. And still, trillions of dollars of real estate and infrastructure near the shores of New York City and northern New Jersey remain vulnerable to...
Senate Confirms New FEMA Chief Long
Jun 21 2017 // Brock Long was cleared by the Senate to become President Donald Trump’s emergency-management director Tuesday after gaining the support of one unlikely constituency: environmentalists. While climate advocates panned...
Supreme Court Sides with Chevron in Blocking Ecuador Pollution Liability Judgment
Jun 21 2017 // The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday handed a victory to Chevron Corp. by preventing Ecuadorean villagers and their American lawyer from trying to collect on an $8.65 billion pollution judgment issued against the oil company...
Carbon Monoxide Leak Sickens 32 People in New York City
Jun 16 2017 // A carbon monoxide leak in a building three blocks from the World Trade Center sickened 32 people and raised alarm that shuttered several busy blocks in lower Manhattan at the start of the workday Tuesday, authorities...
Insurers Claim They’re Off The Hook for Duke Energy’s N.C. Coal Ash Spill Claims
Jun 16 2017 // Dozens of insurance companies say they’re not obligated to help pay for Duke Energy Corp.’s multi-billion dollar coal ash cleanup because the nation’s largest electric company long knew about but did...
XL Catlin Launches New Contractors Pollution Liability Express Program
Jun 15 2017 // XL Catlin has launched its new Contractors Pollution Liability Express Program in the US and Canada for small to mid-size construction firms. According to Cathy Cleary, XL Catlin’s executive environmental...
Hamptons Tainted Water Lawsuit Adds to Roster of 3M Complaints
Jun 14 2017 // A stone’s throw from the white sand beaches and posh mansions of one of America’s wealthiest ZIP codes sits a community that homeowners say has been poisoned by polluted drinking water. Fifteen people in a...
220,000 Dutch, English Consumers Sue VW Over Diesel Fraud
Jun 14 2017 // Around 220,000 car drivers in the Netherlands, England and Wales joined forces on Tuesday in what could become a pan-European lawsuit against German carmaker Volkswagen seeking compensation over its...
Shipping Losses Fall to Lowest in 10 Years as Technology Drives Safety
Jun 13 2017 // Large shipping losses have declined by 50 percent over the past decade and last year saw the lowest number of losses in the past 10 years. The favorable loss trend has been largely driven by improved safety, according to...
Climate Change Advocates Galvanized by Trump Decision
Jun 8 2017 // You’d think climate change activists now living under a new reality created by a U.S. president making good on his promise to withdraw the nation from the Paris accord on global warming would feel at least a bit...
W.R. Berkley Environmental and Entertainment/Sports Split to Run as Independent Units
Jun 8 2017 // W. R. Berkley Corp. has announced the formation of two independent operating units, Berkley Entertainment & Sports and Berkley Environmental. These units, which previously comprised Berkley Specialty Underwriting...
After 18 Months, Houston Hurricane Vulnerability Documents Arrive from Feds
Jun 8 2017 // Note: This article originally appeared in the Texas Tribune. Eighteen months ago, the Texas Tribune and ProPublica asked the federal government for some documents. At the time, we were investigating what will happen the...
XL Catlin Promotes Gerbaud to Head International Environmental
Jun 7 2017 // XL Catlin’s insurance operations announced the promotion of Adias Gerbaud to head international environmental. In her newly expanded role, Gerbaud will be responsible for managing XL Catlin’s environmental...
Trump Hands Climate Leadership Role to China to Dismay of Global Leaders
Jun 2 2017 // President Donald Trump’s decision to isolate the U.S. on climate change triggered waves of complaints from government and business leaders around the world and handed China a golden opportunity to burnish its image...
Will U.S. Go or Will It Stay in Paris Climate Accord? Trump Gets Conflicting Advice
Jun 1 2017 // President Donald Trump is poised to announce plans to withdraw the U.S. from the landmark Paris climate accord on Thursday, injecting uncertainty into the worldwide effort to combat climate change. The move, described by...
Coastal Texans Concerned About Rising Sea Levels Amid Hurricane Threats
May 31 2017 // Lalo Ojeda has lived with hurricanes all his life. The Houston Chronicle reports he was 14 when Hurricane Carla inundated Galveston Island in 1961. He evacuated as Hurricane Rita barreled toward the coast in 2005, then...
Trump Expected to End U.S. Participation in Paris Climate Pact
May 31 2017 // President Donald Trump plans to make good on his campaign vow to withdraw the United States from a global pact to fight climate change, a source briefed on the decision said on Wednesday, a move that promises to deepen a...
Leaks Discovered in Dakota Access Pipeline System
May 24 2017 // The Dakota Access pipeline and a feeder line leaked more than 100 gallons of oil in North Dakota in separate incidents in March as crews prepared the disputed $3.8 billion pipeline for operation. Two barrels, or 84 gallons...
Climate Change Research, Flood Mapping Funds Take Hit in Proposed Trump Budget
May 24 2017 // President Donald Trump’s first budget request to Congress would cut or eliminate a range of programs designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, as well those helping communities prepare for more intense flooding or...
XL Catlin Names AIG’s Estrada, Zurich’s Hughes to Canada Environment Team
May 18 2017 // XL Catlin has added two new members to its Canadian environmental insurance team: Marc Estrada as environmental team lead and Brian Hughes as assistant vice president, environmental underwriting. Estrada and Hughes are...
