Articles by Valerie Volcovici

District of Columbia Sues 4 Oil Majors for Misleading Consumers on Climate Change

The attorney general for the District of Columbia on Thursday filed a lawsuit against Exxon Mobil Corp, BP Plc, Chevron Corp, and Royal Dutch Shell Plc for “systematically and intentionally misleading” consumers about the role their products play in causing …

Minnesota AG Sues Exxon, Koch and API over Climate Change ‘Deceptions’

The state of Minnesota has filed a lawsuit against the American Petroleum Institute, Exxon Mobil Corp. and Koch Industries for what it called a decades-long campaign to deceive the public about climate change. The lawsuit is the latest in a …

Trump Safety Regulator Blocks Washington State’s Crude Oil Train Rules

The U.S. pipeline regulator late on Monday blocked an effort by Washington state to tighten vapor pressure restrictions on the transport of crude oil by rail, saying the measures would not lower the risk of explosions. The decision by the …

Trump Wants to Speed Infrastructure Projects by Dropping Climate Impact Assessment

The Trump administration on Thursday unveiled a plan to speed permitting for major infrastructure projects like oil pipelines, including by dropping consideration of their potential impact on climate change. The plan, released by the White House Council on Environmental Quality …

Insurers Pressured to Drop Coverage of Canada’s Oil Sands Pipeline

A coalition of 32 environmental and indigenous groups on Thursday urged insurers to stop underwriting the Trans Mountain pipeline to pressure Canada to cancel its plan to expand the project, which carries crude from Alberta’s oil sands to British Columbia’s …

Environmentalists Lose Bid to Restore EPA Ban on Chlorpyrifos Pesticide

The Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday said it will not ban the use of the pesticide chlorpyrifos, which has been linked to health issues in children, from use on U.S.-grown fruits and vegetables. The agency denied the petition by a …

Environmentalists Sue Over Trump Rollback of Offshore Oil Safety Regulations

A coalition of environmental groups on Tuesday filed a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Interior Department’s rollbacks of safety measures put in place by the Obama administration in the aftermath of the fatal 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The lawsuit …

West Virginia Coal Industry Data Shows Mines Releasing Excessive Pollution

Several West Virginia coal mines, including some owned by the governor’s family, have released many times the allowable amounts of pollutants into nearby waterways in recent years without being penalized by regulators, according to environmental groups citing state data. The …

Groundwater Near Most Coal Plants Polluted by Coal Ash

More than 90 percent of U.S. coal-fired power plants that are required to monitor groundwater near their coal ash dumps show unsafe levels of toxic metals, posing potential harm to drinking water, according to a study released by environmental groups. …

Groundwater Near Most Coal Plants Polluted by Coal Ash: Environmental Groups

More than 90 percent of U.S. coal-fired power plants that are required to monitor groundwater near their coal ash dumps show unsafe levels of toxic metals, according to a study released on Monday by environmental groups, which cited the potential …