enviroblog

Environmental connections to public health >>

The Latest from EnviroBlog

Kids’ Health at Risk Under Trump’s EPA

Tuesday, January 24, 2017

Last week's confirmation hearing for President Trump's nominee to head the Environmental Protection Agency underscored the agency's foremost responsibility: protecting the health of America's children.

Key Issues:

Children's Health

Toxics

Water

EWG News Roundup (1/20): Pruitt, Perdue, Big Poultry and Organics

Friday, January 20, 2017

Last weekend, EWG reported that after taking $40,000 in campaign contributions from poultry industry interests, Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt – President Trump's nominee to head the Environmental Protection Agency – stymied cleanup of a protected river polluted by factory farms’ chicken manure. The New York Times cited EWG’s work and Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., grilled Pruitt on his connection to the polluted river during the Senate confirmation hearing.

Key Issues:

Federal Scientists May Lower Lead Exposure Threshold for Children

Tuesday, January 10, 2017

In a shift that could help hundreds of thousands of U.S. children, federal health officials are considering whether to lower the threshold for identifying kids with elevated levels of lead exposure.

Key Issues:

Children's Health

Toxics

Lead

New Year, New Cosmetics

Monday, January 9, 2017

EWG's scientists and researchers work hard to give us the tools to limit our exposures to harmful chemicals. A great place to start is with personal care products.

Key Issues:

Toxics

Consumer Products

EWG News Roundup (1/6): Kids and Sugar, Avoiding Pesticides and Toxic Teflon

Friday, January 6, 2017

EWG’s research on the serious sugar problem in many kids’ cereals, published between 2011 and 2014, received renewed attention this week in the media. Other widely covered EWG projects included our Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides^TM, and our consumer advice on how to avoid PFCs – highly toxic chemicals used in the manufacture of older nonstick cooking products.

Key Issues:

Children's Health

Toxics

Pesticides

EWG News Roundup (12/16): Michelle Pfeiffer Joins Board and EWG Sues FDA

Friday, December 16, 2016

Some of the biggest news to come out of EWG since its inception more than 22 years ago happened this week, and it wasn’t a consumer guide or big policy win. Golden Globe winner, three-time Academy Award nominee and longtime EWG supporter Michelle Pfeiffer joined our board of directors.

Key Issues:

In Reversal, EPA Confirms That Fracking Pollutes Drinking Water

Wednesday, December 14, 2016

The Environmental Protection Agency has just confirmed what communities near many oil and gas production fields have known for years: fracking – the injection of a chemical slurry into drilling sites to free up underground deposits – can pollute drinking water.

Key Issues:

Toxics

Fracking

Tap Water

EWG News Roundup (Dec. 9): Black Women’s Cosmetics and Climate Denier to Head EPA

Friday, December 9, 2016

This week was another busy one for folks at EWG. We released a report documenting some troubling facts about cosmetics products marketed to Black women. And we weighed in on President-elect Donald Trump’s decision to have an ardent anti-environmentalist and climate change denier oversee public health and environmental protection for the next four years.

Key Issues:

Real Reform Needed for Outdated Cosmetics Laws

Thursday, December 8, 2016

Every day, people apply cosmetics and other personal care products to their skin and hair. The average American woman uses 12 personal care products a day, exposing herself to 168 different chemicals. The average man uses six products a day, containing 85 unique chemical ingredients.

Key Issues:

Toxics

Consumer Products

Cosmetics

Mercury in Tuna Plummets As Coal-Fired Power Drops

Monday, December 5, 2016

A bit of good news for seafood lovers: Scientists at Stony Brook University recently reported a notable drop in mercury concentrations in bluefin tuna caught in the Gulf of Maine over the past decade.

Key Issues:

A Pro-Industry EPA Could Undermine New Chemical Safety Law

Friday, December 2, 2016

By releasing the first 10 chemicals to be reviewed under the new federal chemical safety law, the Environmental Protection Agency reminds us of what’s at stake – and how decisions made by the incoming Trump administration could jeopardize Americans' health.

Key Issues:

Toxics

Consumer Products

EWG News Roundup (Dec. 2): EPA Action, the Farm Bill, Food and Toxic Detergents

Friday, December 2, 2016

Heading into the holiday season, there was some good news out of the EPA. The agency listed the first batch of toxic chemicals it will tackle, which includes asbestos. Also this week, EWG took part in a forum to discuss how Congress and the Trump administration will shape the next farm bill.

Key Issues:

EWG News Roundup (Nov. 18): Trump, Farms, Food and Drinking Water

Friday, November 18, 2016

It’s been a busy week for EWG as we launched our new watchdog initiative, Planet Trump, where we’ll provide a steady stream of commentary and analysis highlighting the implications President-elect Trump and his administration will have on our air, water, land, food and, of course, human health.

Tuesday, November 15, 2016

Americans didn't only vote for president and other elected officials last week.

Through state and local ballot measures, advocates scored impressive wins on nutrition, animal protection and farm regulation. Numerous states passed minimum wage increases that will be especially important for food system workers.

Key Issues:

Farming

Food

Healthy Eating

Trump May Hand Sarah Palin Keys to Nation’s Public Lands, Wildlife

Monday, November 14, 2016

During her failed bid for vice president in 2008, that was Sarah Palin's crowd-pleasing chant promoting her energy policy. Now the pithy catchphrase – and the former Alaska governor herself – could make a comeback.

Photo Courtesy of Christopher Halloran / shutterstock.com

Key Issues:

Land

Water

Mining

EWG News Roundup (Nov. 8): Factory Farms, Nontoxic Cleaning and GMOs

Friday, November 4, 2016

This week, EWG joined forces with our colleagues at Waterkeeper Alliance again to show how industrial animal farms can wreak havoc on public health and the environment. Through startling aerial imagery, the report documents a number of factory farms along North Carolina’s floodplain that were swamped by Hurricane Matthew, exposing local waterways to a deluge of animal waste from swine and poultry barns, and brimming manure pits.

Key Issues:

EWG News Roundup (Oct. 28): Wastewater on California Crops, Children’s Health, Bogus ‘Organic’ Claims and Big Ag Myths

Friday, October 28, 2016

It’s another busy week at EWG. Here’s some news you can use from this week.

Key Issues:

Nobody Should Drink Water with Lead, Especially Kids. EWG’s Guide for Parents Can Help.

Wednesday, October 26, 2016

Scientists, pediatricians and public health officials from the U.S. and around the globe agree that there is no safe level of lead exposure. Even the smallest amounts can cause irreversible changes, including diminished IQ and behavioral problems in children.

Key Issues: