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Bush to gut endangered species laws

If approved, the changes would represent the biggest overhaul of the Endangered Species Act since 1988. They would accomplish through new federal regulations what conservative Republicans have been unable to achieve in Congress: an end to some environmental reviews that developers and other federal agencies blame for delays and cost increases on many projects.

EPA knocks $900,000 off value of a life - raises bar for safety regulations

The "value of a statistical life" is $6.9 million in today's dollars, the Environmental Protection Agency reckoned in May - a drop of nearly $1 million from just five years ago. When drawing up regulations, government agencies put a value on human life and then weigh the costs versus the lifesaving benefits of a proposed rule. The less a life is worth to the government, the less the need for a regulation, such as tighter restrictions on pollution.

IBM suspension fallout

The US Environmental Protection Agency might have lifted its ban on IBM but the computer company is not out of the wars yet

Whitman on hot seat over 9/11 aftermath - Politics

Ex-EPA chief Christie Whitman was bombarded Monday with boos, hisses, and a host of accusations at a congressional hearing after making assurances it was safe to breathe the air around the ruined World Trade Center.

Washington Bans Chemicals; Industry Freaks

"The governor of Washington is scheduled to sign legislation today to ban flame retardants called PBDEs in furniture, televisions, and computers in the state. This is despite the more than $220,000 the chemical industry has spent since 2005 to defeat the legislation. At a time when the federal government is largely ineffectual in regulating long-used but potentially dangerous industrial chemicals, the Washington ban could be the beginning of the end for PBDEs across the nation.

Fish pollutants' link to diabetes

An international team found high levels of persistent organic pesticides (POPs) in the blood correlated to insulin resistance, a precursor to diabetes. POPs are stored in fatty tissues - the study suggested this may be why obese people are more vulnerable to diabetes.

Top Court: EPA Can Control Emissions

Huge loss for Bush. How important is court control: "The court's four conservative justices _ Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Samuel Alito, Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas _ dissented."

Thirteen States Sue U.S. EPA Over Soot Emissions

Bush Moral? Separately today the Bush EPA changed its pollutants reporting requirements for big business... "This case is just one more example of the federal government ignoring sound science in establishing environmental policy and watering down safeguards designed to protect the public,''

Bush Declares Eco-Whistleblower Law Void for EPA Employees

The Bush administration has declared itself immune from whistleblower protections for federal workers under the Clean Water Act, according to legal documents released today by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). As a result of an opinion issued by a unit within the Office of the Attorney General, federal workers will have little protection from official retaliation for reporting water pollution enforcement breakdowns, manipulations of science or cleanup failures.

EPA scientist says agency hid dangers at ground zero from first responders, others

The letter, written by Dr. Cate Jenkins and obtained by RAW STORY, claims that EPA-funded research on the toxicity of breathable alkaline dust at the site falsified pH results to make the substance appear benign, when it was, in reality, corrosive enough to cause first responders and other workers in lower Manhattan to later lose pulmonary functions and, in some cases, to die.

Judge rejects Bush decision on pesticides

good news for the environment: science still matters

E.P.A. Recommends Limits on Thousands of Uses of Pesticides

The study, which focused on more than 230 chemicals known as organophosphates and carbamates, could lead to the elimination of 3,200 uses and the modification in use of 1,200 others, like chlorpyrifos, diazinon and methyl parathion, which have been long been controversial for their role in causing illnesses. Environmental groups applauded the recommendation to cancel most uses of carbofuran, a common insecticide used on corn, rice, tobacco and other crops that has had particularly deadly effects on birds.

Columbia River toxins moving up food chain

First were the crayfish near Bonneville Dam, so loaded with toxins that scientists wondered how they could still be alive. Then researchers learned Columbia River fish were contaminated enough that nearby tribes face dramatically higher risks of disease. Scientists since have found deformed sturgeon,

EPA plans to phase out use of apple, pear pesticide

"This pesticide has put thousands of workers at risk of serious illness every year," Erik Nicholson, of the United Farmworkers of America, said in a news release Monday. "The phase-out is welcome, although it should have come years ago."

Budget Cut Would Shutter EPA Libraries

Proposed budget cuts could cripple a nationwide system of Environmental Protection Agency libraries that government researchers and others depend on for hard-to-find technical information. The $2 million cut sought by the White House would reduce the 35-year-old EPA Library Network's budget by 80 percent and force many of its 10 regional libraries to close.