environmental health

Part one of a special five part Facing South investigation by Sue Sturgis, cross-posted from Facing South

A year after the BP oil catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico, a growing number of cleanup workers and coastal residents are reporting debilitating health problems associated with exposure to toxic chemicals in crude oil and dispersants. Faced with inaction from the federal government, victims are organizing a grassroots movement to demand action.

"Already, this oil spill is the worst environmental disaster America has ever faced. And unlike an earthquake or a hurricane, it's not a single event that does its damage in a matter of minutes of days. The millions of gallons of oil that have spilled into the Gulf of Mexico are more like an epidemic, one that we will be fighting for months and even years."

-- President Obama, Oval Office Address, June 15, 2010

Cross-posted from a Facing South article by Sue Sturgis

When the federal Environmental Protection Agency prepared a cost-benefit analysis for the two coal ash regulatory options it released last year for public comment, it overestimated the benefits of recycling coal ash and underestimated the benefits of safe disposal -- thus hurting the chances for an adequately protective rule.

Cross-posted from Facing South, article by Sue Sturgis.

Emerging federal air and water quality regulations for coal-fired power plants could lead to a wave of plant closings -- with many of the shutdowns happening across the coal-dependent South.

Cross-posted from a Facing South article by Sue Sturgis.

Independent testing has turned up oil contamination in Gulf seafood, raising concerns that federal officials prematurely pronounced it OK to eat.

The Lower Mississippi Riverkeeper (LMRK) has released results from seafood sampling trips conducted along a broad area of the Louisiana coast since August. The results show significant levels of petroleum in a number of species -- though the contamination was not apparent by sight or smell.

For examples, levels of total petroleum hydrocarbons in flounder and speckled trout caught in St. Bernard Parish on Aug. 12 were 21,575 milligrams per kilogram, while oysters caught in Plaquemines Parish on Aug. 3 showed levels at 12,500 mg/kg. Petroleum levels found in fiddler crabs and periwinkles harvested from Terrebonne Parish on Aug. 19 were 6,916 mg/kg.

Cross-posted from a Facing South article by Sue Sturgis

A 5-month-old baby who had been living in on-base housing at Fort Bragg died over the weekend, bringing to 11 the number of infants who have passed away suddenly of unknown causes at the North Carolina military installation since 2007.

The Army Investigation Command and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) are probing the mysterious deaths -- and there are concerns that drywall made from a coal ash byproduct could be a factor.