Category Archives: pollution control standards

As Winter Descends, EPA Proposes Stricter Standards for Wood Stoves

New Englanders feeding their wood stoves in a struggle against the sub-zero temperatures have something new to read, because EPA has proposed new emission limits on residential wood-burning heaters. While more than twelve million U.S. homes rely on wood stoves … Continue reading

Posted in air pollution, asthma, carbon monoxide, cardiovascular disease, Clean Air Act, EPA, Fine Air Particulates, pollution control standards, soot, Uncategorized, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), woodstoves | Comments Off on As Winter Descends, EPA Proposes Stricter Standards for Wood Stoves

Losing “The Good Earth”

China’s government acknowledged this week that 8 million acres of its farmland – a land mass about the size of Belgium — is too polluted for growing food.    In 2013, dangerous levels of cadmium were detected in rice grown in Henan, a … Continue reading

Posted in agriculture, agriculture and human health, air pollution, cadmium, carcinogens, China, environmental health, environmental health law, food contamination, lead, pesticides, pollution control standards, synthetic chemicals | Comments Off on Losing “The Good Earth”

Public Health and Environmental Protection

While Caitlin attended the VLS symposium on Friday, I was at the University of Michigan Law School’s Environmental Law and Policy Program’s fall conference.  Co-sponsored by the school’s Environmental Law Society and the Michigan Journal of Environmental and Administrative Law, … Continue reading

Posted in agriculture and human health, built environment, climate change and health, environmental cleanup, environmental health, environmental health law, environmental justice, EPA, Fine Air Particulates, lead, mercury, NRDC, pesticides, pollution control standards, precautionary principle, public health, risk assessment, risk management, vulnerable populations | Comments Off on Public Health and Environmental Protection

The Rehberg Amendment’s $214,775 Price Tag

Black lung is a disease that afflicts coal miners. It is both incurable and irreversible in later stages.  It is caused by inhalation of excessive amounts of coal mine dust.  According to the National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety … Continue reading

Posted in environmental health, environmental health law, environmental justice, environmental law, Fine Air Particulates, pollution control standards, public health, public health law, risk assessment, risk management, Uncategorized, vulnerable populations | Comments Off on The Rehberg Amendment’s $214,775 Price Tag

What’s Next for the Great Lakes?

Harmful Algae Blooms Threaten Lake Erie The World’s Largest Source of Freshwater The Great Lakes contain the world’s largest supply of freshwater. In fact, according to NOAA’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory (GLERL), the Great Lakes contain 18% of the world’s supply … Continue reading

Posted in agriculture, agriculture and human health, algal blooms, Clean Water Act, climate change and health, dead zones, drinking water, environmental health, environmental health law, EPA, Great Lakes, nonpoint source pollution, phosphorus, pollution control standards, public health, public health law, routes of exposure, water quality standards | Comments Off on What’s Next for the Great Lakes?

Legislation Proposes Moratorium on Mountaintop Removal Permits Until Health Consequences Are Invesitgated

     On Wednesday, February 13th, Congressman John Yarmuth (KY-3) and Congresswoman Louise Slaughter (NY-25) introduced the Appalachian Community Health Emergency Act (H.R. 526) in the U.S. House of Representatives.  The legislation would place a moratorium on all new mountaintop … Continue reading

Posted in Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, environmental cleanup, environmental health, environmental health law, environmental justice, EPA, Fine Air Particulates, fish consumption advisories, pollution control standards, public health, public health law, Uncategorized, vulnerable populations | Comments Off on Legislation Proposes Moratorium on Mountaintop Removal Permits Until Health Consequences Are Invesitgated

Worker Safety and the Federal Rulemaking Process

Crystalline silica, a mineral in the earth’s crust, is a common component of sand, stone, concrete, and brick.  When workers cut, saw, or drill these materials—mainly during construction work and mining operations—the silica is aerosolized, exposing workers to fine particulate … Continue reading

Posted in carcinogens, CDC, Clean Air Act, environmental health, environmental health law, EPA, Fine Air Particulates, hydraulic fracturing, NACOSH, NIEHS, NIH, OMB, OSHA, pollution control standards, public health, routes of exposure | Comments Off on Worker Safety and the Federal Rulemaking Process

Revising Fish Consumption Rates in the Pacific Northwest: The Inextricable Link Between Environmental Protection & Human Health

The Problem of Low Fish Consumption Rates Washington State is currently in the process of revising its fish consumption rates (FCRs). The current rates were developed in the 1980s and 1990s, and recent studies indicate that Washingtonians consume much more fish … Continue reading

Posted in CERCLA, Clean Water Act, cooperative federalism, dioxins, environmental cleanup, environmental health, environmental health law, environmental justice, environmental law, EPA, fish consumption advisories, mercury, PCBs, pollution control standards, public health, public health law, public participation process, risk assessment, risk communication, risk management, vulnerable populations, water quality standards, WHO | Comments Off on Revising Fish Consumption Rates in the Pacific Northwest: The Inextricable Link Between Environmental Protection & Human Health