Category Archives: water quality standards

Water quality and mine acid rock drainage

Posted on April 24, 2014 by tbach

Our guest blogger from Alaska, Maricarmen Cruz-Guilloty, highlights this upcoming conference call seminar on how acid rock drainage from mining affects water chemistry and environmental health.  The Wednesday, April 30 teleconference will explore how acid rock drainage is one of the … Continue reading →

Posted in acid mine rock drainage, Clean Water Act, mining, water quality standards | Comments Off on Water quality and mine acid rock drainage

THE INLAND WATERS RULE: Can Numeric Water Quality Criteria Save Lake Erie?

Posted on April 14, 2013 by mkyle

In the 1960s, pollution in Lake Erie was so extensive that the lake was frequently declared “dead” in the media. In his original 1971 edition of The Lorax, Dr. Seuss referred to the lake’s degraded condition in describing the poor Humming-Fish and their … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture, algal blooms, Clean Water Act, dead zones, environmental cleanup, environmental health, environmental law, EPA, Great Lakes, nonpoint source pollution, water quality standards | Comments Off on THE INLAND WATERS RULE: Can Numeric Water Quality Criteria Save Lake Erie?

Dead in the Water

Posted on March 27, 2013 by Alex English

Thanks to laws such as the Clean Water Act, and the Safe Drinking Water Act, tremendous progress has occurred in the past forty years: the Cuyahoga River no longer catches fire, Boston Harbor is generally free of fecal matter, and municipal water … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture, agriculture and human health, algal blooms, Clean Water Act, climate change and health, cyanobacteria, dead zones, drinking water, environmental health, NIH, nonpoint source pollution, phosphorus, public health, routes of exposure, Safe Drinking Water Act, vulnerable populations, water quality standards | Comments Off on Dead in the Water

What’s Next for the Great Lakes?

Posted on March 4, 2013 by mkyle

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?

The Sky is Falling: Stormwater as a Vector for Environmental Health Hazards

Posted on February 15, 2013 by Alex English

We have known for years that rainwater can carry hazardous substances which affect the health of human and animal life. The classic example is acid rain. Burning coal and other fossil fuels produces sulfur dioxide (SO2), which various nitrogen oxides (NOx) … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture and human health, carcinogens, Clean Water Act, cyanobacteria, DDT, drinking water, environmental health, fish consumption advisories, food contamination, mercury, public health, routes of exposure, Safe Drinking Water Act, synthetic chemicals, water quality standards | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on The Sky is Falling: Stormwater as a Vector for Environmental Health Hazards

Swimmable Waters?

Posted on February 5, 2013 by smooney

I might reconsider my goal of swimming an open water marathon by the time I turn thirty-five, or perhaps I’ll just swim it in the pool instead.  Last year when I swam twelve miles around the Charleston, South Carolina peninsula, … Continue reading →

Posted in Clean Water Act, cooperative federalism, EPA, routes of exposure, water quality standards | Comments Off on Swimmable Waters?

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

Posted on January 26, 2013 by mkyle

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