Currently the EPA does not have any limits on PFAS, a class of “forever chemicals” known to cause serious illness such as cancer. These chemicals are used to make materials resistant to water, stains, and heat and are known as forever chemicals because they don’t ever fully break down. Since in ...
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In the News
EPA should force Louisiana to curb air pollution, environmentalists say
Louisiana’s current draft proposal to meet federal pollution reduction goals has been criticized by environmental groups who are now calling on the EPA to enforce its own plan instead of the state’s, which these groups deem inadequate. The current proposal ignores key sources of pollution such as ...
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Maine outlaws PFAS in products with pioneering law
On Thursday the Maine legislature became the first in the country to fully ban PFAS, a class of harmful chemicals linked to serious illness. The law will ban PFAS in nearly all products by 2030 and is a pioneering measure in the US. The ban has come with backlash from certain groups such as the ...
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E.P.A. Approved Toxic Chemicals for Fracking a Decade Ago, New Files Show
In 2011 the EPA approved the use of PFAS, a class of toxic chemicals now known to cause serious illnesses such as cancer, in drilling and fracking activities. These chemicals were approved despite serious concerns within the EPA over their toxicity and for the past decade, they have been in ...
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After explosion kills 14-year-old, Louisiana wants tighter safety rules on oil field tank batteries
The Louisiana state Office of Conservation is proposing new safety rules for tank batteries after a tragic explosion in February. One of these batteries, used to store oil and waste salt water, exploded, sending 14-year-old Zalee Gail Day-Smith hundreds of feet into the air, killing her. These tanks ...
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Johnson Controls to Pay $17.5 M to Settle PFAS and AFFF Firefighting Foam Lawsuits
Johnson Controls will pay $17.5 million to plaintiffs in class action and individual lawsuits relating to fire fighting foams used by its subsidiary Tyco Fire Products. The Aqueous Film Forming Foam (AFFF) contains polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) which have been found to build up in the body ...
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Judge tosses lawsuit over Trump-era key environmental law reform
A federal judge in Virginia has thrown out lawsuits by environmental groups in the state who were challenging a Trump-era change to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The changes challenged would narrow the scope of the policy, limiting environmental protection. The lawsuit was thrown ...
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New Louisiana law keeps some industrial pollution accidents hidden from the public
A new law signed into effect by Governor John Bel Edwards will allow self audits to be conducted by industrial facilities in certain situations. These audits will be done by the company that owns the facility and the records from them can be kept from the public for up to two years. The certain ...
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Science catches up to what residents of Louisiana’s ‘Cancer Alley’ have been saying about pollution
Race, poverty, and pollution help determine who gets sick. The Tulane Environmental Law Clinic report confirms what we continually see in our practice. Corporate polluters dump toxic pollution on low income communities. Many residents have chronic “nuisance” type symptoms from constant chemical ...
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This session made the 8th consecutive year the Louisiana Legislature heaped praise on Formosa Plastics
Formosa Plastics, a Taiwanese plastic company, is planning a new plastic manufacturing facility in St. James Parish. The economic benefits of the facility are expected to be large but there has been pushback from residents who see it as another large company entering their home polluting it. Due to ...
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