To join the Collaborative on Health and the Environment (CHE) and the LDDI Working Group, please complete the form at http://www.healthandenvironment.org/roles/register?&phase=registerform. Be sure to mark that you want to join the Learning and Developmental Disabilities Initiative Working Group at the bottom of the application.
Research and Science Teleconference, January 16, 2007, 2:00 - 3:00 p.m. EST, sponsored by the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (formerly AAMR), one of LDDI's leading national partners. "Reducing Neurotoxicity Exposure: The Dioxin Story", will be presented by Robert Lawrence, MD. Dr. Lawrence is professor of environmental health sciences and professor of health policy and management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Professor of Medicine at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. He is the founding director of the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future and directs the Health and Human Rights Certificate Program. For more information about Dr. Lawrence, please see http://www.ehinitiative.org/Projects/tele_con.htm. For more information about the teleconference, please contact Laura Abulafia, laura@aaidd.org.
LDDI's National Conference 2007, "Priming for Prevention: An Ecological Approach to Research, Education and Policy" will be held May 10-11, 2007, at the Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta. Former US Surgeon General Dr. David Satcher, among other distinguished speakers, will be presenting at this conference. The full agenda and registration information will be available on our website by mid January. To view the conference flyer, please visit http://www.iceh.org/pdfs/LDDI/LDDIFlyer2007.pdf.
For information about additional events, please visit our searchable calendar of events at http://www.iceh.org/calendar.html.
January 26, 2007
8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Silver Spring, Maryland
at Holy Cross Hospital, 1500 Forest Glenn Road
The course will focus on diabetes (types 1 and 2), growth disorders, pubertal disorders, and thyroid problems and test interpretation. Speakers will focus on identifying which patients are most likely to benefit from an endocrine consultation and which pre-visit lab tests are the most helpful.
Website: guest.cvent.com/EVENTS/Info/Summary.aspx?i=ae9db9fa-6379-4a9c-abf2-b59a888b342e
Contact: Joel Ranck, jranck@cnmc.org
January 28 - 30, 2007
early registration has been extended through January 9th
San Francisco, California
at UCSF Mission Bay Conference Center
This groundbreaking conference will further the efforts of researchers, clinicians, policymakers and community health leaders to understand and mitigate the reproductive and developmental health impacts of exposures to environmental contaminants -- including the periconceptional and fetal origins of adult disorders. The Summit will provide overviews by leading researchers of the science on these topics and will also explore translation of this research to clinical care, medical training, and public health policy; to federal regulatory agency and research institute priorities; and to patient advocate and community health concerns, including health disparity issues. Collaborative working groups and partnerships will form to further explore and take action on these environmental health issues.
Website: http://www.ucsf.edu/coe/prhesummit.html
Contact: Mary Wade, Summit Manager, 415-476-2563 or wadem@obgyn.ucsf.edu
June 7 - 9, 2007
Ann Arbor, Michigan
at the University of Michigan's School of Natural Resources and Environment
The issues of diversity and environmental justice are very salient in today's society. This two-part conference that will explore research related to 1) diversity in academia (particularly environmental programs) as well as other kinds of environmental institutions and 2) domestic and international environmental justice research. While environmental justice researchers present their findings at numerous venues in any given year, a gathering of this sort is unique in that it offers an opportunity for researchers in the field to gather in one place to assess the past, present and future of the research; map out strategies; initiate collaborative efforts; network; and identify and nurture the future generation of scholars.
We invite presentations from those who have conducted diversity or environmental justice research in the past, have research they are currently conducting or those who preparing to do research in the field. If you are interested in participating in a panel or poster presentation on any of the listed topics (or ones not included on the list), please submit an abstract by February 15, 2007.
Website: http://sitemaker.umich.edu/diversityejresearchsymposium/conference_announcement
Contact: Latonia Payne, paynel@umich.edu
by Jane Kay, San Francisco Chronicle
January 8, 2007
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/01/08/BAGQ5NF3TG17.DTL
San Francisco health officials said Monday they are asking the city's supervisors to make significant changes in a pioneering "toxic toy" ordinance aimed at eliminating children's exposure to two widely used chemicals with suspected links to cancer and developmental problems. Department of Public Health director Dr. Mitchell Katz and Jared Blumenfeld, director of the city's Environment Department, are proposing amendments that would scale down the number of regulated products but would expand enforcement and penalty provisions in the law.
Article Summary: Chemical and toy manufacturers and retailers sued the city last year, alleging that the chemicals are used safely in the products and that San Francisco doesn't have the authority to pass such a law. After the proposed amendments were released Monday, the plaintiffs agreed to put the suit on hold until after the supervisors vote on the matter. The amendments include provisions that would delay the ban on bisphenol A for a year to see whether the state Legislature passes a similar measure, limit which products would be affected and increase fines for violations. Amendments would also expand the law to apply to all children, not just those under three years old. Chemical manufacturers argue that low levels of the chemicals pose no health problems for children and that federal agencies are doing a good job of keeping unsafe chemicals out of toys. But many scientists say that emerging studies show that bisphenol A, which is used to make polycarbonate plastic baby bottles and many other products, can alter the function of the brain, the pancreas as well as mammary, thyroid and prostate glands in animals. Phthalates, which are used to soften plastic such as polyvinyl chloride, or PVC, have been shown in animal studies to interfere with hormonal systems, disrupt testosterone production and cause malformed sex organs.
by Alex Pulaski, Portland Oregonian
January 7, 2007
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1168059311281390.xml&coll=7
The federal government has been inconsistent and at times intentionally silent on how much perchlorate is safe in drinking water. As a result, environmental groups contend, defense contractors and the government have been indefinitely shielded from cleanup costs while infants and pregnant women are exposed to a chemical that impairs thyroid function and can slow infant brain development. Industry advocates argue that the science on perchlorate is not precise enough to warrant strong -- and extremely costly -- remedies.
Article Summary: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency first placed perchlorate, a component in solid rocket fuel, on a list of potential contaminants in 1998. It required that states monitor drinking water for the chemical's presence the following year. The agency established interim guidance on acceptable exposure levels in 1999 at 4 to 18 parts per billion (ppb). An agency memo indicates that the agency advised managers to consider lowering the range in 2003. A separate draft assessment by the agency concluded that the public safety standard for drinking water should be even lower, at 1 ppb. Under pressure from the U.S. Defense Department and contractors facing potential cleanup costs in the billions of dollars, the Bush administration in early 2003 ordered EPA scientists not to publicly discuss perchlorate pollution. Perchlorate risk analysis was reassigned from the EPA to the National Academy of Sciences. In early 2005, the EPA adopted the academy's conclusions on regarding safe doses for humans: 24.5 ppb in drinking water. In a rare step, the EPA placed the new dosage on its risk-information Web site without allowing public comment. The academy reference dose adopted by the EPA has come under fire from toxicologists in states considering adopting their own perchlorate limits in drinking water. They have questioned the validity of studies supporting the standard and the agency's refusal to accept public comment on it.
by Alex Pulaski, Portland Oregonian
January 7, 2007
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1168059325281390.xml&coll=7
State health officials began asking themselves in 2004 whether a chemical discovered in north-central Oregon's water wells might be creeping into the breadbasket region's produce and dairy milk, threatening its residents' health. The answer they have signaled they will give in a final report in coming months is that, based on the state's limited food sampling, perchlorate doesn't pose a health danger to area residents. A public message to that effect last year came after intense lobbying from agriculture-related industries.
Article Summary: Correspondence among state officials during the review reflects behind-the-scenes strains of a balancing act between protecting the public health and ensuring the economic well-being of farmers and food processors. The federal government has already questioned the validity of the state's work, saying it can't rely on Oregon's tests of milk and produce such as watermelons to assess human health risks stemming from perchlorate. Perchlorate consists of chlorine and oxygen atoms and is used in rocket fuel. It limits the thyroid's uptake of iodine; proper thyroid function is vital for infant brain development and controlling human metabolism. Perchlorate can be found naturally in soil, but has been discovered in highest concentrations where it has been employed in the making or use of munitions and rocket fuel. Perchlorate has found its way into water supplies across the country, and recent investigations have found it in vegetables and milk.
Problems and issues with the Oregon investigation have included how much testing should be done, whether food should be tested at all, which foods to test, a decision not to seek data on whether newborns in north-central Oregon were experiencing thyroid problems potentially attributable to perchlorate, and how to interpret wildly conflicting lab results on the presence of perchlorate in food and milk.
by Troy Graham, Philadelphia Inquirer
January 6, 2007
http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/16395404.htm
Under heavy pressure, DuPont Co. yesterday dropped out of an Army plan to dispose of caustic wastewater from the destruction of the deadly VX nerve agent in South Jersey. DuPont's decision ends the three-year fight over the plan. Up to four million gallons of treated, watered-down VX would have been shipped by truck or train through four states from a chemical weapons stockpile in Indiana to DuPont's Chambers Works in Deepwater, Salem County. There, it would have been dumped into the Delaware River.
Article Summary: The plan to dispose of the wastewater drew sharp opposition from the public, elected officials and environmentalists. A coalition of environmental groups filed a lawsuit against the Army last year in U.S. District Court, and many of the regulatory issues remained unresolved. DuPont said the science involved in treating and disposing of the wastewater was sound, and the plan was safe, but the company recognized that many hurdles remained. Army officials said they would explore all options for the wastewater. After the September 11, 2001, attacks, DuPont was ordered to accelerate the disposal of chemical weapon stockpiles that could be targeted in a terrorist attack. It safely disposed of seven million gallons of wastewater from neutralized mustard gas, according to DuPont spokesman Anthony Farina.
by Julie J. Rehmeyer, Science News
January 6, 2007
http://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20070106/food.asp
The most common male-genital birth defect is undescended testicles, affecting about 3 percent of boys born in the United States. A few risk factors have been identified, but researchers have generally puzzled over the cause of the problem. Now, a new study has revealed an unexpected risk factor. Regular alcohol consumption during pregnancy appears to triple the risk that a woman's son will have the condition, Ida Damgaard and her colleagues report in Environmental Health Perspectives.
Article Summary: The finding suggests an obvious strategy for reducing the incidence of the birth defect: Women should be even more strongly discouraged from drinking during pregnancy. Male fertility has been declining dramatically in developed countries over the past 40 years, with sperm density dropping 1.5 percent per year in the United States and 3 percent per year in Europe and Australia. The rate of undescended testicles in newborn boys has increased steadily over about the same period. The research group is doing numerous studies using data from nearly 5,000 pregnant women in Denmark and Finland and then their children. Early last year, the team identified another risk factor for cryptorchidism: maternal exposure to pesticides, including DDT, that are no longer in regular use but that persist in the environment. Previously known risk factors include premature birth, low birth weight, gestational diabetes, and being a twin. Damgaard's group is searching for even more risk factors for the condition.
from BBC News
January 5, 2007
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6233395.stm
Article Summary: Food additives are substances intentionally added to food for a specific function, such as to alter the color, texture of taste of foods, or to preserve them safely. Some reports have suggested that certain food additives can cause behavioral changes in some children, although many experts agree it is difficult to come to firm conclusions from the research carried out so far. The research found that many people underestimate the number of food additives they consume and do not understand which foods are most likely to contain additives. Bridget Aisbitt, a nutrition scientist at the British Nutrition Foundation, said the levels of additives in all foods were tightly regulated so that the levels were kept very low, but to avoid them people should prepare their meals from fresh ingredients. She also pointed out that additives are useful in food to keep food safe, for example by preventing mold from forming.
by Mike Stobbe, Associated Press, USA TODAY
January 4, 2007
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2007-01-04-folates_x.htm
ATLANTA -- Blood levels of folate in young American women are dropping, a disturbing development that could lead to increased birth defects and may be due to low-carb diets or the popularity of unfortified whole-grain breads. Government health officials could only speculate on the reasons but called the backslide in this important B vitamin disturbing. It is not clear how the decline in folate levels has affected newborns, but preliminary data suggest the dramatic declines in neural tube defects seen in the late 1990s may have leveled off by 2004, said officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Article Summary: Folate is a naturally occurring B vitamin. An artificial version, which is more easily metabolized by the body, is folic acid. Years ago, scientists concluded that folate deficiencies contributed to the occurrence of serious birth defects of the spine and brain, known as neural tube defects. So the government has long urged women to eat cereals and breads fortified with folic acid to help prevent birth defects. By the late 1990s, the fortification campaigns were succeeding: Folate levels increased, and neural tube defects dropped by as many as 1,000 a year. But a CDC study released Thursday found an 8% to 16% decline in folate levels in U.S. women of childbearing age, according to large blood-drawing surveys done between 1999 and 2004. The decline was most pronounced in white women, although black women continue to be the racial group with the least folate in their blood, health officials said. It is not clear why blood folate levels dropped in this decade, but there are several possible explanations, including increasing obesity rates and diet trends.
by John Donnelly, Boston Globe
January 4, 2007
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/01/04/states_perilous_mercury_stocks_may_find_a_federal_repository/
WASHINGTON -- Massachusetts and other states may soon find a safe place to retire their stockpiles of dangerous mercury collected from thermometers, school science labs, and automobiles. A Bush administration draft document calls for a strategy to manage all excess mercury stocks outside the federal government, ranging from industrial supplies to those picked up in neighborhood recycling drives.
Article Summary: Mercury has grown into a major health hazard over the years. When mercury vapor is released into the air, rain carries the toxic substance into waterways, where it enters the food chain, moving from aquatic organisms to fish to humans. If ingested, mercury can cause developmental problems in children and neurological damage in adults. Many states, led by those in New England, have tried to safely remove all mercury from houses and businesses. Last month, the US administration decided to keep the Department of Energy's 1,206 tons of mercury in storage for safekeeping, rather than trying to profit from selling it. The decision not to sell the federal government's mercury comes at a critical moment in efforts to reduce the trade of the substance around the world. The decision not to sell the federal government's mercury comes at a critical moment in efforts to reduce the trade of the substance around the world. Next month, the governing board of the United Nations Environmental Program, meeting in Nairobi, will consider plans to reduce the supply and demand of mercury.
by Sea Stachura, Minnesota Public Radio
January 4, 2007
http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2007/01/02/hayesmayo/
A researcher who has studied suspected links between a herbicide widely used in Minnesota and deformities in frogs says the chemical may also cause cancer in humans. Tyrone Hayes, of the University of California-Berkeley, presented his research to a group of doctors at the Mayo Clinic on Wednesday.
Article Summary: Atrazine has been used to kill weeds on crops like corn since 1958. In Minnesota farmers apply just under two million pounds of it each year, and it can run off into streams and groundwater. Scientists with the Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee are concerned that the growth of the ethanol industry will mean more corn and more atrazine in the environment. Its effects on humans and animals have been disputed for years. Hayes' research discovered that atrazine chemically castrates the frog, meaning that it causes a reduction in the male hormone, testosterone, which results in things like decreased sperm count, a decrease in the voice box, controls the male's ability to attract mates. He went on to say that the enzyme that atrazine activates in frogs is the same one found in humans. It converts testosterone into estrogen. "This same enzyme, or machinery if you will, controls estrogen production in humans. And atrazine is associated in laboratory rodents with development of mammary cancer, or breast cancer, and there are epidemiological studies that associate atrazine exposure to breast cancer in humans," Hayes said in an interview with NPR. The Environmental Protection Agency and Syngenta have questioned Hayes' research, which has been published in journals such as Science. "All of the studies we looked at, and there were 17 laboratory and field studies total, were flawed," said EPA's Anne Lindsay in the Office of Pesticides. The EPA expects to update its view of the chemical's safety sometime in 2007. Lindsay says the agency will take into account findings from a study by the National Cancer Institute. That study is looking at whether atrazine has caused any diseases in humans.
by Jeff Nagel, Surrey [British Columbia] Leader
January 3, 2007
http://www.surreyleader.com/portals-code/list.cgi?paper=73&cat=23&id=804296&more=
Article Summary: June 1st is the planned launch date of a new system to recycle electronic waste in British Columbia, led by a consortium of manufacturers and retailers, in partnership with Encorp Pacific Canada. Fees are charges on new products, and consumers can then drop off old e-waste for recycling at various depots without fear of causing toxic pollution here or overseas. Lead, other metals and PCBs can be found in circuit boards; batteries can contain lead, mercury, lithium and cadmium; and leaded glass is found in many monitors. Plastics must also be handled carefully as they can contain toxic fire retardants. Recyclers would have to adhere to a standard developed by the national organization of electronic producers, Electronic Products Stewardship Canada. The standard aims to ensure electronic items are dismantled and materials recycled in an environmentally sound manner that safeguards workers' health and the environment. Key principles include ensuring most components aren't landfilled, exported to developing countries or extracted using prison labor. Regular audits by a third party auditor will ensure compliance. Some nonprofit groups who feel the drive to eco-correct recycling of e-waste will undermine their efforts to reuse products. TVs, desktop computers, laptops, servers, monitors, printers and accessories like keyboards, mice and cables are all covered by the new system. Not included are handheld devices or computers and monitors that are built into vehicles, boats or commercial/industrial equipment.
by Nikhil Swaminathan, Scientific American
January 3, 2007
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?chanID=sa003&articleID=EA19F960-E7F2-99DF-32460084B295C9EA
Researchers have discovered dangerous levels of the neurotoxin mercury (Hg) in the muscle tissue of perch and in the blood and eggs of the common loon in aquatic ecosystems of the northeastern U.S. and southern Canada. The finding led them to identify five "hot spots" of mercury contamination that pose serious health risks to animals as well as humans. In addition, elevated concentrations of the neurotoxin were found in nine other regions labeled as "areas of concern" in the report published in the January issue of Bioscience. High concentrations of mercury, which accumulate in the food chain, can cause brain and nerve damage in developing fetuses and young children.
Article Summary: The northeastern hot spots, which include the western Adirondacks and the middle and lower Merrimack River, share several characteristics: most can track much of their mercury deposition to local sources such as waste incinerators and coal-fired electricity plants. Each area contains landscape components, like tree canopies that suck up airborne mercury particles or wetlands that facilitate the methylation of mercury to the toxic compound methylmercury, that concentrate the pollutant in aquatic environments, sometimes up to one million times greater than its ambient levels. Water manipulation, such as reservoirs, can also ratchet up methylmercury levels, causing a decrease in the viability of wildlife offspring. In addition, soil contamination from legacy mercury use is another major indicator of a hot spot. In addition, the western U.S. and Rockies appear to have major legacy mercury problems that are causing reproductive impairments to birds. These findings could impact the cap-and-trade regulations implemented by the EPA in 2005 to nudge coal-fired power plants to take steps to reduce their emissions.
by Kris Christen, Environmental Science & Technology
January 3, 2007
http://pubs.acs.org/subscribe/journals/esthag-w/2007/jan/policy/kc_epa.html
A washing machine made by Samsung Electronics is one of a rapidly growing number of consumer products that advertisements say are embedded with nanoscale silver particles that can kill bacteria. In a major reversal, the U.S. EPA has determined that clothes washing machines that use silver ions as a disinfectant will have to be registered as a pesticide. Until now, the agency has not regulated nanomaterials, including silver ions, made of a bioaccumulating, persistent, and toxic metal. Yet EPA's decision may be meaningless, critics point out, because if the company deletes from its advertising the assertion that silver can kill bacteria, it won't have to register the washer.
Article Summary: In an assessment updated in November, the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars found that the number of consumer products made with nanotechnologies has increased by 70% since March 2006. The most prevalent nanomaterial being used is silver, now found in 47 products. Among other possible effects, widespread use of household products that release silver ions into sanitary sewer systems could greatly increase silver concentrations in treatment-plant discharges, leading to adverse effects, such as bioaccumulation in fish and killing of aquatic life. The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) does not regulate antibacterial products unless they claim they can kill bacteria. The Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group that relayed its concerns in a November letter to EPA, wrote: "Failure to identify nanoscale pesticide ingredients should not be an excuse to circumvent the FIFRA registration requirements. Because of the significant potential for serious environmental harm, EPA must conduct a comprehensive assessment of all products that use nanosilver as a pesticide."
by Martin Hickman, London Independent
January 3, 2007
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/health_medical/article2121674.ece
Britain's 2-billion-pound-a-year thirst for bottled water is not only financially and environmentally foolish, it may even harm the drinkers' health, campaigners say. Possible problems associated with shop-bought water include excess sodium, the leaching of toxins and benzene contamination, according to a report published yesterday by the sustainable food and farming group Sustain.
Article Summary: The report Have You Bottled It? found that Tap water was good quality and environmentally friendly, while the bottled version generated pollution and was associated with health fears. The last annual figures from the Drinking Water Inspectorate showed 99.96 per cent of tap water met stringent standards in 2005. The tiny proportion of water that did not meet all testing criteria was still safe to drink. The French Senate advises people who drink bottled mineral water to change brands frequently, because the minerals in particular brands may be harmful in high doses if consumed over a long period. Among other health concerns, the report recalled that a potential carcinogen, benzene, was found in Perrier in 1989 and bromate -- another carcinogen -- in Coca-Cola's Dasani in 2004. Water from bottles made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) also contain low levels of the heavy metal antimony. On leaching, the report warned: "It is possible that some potentially toxic chemicals may migrate out of the plastic product and into whatever it is in contact with." This happened in October 2005 when the BBC found unopened bottles of Volvic that had been contaminated with napthalene. The British Soft Drinks Association dismissed any health concerns. "Bottled water is safe," it said. And the products conformed to the highest standards of "hygiene, provenance and sustainability". Marketing of bottled water, which is 1,000 times more expensive than tap water, plays heavily on notions of purity, peace, silence, nature -- an antidote to our busy urban lifestyles.
by Fred Ortega, San Gabriel Valley [California] Tribune
January 3, 2007
http://www.sgvtribune.com/search/ci_4939987
The federal government's attitude toward perchlorate contamination, sharply contrasted in recent years by California's efforts to deal with the potentially dangerous chemical, could be about to change. Tens of millions of dollars have been spent throughout the state to remove perchlorate -- an ingredient in rocket fuel and dry-cleaning solvent -- from drinking water supplies. State officials are close to establishing a mandatory limit on the amount of the chemical allowed. At the same time, the federal government has set a non-mandatory limit for perchlorate contamination that is four times higher than what California is considering, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently nixed a requirement to even test for the chemical in drinking water.
Article Summary: Studies have suggested that perchlorate can harm thyroid function and is particularly dangerous to pregnant women and their unborn children. Even at 6 parts per billion -- the mandatory limit being considered in California -- thousands of pregnant women may still have to be treated because of perchlorate contamination in drinking water in California alone, said Sujatha Jahagirdar of Los Angeles-based Environment California. Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-San Francisco. has said that changing the seemingly lackadaisical approach taken by the federal government toward perchlorate will be among the top priorities of the new Democratic Congress. Even as a committee chairwoman, Boxer cannot simply force the EPA to change policy, said Jack Pitney, politics professor at Claremont McKenna College. "But she can use publicity to bring pressure to bear." Boxer also said she hopes to steer more federal money toward environmental causes.
See related articles at http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_H_perc05.39df021.html and http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_H_perc05.39df021.html.
by Frank Munger, Knoxville News Sentinel
January 3, 2007
http://www.knoxnews.com/kns/local_news/article/0,1406,KNS_347_5252800,00.html
OAK RIDGE -- Before closing its Oak Ridge incinerator for good, the U.S. Department of Energy plans to burn more than 10 million pounds of toxic waste in the next three years. State environmental officers have given their preliminary blessing to the plan, which would bring wastes to Oak Ridge from at least 11 facilities outside Tennessee.
Article Summary: The Department of Energy intends to close the incinerator by September 30, 2009. During the almost three years until then, out-of-state loads will include toxic waste from a former uranium-enrichment facility in Ohio and apparently would include tons of oils contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls. Lesser amounts of waste would arrive from around the nation, including sites in Colorado, New Mexico, New York, Idaho and Washington state. The Oak Ridge incinerator is considered a unique facility within the Department of Energy. It is capable of burning a range of mixed wastes containing both radioactive materials and hazardous chemicals, including hard-to-destroy PCBs. As part of continuing operations, the contractor that operates the incinerator conducted a risk assessment earlier this year and concluded that the incinerator did not pose a health threat to humans, and state overseers agreed with that conclusion. The incinerator has burned about 31 million pounds of waste during its 20 years of operation.
by Michael Hawthorne, Chicago Tribune
January 2, 2007
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/custom/newsroom/chi-070102mercury,1,4555629.story
One of the nation's largest stockpiles of toxic mercury will remain locked up instead of oozing into the world market. After mulling a potential sale for several months, the U.S. Department of Energy confirmed Tuesday that it will keep nearly 1,300 tons of mercury in storage, increasing pressure on private companies to follow the same policy. The Tribune reported in November that federal officials were considering selling off the Energy Department's surplus, prompted in part by legislation introduced by U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) that would ban American exports of the silvery metal.
Article Summary: The government's mercury has been in storage since alternative methods were developed to process material for hydrogen bombs in the early 1960s. Some of it has been sold, and most sold today is funneled to loosely regulated industries in developing countries, where it can end up being released into the atmosphere and contaminating lakes and rivers around the world. Gold mines churn about 1,000 tons of mercury into the atmosphere every year, second only to coal-fired power plants, which release 3,000 tons, according to the UN. Mercury pollution that falls into waterways becomes more dangerous as it moves up the food chain from small aquatic organisms to fish to people. The metal can build up in the body, causing developmental problems in children and neurological damage in adults. Most American industries that once used mercury to make batteries, thermometers, electrical switches and chlorine have switched to less harmful technologies. Many states have taken steps to discourage mercury-laden garbage from being disposed of in landfills.
Government officials and corporate executives have increasingly faced pressure to keep it out of the environment. Despite the federal government's decision to store its surplus, American mercury may still flood the world market from another source. Two chemical plants that use large amounts of mercury to make chlorine are shutting down, and Obama is pushing another bill that would require six other chlorine plants to close or switch to mercury-free technology by 2012.
press release from the American Institute of Architects
October 31, 2006
http://www.aia.org/release_103106_greenschool
Washington, D.C., October 31, 2006 -- A new national report, Greening America's Schools, reveals that building energy-efficient schools results in lower operating costs, improved test scores and enhanced student health. The report, produced by Capital E and co-sponsored by The American Institute of Architects (AIA), concluded that schools that are designed to be environmentally friendly would save an average of $100,000 each year -- enough to hire two additional full-time teachers.
Article Summary: The report includes a detailed analysis of 30 green schools built in 10 states between 2001 and 2006. It demonstrates that the total financial benefits of green schools are 20 times greater than the initial cost, including energy and water savings, as well as improved student health and test scores. For the full report, please see http://www.cap-e.com/ewebeditpro/items/O59F9819.pdf.