The Pacific "ring of fire" -- the zone where tectonic plates crunch -- doesn't stop at the equator. It extends through the U.S. Pacific Northwest, which is also vulnerable to intense quakes. States like Oregon are just beginning to retrofit potentially lethal buildings, and the seismic clock is ticking.
Utah has refused shipments of depleted uranium from the Department of Energy's Savannah River nuclear materials processing center in South Carolina.
"Thousands of the nation's largest water polluters are outside the Clean Water Act's reach because the Supreme Court has left uncertain which waterways are protected by that law, according to interviews with regulators."
"One in four U.S. parents believes some vaccines cause autism in healthy children, but even many of those worried about vaccine risks think their children should be vaccinated. Most parents continue to follow the advice of their children's doctors, according to a study based on a survey of 1,552 parents. Extensive research has found no connection between autism and vaccines."
"The Environmental Protection Agency is considering a petition from farm worker and public health advocates to ban pesticide spraying near schools, hospitals and child care centers."
"Animal manure, a byproduct as old as agriculture, has become an unlikely modern pollution problem, scientists and environmentalists say."
"Recirculating aquaculture systems cut the pollution and disease that occur in current fish farming operations. Many see it as the future of the industry."
"South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster said on Wednesday he would take legal action to stop President Barack Obama from dropping plans to build a nuclear waste storage facility in Nevada."
The so-far unfounded fears of a few that President Obama will restrict gun sales are boosting sales as gun enthusiasts stockpile. One result: a boost in state funds for fish and wildlife restoration. Under the Pittman-Robertson Act of 1937, a federal tax on guns and ammo is set aside for this purpose.
"The Teamsters union and environmental activists have formed an unlikely and outspoken alliance aiming to clear the air in American ports, and perhaps bolster the Teamsters’ ranks in the process."
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