Just days after Europe placed a two year ban on bee-killing pesticides, the US government has released a claim that there is no clear link between widespread colony collapse and neonicotinoids, The Guardian reports. Seemingly ignoring a lot of research upon which the EU based their decision to ban pesticide use on crops that attract bees, the Department of Agriculture and Environmental Protection Agency blame plummeting bee populations on a mite.

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Post tags: agriculture, Bayer, bees, colony collapse disorder, Environment, environmental protection agency, epa, neonicotinoids, News, pesticides, pollinator, US Dept of Agriculture

In March, the State Department issued a controversial analysis of the Keystone XL Pipeline that stated the project would have no significant impact on the environment. Needless to say, this raised the hackles of many concerned citizens and environmental groups. The US Environmental Protection Agency also took issue with the assessment, and this week released a document criticizing the State Department’s report. In a letter, the agency remarked that there was not enough evidence to give credence to the State Department’s conclusions concerning safety, emissions, and alternative routes. The formal objections could complicate the approval of the $7 billion project.

Read the rest of EPA Wants State Department to Reassess Their Analysis of the Keystone XL Pipeline

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Post tags: Alberta, arkansas, assessment, canada, CO2, environmental protection agency, global warming, gulf of mexico, kalamazoo river, Keystone XL Pipeline, mayflower, Michigan, oil, president obama, spill, state department, tar sands

Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is expected to push ahead with regulations that will require the production of cleaner gasoline and impose fleet-wide pollution limits on new vehicles by 2017. According to a report in the Washington Post, the rules will mandate that the sulfur content of US gasoline be reduced by two-thirds, from 30 to 10 parts per million—a move which would add less than a cent per gallon to the price of gas, while having an overall environmental impact comparable to taking 33 million cars off the road.

Read the rest of Obama Administration to Move Forward with Regulations Requiring Cleaner-Burning Gasoline by 2017

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Post tags: barack obama, california car, california pollution, car exhaust, car pollution, carbon emissions, environment regulation, environmental protection agency, epa emissions, epa regulation, gasoline sulfur, obama environment, tailpipe emissions

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has declared that an astounding 55 percent of rivers and streams in the country are in “poor condition for aquatic life.” The results of their first comprehensive survey of waterway health reveal shrinking vegetation cover, high levels of phosphorous and nitrogen, and pollution from mercury and bacteria—none of which are all that great for human health either. These issues pose a threat not only to 1.2 million miles of waterways, but also the coastal areas, lakes and bays that are served by those rivers and streams. Additionally, as the EPA emphasizes, the polluted, unhealthy waterways include vital sources of drinking water.

Read the rest of EPA Declares More than Half of US Rivers Unfit for Aquatic Life

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Post tags: agricultural ruoff, agriculture pollution, algae blooms, aquatic life, dead zone, environmental destruction, environmental protection agency, epa, fertilizer pollution, fertilizer runoff, fertilizers, fish health, mercury, mercury fish, mercury health, National Rivers and Stream Assessment, river health, river pollution, water health, water pollution

American beekeepers, conservation groups and food campaigners have filed a lawsuit against the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for failing to protect the country’s bees from toxic pesticides. Three quarters of the country’s crops rely on bees for pollination, according to The Guardian, yet the EPA is accused of rushing bee-toxic pesticide registrations despite a suite of scientific reviews that have identified neonicotinoids as a serious threat to declining bee populations.

Read the rest of Coalition Sues US Government Over Pesticides Toxic to Bees

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Post tags: agriculture, Bayer, bees, colony collapse disorder, Environment, environmental protection agency, epa, neonicotinoid, News, pesticides, pollinators, Sierra Club, syngenta, US

The next time you take a trip to the grocery store and pick up a prepackaged meal, there may be more to worry about then just the calorie count on the outside of the box. A study published in this month’s Environmental Health Perspectives by The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) has shown levels of phthalates in common US foods. The industrial chemicals are used as plasticizers, and can be found in many personal care and home products. Linked to reproductive and endocrine damage, phthalates were found in all of 72 samples from foods and beverages tested from grocery stores in Albany, NY.

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Post tags: albany, arnold schecter, BPA, environmental protection agency, flame retardant, food, grocery store, HBCD, NY, pbde, phthalates, plastic, plasticizer, prepackaged, resin, supermarket, the university of texas health and science center at houston, uthealth

If you drive a Ford C-Max or a Ford Fusion Hybrid, you might want to double check the fuel economy of your car. Two of Ford’s hybrids, the C-Max and the Fusion, fell short of fuel economy targets when tested by Consumer Reports, said the Detroit automaker on Friday. But Ford isn’t shying away from this potentially embarrassing issue, saying that it wants to work with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to improve the way it determines fuel efficiency, claiming that the current testing methods leave too much to chance and produce erratic results.

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Post tags: Consumer Reports blows whistle on Ford hybrids, environmental protection agency, EPA testing methods for fuel economy, Ford C-MAX, ford fusion, Ford hybrid vehicles, Ford hybrid vehicles fall short of EPA targets, miles per gallon, Raj Nair, vehicle fuel economy, vehicle fuel efficiency, vehicle fuel performance

In the wake of the most recent $4.5 billion settlement and criminal charges, BP has now been suspended from all new government contracts within the United States. Citing a “lack of business integrity,” the Environmental Protection Agency handed down the decision this Wednesday. While the decision doesn’t impact current holdings by the company, BP will not be permitted to bid on new contracts until it can adequately prove that it has changed its practices to align with federal standards.

Read the rest of US Bans BP From New Government Contracts After Gulf Coast Oil Spill

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Post tags: BP, congress, deepwater horizon, environmental protection agency, epa, federal court, gulf of mexico, justice department, oil drilling, suspension, united states

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) are conducting a contest challenging innovators to develop a system that could turn thousands — or even millions — of citizens into walking pollution-monitoring stations. Under the “My Air, My Health” challenge, the EPA and the HHS are offering $160,000 in prizes for creating “a personal, portable, near-real-time, location-specific system to monitor and report air pollutants and potentially related physiological parameters.”

Read the rest of Feds Challenge Innovators to Build a Crowdsourced Pollution Monitoring Network

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Post tags: Air quality, crowdsource air quality, crowdsourcing, Department of Health and Human Services, Environment, environmental protection agency, epa, green design, Health, hhs, My Air My Health Challenge, sustainable design

Not only does the US need tougher gun control, but it also needs stronger laws in the regulation of lead in ammunition. Unfortunately, the Environmental Protection Agency has not done enough to mitigate issues related to lead poisoning in the wild, so several green groups are taking them to court. The groups are claiming that exposure to the toxic metal from spent ammunition poses a risk to millions of birds and human health.

Read the rest of Wildlife Lead Poisoning: EPA Sued Over Failure to Regulate Spent Ammunition

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Post tags: environmental protection agency, epa, epa sued, federal farm bill, hunting ban, lead based ammunition, spent ammunition, The Center for Biological Diversity, toxic metals, Toxic Substances Control Act

Wyoming Gas Drill Photo by Shutterstock

Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin is set to sign into law a bill that will make Vermont the first state to outlaw hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, the environmentally destructive method of natural gas extraction which is believed to have causedearthquakes in the midwest and groundwater contamination in several areas of the US. A House Committee in the state voted to support the bill on Friday, and it is largely expected that Shumlin will support the measure.

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Post tags: dusty horwitt, environmental protection agency, Environmental Working Group, fossil fuels, fracking earthquakes, fracking groundwater, fracking regulations, hydraulic fracturing, lobbiests oil and gas, peter shumlin, vermont fracking, vermont gas

A prototype for a solar and wind power station that fits within a shipping container has placed a group of students from Princeton University among the winners of a national EPA-sponsored sustainable design competition. The Princeton students’ entry in the P3 Student Design Competition is a “rapidly deployable renewable energy system” for areas hit by disasters such as the earthquake that devastated Haiti in 2010 and left large areas without infrastructure.

Read the rest of Power in a Box: Princeton’s Disaster Relief Solar and Wind Generator Fits in a Shipping Container

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Post tags: "wind power", disaster recovery, Disaster Relief, disaster zone, emergency infrastructure, environmental protection agency, haiti earthquake, p3 compeition, people prosperity and planet, Power in a box, Princeton university, shipping container, Solar Power, student competition, sustainable deisgn

There’s been a great deal of buzz lately about palm oil — the edible oil largely sourced in Indonesia and Malaysia from the fruit of the oil palm, which can also be used to make biofuels. The Environmental Protection Agency recently refused to designate it as a biofuel, as it does not meet the agency’s greenhouse gas requirements laid out in the 2007 Renewable Fuel Standard. Indeed, the release of carbon dioxide from the process of oil palm farming and oil extraction has placed Indonesia as the world’s third largest emitter of greenhouse gases. But the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and agencies representing Indonesian and Malaysian palm oil interests are lobbying the EPA to reverse its decision on palm oil derived biofuels. Meanwhile the Washington Post cited claims from some opponents that the palm oil biofuel ruling could be the “EPA’s most important climate-change decision of the year.”

Read the rest of EPA to Rule on Whether Greenhouse-Gas-Emitting Palm Oils Can be Used as Biofuel

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Post tags: biofuel production, biofuels environment, canopy loss, carbon emissions, deforestation, environmental protection agency, epa, green energy, indonesia deforestation, indonesian borneo, malaysia deforestation, methane emissions, national academy of sciences, palm oil, peatlands loss, renewable energy

Today the EPA finally introduced long-delayed regulations requiring natural gas companies to utilize technologies that reduce or eliminate the emission of smog-forming volatile organic compounds (VOCS) from fracking. The rule will be rolled out in two stages – the first of which goes into effect in 60 days, and will require newly fracked or refracked wells to use either flaring or green completion technologies to control their emissions. From January 1, 2015 on, all new fracking ventures will be required to use green completion methods, whereby gases which can have devastating health impacts when released are instead recaptured to be be treated and sold. The rules will also apply to new drilling for oil.

Read the rest of EPA Introduces Regulations Limiting Hydraulic Fracturing Emissions

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Post tags: air pollution, carbon emissions, clean air act, environmental protection agency, flares environment, Fracking earthquake, Fracking Environment, Fracking Smog, fracking water, gas drilling, gas flaring, green completion, hydraulic fracturing, natural gas, oil exploration, reduced emission completion, volatile organic compounds

Last week, the federal government took a big step towards cleaning up the air in our national parks when a U.S. District Court in Washington, DC approved an agreement between the EPA and conservation groups to establish new air pollution cleanup plans. Currently, air pollution caused by fires, the power industry and other man-made causes is a big problem for our treasured parks as it produces haze that affects visibility and air quality. If you’ve ever been to one of our national parks and were disappointed that you weren’t able to see some of the natural wonders because of air pollution, the EPA’s new course of action could change all of that.

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Post tags: air pollution, Air quality, Big Bend National Park, environmental protection agency, epa, Guadalupe Mountains National Park, haze, national parks, power plants, texas

A Carbon Trust survey of 2,800 18-25 year-olds in six countries has yielded some pretty startling results: 88% of respondents in China would “be more loyal to a brand if they could see it was reducing its carbon footprint,” compared to just 57% of US and 55% of UK participants. Furthermore, “83% of young people questioned in China say they would be more loyal to a brand if they could see it was reducing its carbon footprint,” and 60% of Chinese respondents said they would stop buying a product if its manufacturer refused to commit to measuring and reducing its carbon footprint.

Read the rest of Survey Finds Nearly 90% of Chinese 18-25 Year-Olds Want Greener Brands

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Post tags: cap and trade, carbon emissions, china enviroment, consumer influence, corporate social responsibility, environmental protection agency, green business, sustainable business, the carbon trust, tom delay

One of the largest and most controversial coal mines in American history appears to be moving forward, at least for now. Last year, the Environmental Protection Agency vetoed the massive Spruce No. 1 mine’s permit, because it would cause irreparable damage to the surrounding ecosystem. But last week a federal judge overturned that ruling, arguing that government had overstepped its bounds, effectively green-lighting the mine. We wish this were an April Fools joke, but it appears to be true.

Read the rest of Biggest Mountaintop Removal Project in West Virginia History Moving Forward

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Post tags: Arch Coal of St. Louis, coal, coal mine, environmental protection agency, epa, fossil fuels, mountaintop removal, Spruce No. 1 Mine, strip mining, west virginia

On Tuesday a federal appeals court in Texas ruled against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and scolded the agency for rejecting state pollution controls. Federal regulators had claimed that the Texas codes fell short of meeting requirements of the Clean Air Act, but in a 32-page written opinion, Judge Jennifer Elrod of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and a George W. Bush appointee chastised the EPA for taking four years to review the Texas permits. Because federal regulators took longer than the statutory deadline of 18 months, the court ruled that the EPA must review the permits again.

Read the rest of Texas Wins Another Round in Legal Battle With EPA

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Post tags: 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, air pollution, clean air act, coal, coal-fired power plants, emissions, environmental protection agency, epa, greenhouse gasses, Jennifer Elrod, texas, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality

When hydraulic fracturing (or fracking – the technique of extracting natural gas from rocks) was thrust into the public consciousness with the release of the 2010 film Gasland, most of the conversation centered around water contamination. Since then, questions have been raised about some of the other byproducts of fracking, including earthquakes, waste disposal, and now, air emissions. A new study from the Colorado School of Public Health reveals that emissions from fracking sites contain known carcinogens and other harmful chemicals.

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Post tags: air pollution, Air quality, benzene, carcinogens, emissions, environmental protection agency, epa, fracking, gas drilling, hydraulic fracturing, hydrocarbons, hydrofracking, natural gas

Rules introduced by the Environmental Protection Agency aimed at curbing greenhouse gas emissions from power plants may not receive presidential approval until the U.S. is in a less turbulent political environment, according to the National Journal. A recent study of beltway insiders by the publication found that 40 percent of respondents believe that President Obama will wait until after the November elections to issue the rules which would, according to one insider, “send shock waves through the important Rust Belt states.” The EPA is targeting the energy industry under provisions of the Clean Air Act, stating that fossil fuel power plants and refineries are presently responsible for around 40 percent of the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions.

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Post tags: barack obama, Climate Change, environmental protection agency, epa lawsuit, fossil fuel, greenhouse gas, national journal, obama climate, power plant emissions, power plant pollution, white house climate