An audit found that the time it takes the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality to issue penalties to polluters has doubled. Some companies that have been known to violate air quality rules were able to keep at it for years, or even decades.
Disinfecting drinking water against pathogens is necessary, but by-products from the process are a ubiquitous — and likely growing — problem across the U.S. Solutions exist, though.
Hurricane Laura swept through the hub of the U.S. oil and gas industry, setting fire to a manufacturer of chlorine and other highly dangerous chemicals used in swimming pools.
The hurricane rolled over a coast studded with oil, gas and chemical plants. Other storms have caused the release of toxic substances, often affecting minority communities.
