The compounds can form PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals,” which have been linked to cancer and birth defects. The E.P.A. approvals came despite the agency’s own concerns about toxicity.
In “Second Nature,” Nathaniel Rich offers a tour of the ways humans have both conquered the natural world and been overwhelmed by the unintended consequences.
A chemical plant in Louisville that makes a raw material for everything from Teflon to lubricants used on the International Space Station also appears to do more damage to the climate than all of this city's passenger vehicles.
Critics say a plan to build a major NJ fuel export terminal could accelerate fracking in Pa. and worsen climate change. An interstate agency is reassessing its earlier approval of the project.
Plastics factory will not only contribute to pollution in heavily polluted Louisiana town, but will also be a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions.
