Weekend Reader for Sunday, Nov. 26

Weekend Reader for Sunday, Nov. 26

Last week, the Commander-in-Chief met the national symbol, a recovering endangered species.

News and opinion from Thanksgiving week.


President Trump performed the pre-Thanksgiving ritual of pardoning two Thanksgiving turkeys. Meanwhile, his countrymen baked or fried and ate 50 million more. And thanks for modern genetics and chemicals, the turkeys are far, far bigger than they used to be.

With Congress taking a break and much of Washington on holiday, the environmental rollbacks slowed. But nuclear weapons worries spread beyond North Korea, with concerns that modernizing nuclear weapons would lead to a renewed arms race.

Two of the most interesting stories in this edition of the Weekend Reader are about institutional omerta -- the time-honored Mafia code of silence. In one, chemical giant Chemours has gone into silence about alleged drinking water contamination from a North Carolina factory complex. In the other, Russia's gone mum over apparent radiation leaks.

So much of our national media bandwidth is flowing in two directions: Legitimate, vital stories about healthcare, tax reform, sexual abuse, guns, collusion and North Korea. And childish stories about petty Twitter feuds between Donald Trump and sports figures or Gold Star families. That leaves little space on newscasts, websites, and front pages for the irreversible damage being done to environment and climate policy by Trump Administration rollbacks. Non-profit journalism is helping to level the playing field by speaking truth to power. Please remember Environmental Health News on Giving Tuesday, November 28. Thanks! -- Peter Dykstra

Top weekend news

Chemical company's response to water worries -- silence (Associated Press)

Spun off from DuPont Corp. two years ago, chemical giant Chemours goes into radio silence amid fears of drinking water contamination in North Carolina.

A radiation cloud, and a mystery, from Russia (New York Times)

When a container of radioactive waste exploded at the Mayak factory 60 years ago, in one of the worst accidents of the nuclear age, the episode was so shrouded in secrecy that even residents of nearby towns had little clue of the danger.

Monsanto says Mexico revokes permit to sell GMO soy in seven states (Reuters)

Monsanto Co said on Thursday that Mexico's agriculture sanitation authority SENASICA had revoked its permit to commercialize genetically modified soy in seven states, criticizing the decision as unjustified.

Susan Sarandon: "I thought Hillary was very dangerous. If she'd won, we'd be at war." (Guardian Q&A)

One gets the feeling that the Harvey Weinstein business simply isn't very interesting to Sarandon, that there are other causes – the Keystone pipeline, fracking, oil and gas money in politics – that she considers more urgent

Opinions and Editorials

Breathless in Delhi: A taste of environmental Armageddon (Brigid Delaney, Guardian)

It was 2am on Sunday in Delhi and a friend and I were traveling in a rickshaw, heading home from a party. It was a hellscape.

Wanted: Aggressive Lake Michigan protection (Chicago Tribune editorial)

Environmental activists and particularly Chicago's surfing community welcomed news this week that the city of Chicago is initiating legal action against a Lake Michigan polluter based in Indiana.

Should Virginia join the carbon trading club? (Richmond Times-Dispatch editorial)

Virginia has made some modest steps toward reducing total carbon emissions, but it could be doing more — and should. The question is how.

Keystone must deliver on its promises (Bismarck, ND Tribune)

The timing couldn't have been worse. Four days before Nebraska regulators were to vote on a route through the state for the Keystone XL oil pipeline the company reported an oil spill in South Dakota.

Is Trump changing on climate and the environment? (Springfield, MA Republican)

Massachusetts newspaper editorial offers hope -- or maybe wishful thinking.

President Donald Trump has been the worst nightmare of environmental advocates, but there are signs he is modifying his stance.

Living On Earth: Beyond the Headlines

This week in Beyond the Headlines, Peter Dykstra and host Steve Curwood discuss the rapid rise in people registering for federal disaster aid after this year's record-breaking hurricanes, wild fires and floods. Then they note how the Pope regards climate denial, and remember an infamous environmental computer hack.

This Week in Trump

With Congress out and Trump flying out to Mar-a-Lago, the focus has been on nasty-tweeting basketball parents and football stars. But there was still some rollback action in Washington.

Donald Trump's science office is a ghost town (CBS News)

Science and environment get the silent treatment in Trump Administration staffing.

Trump's EPA canceled funding for the Chesapeake Bay Journal (Buzzfeed)

After a political appointee took charge of EPA grants, the agency cut short a six-year, $1.95 million grant to a Pennsylvania newspaper covering the Chesapeake Bay. Now a fight is brewing.

Elephant advocate sue Trump Administration on trophy hunting (Reuters)

Conservation groups sued the U.S. government on Monday over a plan to allow hunters to bring home elephant and lion trophies from Zimbabwe, following changing statements about the possible move by President Donald Trump's administration.




Agents of Change launches the Fellows in Residence program

Agents of Change launches the Fellows in Residence program

Meet the senior fellows that will hone their communication and public engagement skills.

The Agents of Change program, a partnership between EHN and Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, is excited to announce the Agents of Change Fellows in Residence Program.

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Solar panels positioned in field during daytime.

US tariffs risk derailing renewable energy while boosting global economic uncertainty

U.S. trade policy is fueling instability across the energy sector, with tariffs threatening to stall clean energy projects and drive up costs across oil, gas, and renewables alike.

Dan Gearino reports for Inside Climate News.

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low-angle photo of train rail.

US Supreme Court clears way for Utah oil railway, limiting scope of environmental review

The U.S. Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that federal agencies don’t need to evaluate the broader environmental effects of Utah’s proposed oil railway, reversing a lower court decision that had blocked the project.

Kyle Dunphey reports for Utah News Dispatch.

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an oil pump in the middle of a field on a rainy, misty day.

Youth climate lawsuit challenges Trump orders boosting fossil fuel production

A group of 22 young Americans is suing the Trump administration, claiming its fossil fuel expansion policies violate their constitutional rights to life and liberty.

Dharna Noor reports for The Guardian.

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The sun setting over an urban landscape.

Daughter sues oil companies over mother’s death in 2021 heat wave

A Washington woman has filed the first wrongful death lawsuit blaming fossil fuel companies for a loved one’s death during a climate-driven heat event.

David Gelles reports for The New York Times.

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A desert landscape with saguaros, mountains and dark clouds in the background.

Court revives Native American legal challenge to billion-dollar energy corridor across sacred Arizona land

A federal appeals court has reinstated a tribal lawsuit against the Interior Department over a massive transmission line project, saying the agency may have failed its legal duty to protect culturally significant sites in Arizona’s San Pedro Valley.

Susan Montoya Bryan reports for The Associated Press.

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Rows of crops stretching into the distance.

European crops fueled by fracked U.S. gas despite clean fertilizer claims

Despite pledges of sustainable production, European chemical giants Yara and BASF are using fracked shale gas from Texas to make ammonia-based fertilizer, a new investigation reveals.

Agathe Bounfour and Clare Carlile report for The Guardian.

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From our Newsroom
Multiple Houston-area oil and gas facilities that have violated pollution laws are seeking permit renewals

Multiple Houston-area oil and gas facilities that have violated pollution laws are seeking permit renewals

One facility has emitted cancer-causing chemicals into waterways at levels up to 520% higher than legal limits.

Regulators are underestimating health impacts from air pollution: Study

Regulators are underestimating health impacts from air pollution: Study

"The reality is, we are not exposed to one chemical at a time.”

Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro speaks with the state flag and American flag behind him.

Two years into his term, has Gov. Shapiro kept his promises to regulate Pennsylvania’s fracking industry?

A new report assesses the administration’s progress and makes new recommendations

silhouette of people holding hands by a lake at sunset

An open letter from EPA staff to the American public

“We cannot stand by and allow this to happen. We need to hold this administration accountable.”

wildfire retardants being sprayed by plane

New evidence links heavy metal pollution with wildfire retardants

“The chemical black box” that blankets wildfire-impacted areas is increasingly under scrutiny.

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