EPA Labels Carbon Dioxide Threat to Public Health

Yesterday the Environmental Protection Agency published a proposed finding which formally declared carbon dioxide and five other heat-trapping gases to be pollutants that endanger the public health and welfare under the Clear Air Act. The other five heat trapping gases included in the proposed finding are hydrofluorocarbons, methane, nitrous oxide, perfuorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride. Read more

New Research on Pesticides

This summer pesticide manufacturers must begin testing 67 chemicals to see if they are endocrine disruptors, now says the Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA’s Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program will test these chemicals to see if they affect human’s androgen, estrogen, and/or thyroid systems. The long-term plan is for all chemicals in pesticides to be tested.

An article in The Washington Post states:

Linda Phillips, who manages the Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program, said that it will take about two years to obtain data from the two-tier program, and that it then could take the agency another year to make a final determination about the chemicals’ effect on hormone disruption.

I’ve written about endocrine disruptors in plastic and fire retardent chemicals and phthalates. Given our personal history of infertility and the young age of our children, this is an issue about which Rich and I have been concerned. I’m so pleased to see more study being given to the chemicals that surround us. People need to know what effect the ingredients of products they use can have in order to make informed decisions about what to allow around themselves, their families, and their environment.

If you want to learn more about endocrine disruptors, the National Resources Defense Council has an endocrine disruptor info page and the World Health Organization’s International Programme on Chemical Safety has published the comprehensive Global Assessment of the State-of-the-Science of Endocrine Disruptors.