Free Republic

It’s called the Clean Air Act, but it was never intended to ensure pure, pristine air. Congress wanted America to have safe, healthy air, and regulations based on solid scientific and medical studies.The law says costs cannot be considered where human health and safety are actually at stake. But legislators also understood that efforts to bring emissions to zero are unnecessary, technologically impossible, extremely expensive, harmful to electricity generation, factory output, job creation and retention, and living standards – and thus likely to reduce human health, wellbeing and longevity.The Obama Environmental Protection Agency ignored these facts and employed highly dubious...

As Smog Hits China, Chinese Tourists Seek Fresh Air On Pollution Free Holidays Wolfgang Georg Arlt Jan 5, 2017 The year 2017 started for China with the first ever nationwide red level fog alarm. On January 4th, the country disappeared under a thick blanket of fog with visibility reduced to below 50 meters (164 feet), grounding air transport and rendering travel by car almost impossible. Red and orange smog alarms were raised in cities from Harbin to Guangzhou and from Chengdu to Hangzhou, halting half of all private transport and forcing many polluting factories and construction sites to shut down...

DENVER (CBS4)– Federal authorities told the Colorado Department of Transportation and opponents of the planned Interstate 70 expansion this week that it would open an investigation into claims the project violates the Civil Rights Act.The pending investigation comes in response to a federal complaint filed with the U.S Department of Transportation by Earthjustice, an environmental law firm, and neighborhood groups impacted by the project, including the Cross Community Coalition, Colorado Latino Forum and Elyria-Swansea Neighborhood Association. Filed last month, the complaint alleges CDOT’s plan will result in “disparate and severe environmental and economic impacts” on the predominantly Latino communities.Candi CdeBaca,...

The streets of San Francisco are used to weird smells. However, on Wednesday morning, a mysterious rotten-egg and sulfur-like odor that baffled city and federal agencies and prompted dozens of phone calls of complaint. [Snip] The calls initially came from the downtown area and then moved toward the Marina, Sunset and Richmond neighborhoods. SFist said complaints also poured in from Bayview, the Tenderloin, Nob Hill, the Marina, SoMa and the Mission. Officials with SF Environment, San Francisco Public Works and the city’s Department of Emergency Management, as well as Recology, were reportedly notified, KQED reports.

After seeing all the damage from the recent hurricane, it’s time for South Carolina to abandon projects such as Interstate 73. There’s been a lot of fallen trees and a lot of flooding. What makes the state believe that flooding of urban areas is not being caused by the filling of wetlands, the heightening of new roads, and putting more concrete pilings in drainage basin areas? Before building any more roads, an environmental impact study should include what hindrances there will be to water drainage after all those waterways are filled with dirt, concrete piers and steel rebar. Water from...

2016 will go down in history as the year when the world finally saw sense. Nowhere will this be more apparent than in America’s bold and brilliant decision to elect Donald Trump who, in my view, is set fair to be one of the truly great U.S. presidents. I realise that this isn’t obvious to some people—even those who claim to be on the conservative side of the political argument. But after a recent trip to D.C. for some private briefings, both with his transition teams and with key members of the Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy, I came away more confident...

Wildlife officials in Peru are investigating the mass death of thousands of rare frogs near the Bolivian border. Locals estimate that the bodies of some 10,000 Titicaca water frogs have been found in Lake Titicaca and its adjoining rivers. The critically endangered amphibian, known as the ‘scrotum frog’ due to its unfortunate appearance, is believed to have been killed by polluted waters. Thousands of the large, wrinkly green frogs have been found floating on the surface of the Coata river in southern Peru in recent days, prompting the National Forestry and Wildlife Service (Serfor) to launch an investigation.

“Toxic chromium” fear-mongering Detecting Cr-6 droplets in Olympic-sized swimming pool doesn’t equal health or cancer risks Paul Driessen Erin Brockovich became rich and famous by promoting the notion that people in Hinkley, CA got cancer because of hexavalent chromium (Chromium-6) in drinking water. Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) settled a 1993 lawsuit for $333 million, rather than risk trial by a jury frightened by a steady drumbeat of horror stories from lawyers, activists, celebrities, “journalists” and hired “experts.” The lawyers got $134 million in fees, and Ms. Brockovich pocketed a cool $2-million bonus – plus movie royalties and other cash....

Pollution, pesticides and fast food is killing our children, with new government statistics revealing that the number of youngsters diagnosed with cancer has risen by 40% over the past 16 years. Analysis compiled by researchers from the charity Children with Cancer UK found new cases of cancer in young people rose by 1,300 every year since statistics were last compiled in 1998. The charity found this is most evident in colon cancer, which has increased by 200%, and thyroid cancer, which has seen its cases doubled during the 18 years since the last report was released. […] Alasdair Philips, science...

President Obama’s Environmental Protection Agency is going after Harley-Davidson for allegedly selling motorcycles that emit more air pollution than the almighty federal government allows, and is punishing them by making them pay for people’s stoves. The federal tree-hugging watchdog complained that the motorcycle company “manufactured and sold approximately 340,000 illegal devices, known as ‘super tuners,’ that, once installed, caused motorcycles to emit higher amounts of certain air pollutants than what the company certified to EPA.” “Since January 2008, Harley-Davidson has manufactured and sold two types of tuners, which when hooked up to Harley-Davidson motorcycles, allow users to modify certain aspects...

Olympic athletes competing in the waters off Rio’s shore dodge human feces, the invisible rotavirus, and dead bodies in pursuit of gold. This game ranks not as an official Olympic sport but as a necessity for athletes competing on the open waters during the August event in Rio.

Like a crazed serial killer, the liberal green groups are celebrating their “victory” of putting America’s major coal producers out of business — to say nothing of the tens of thousands of miners placed in unemployment lines. Several thousand more mining jobs were lost last month. Now to get their next homicidal high, the leftists have turned their ambitions on the oil and natural gas industries. Here is how the Sierra Club spokeswoman, Lena Moffit, explains the grand, green vision: “We have moved to a very clear and firm and vehement position of opposing gas. We oppose any new gas-fired...

The luminous glow of light pollution prevents nearly 80 percent of people in North America from seeing the Milky Way in the night sky. That's according to a new atlas of artificial night sky brightness that found our home galaxy is now hidden from more than one-third of humanity.

New Mexico today sued the Environmental Protection Agency and the owners of the Gold King Mine for more than $136 million over economic setbacks and environmental damages suffered by the state due to the Aug. 5 dumping of more than 3 million gallons of toxic waste into the Animas River. The suit was filed on behalf of the state by Attorney General Hector Balderas and the New Mexico Environment Department. It demands reimbursement of $889,327 for short-term emergency-response costs paid by the state, more than $6 million to pay for long-term monitoring of the Animas and $130 million for lost...

upreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts rejected a plea Thursday to block a contentious air pollution rule for power plants in a big victory for the Obama administration. Roberts’s order came despite his court’s 5-4 decision last year ruling that the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) regulation, known as the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards, is illegal. Michigan led a group of 20 states last month — empowered by the Supreme Court’s recent unprecedented decision to halt the EPA’s carbon dioxide rule for power plants — in asking the court to live up to its ruling last year and block the...

By Timothy Cama - 03/03/16 10:35 AM EST Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts rejected a plea Thursday to block a contentious air pollution rule for power plants in a big victory for the Obama administration

Rio Has Given Up On Its Goal To Clean Up The Water In Time For The Olympics When bidding to host the 2016 Summer Olympics, Rio de Jaineiro promised the International Olympics Committee that it would eliminate 80 percent of the sewage found in the city's notoriously filthy water, and would fully regenerate the lagoon in which rowing and kayaking events will be held. Now a few months from the start of the games, Rio has given up on keeping those promises. Outside The Lines' Bonnie Ford has a thorough examination of the current state of Rio's water pollution, and...

Pollution cancels more than 220 Beijing flights: Xinhua CNBC.com staff | @CNBC 22 Hours Ago More than 220 flights at Beijing's Capital International Airport were canceled Friday as pollution caused poor visibility, China's official Xinhua news agency reported. Beijing's pollution alert level was upgraded to yellow on Friday from Thursday's blue, Xinhua reported Friday, noting that the four color-coded levels, in order from most severe to least, are red, orange, yellow and blue. Beijing has issued two red alerts in December -- its only two ever. A red alert dramatically limits car use, advises schools to close, shuts down outdoor...

Purple haze: lilac sky at night highlights China's smog blight Images showing Nanjing city shrouded in a violet fug - said to be caused by a pollution spike at sunset - follow two red alerts for Beijing over toxic air A Nanjing sunset, when the purple twilight and dense smog combined to give the appearance of a purple haze. Photograph: Weibo Tom Phillips in Beijing Wednesday 23 December 2015 06.16 GMT Photographs appearing to show one of China's most famous cities shrouded in a spectacular violet mist went viral on Wednesday, as millions of citizens choked on the country's latest...

Smog cloud bigger than 40 Beijings suffocates northern China 21 December 2015 12:00 • Ryan Kilpatrick •1 min read A 660,000 square kilometer smog cloud has smothered much of northern China, engulfing the national capital as well as 70 other cities in neighbouring Hebei, Henan and Shandong provinces. Chinese media have said the expanse of air pollution is more than 40 times the size of Beijing itself, which has issued its second-ever red alert over air pollution levels. Air Quality Index readings for north China on Monday morning. Photo: HKFP. The red alert, the highest tier in a four-colour warning...