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Results from a large population-based cohort study including 60,000 men and women in central Sweden suggest that exposure to higher concentrations of disinfection byproducts in drinking water is associated with elevated risk of colorectal cancer in men. Drinking water is a very important part of our diet that is consumed daily by essentially everyone in the population. Hence, assuring a that the public drinking water maintains a high standard is crucial. Chlorination of drinking water is a cheap and effective method widely used to control waterborne infectious disease. A drawback is, however, that reactive chemical byproducts can be formed in...

In the summer of 2014, as his followers were ravaging the cities of northern Iraq, Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi convened a secret meeting with a weapons expert whose unusual skills the terrorist chief was anxious to acquire. His guest was a small man, barely above 5 feet tall, and he had only recently been freed from a years-long stint in U.S. and Iraqi prisons. But before that, Salih al-Sabawi had been an Iraqi official of some renown: a Russian-trained engineer who had once helped President Saddam Hussein build his extensive arsenal of chemical weapons. Baghdadi had summoned Sabawi,...

Crane drops tank with poisonous gas in Jordan's Aqaba port; at least 10 dead, 251 injured

It's a simple rule-of-thumb to follow when you have a rat problem, according to Corrigan, who has a Ph.D. in urban rats studies and advises cities, including the District. “The rats do not like to chew into bleach tasting anything,” he says. “If the outside of the can smells like bleach to that famous nose of theirs, they're like, 'Well, this ain't food.’”

The worst chlorine shortage the country has ever seen is set to rock this summer’s pool season. “It’s been a concern for us,” said Cody Saliture, owner of Texas Pool Professionals, which has been in business for 17 years. The Rockwall, Texas-based company services 200 clients weekly, and Saliture said he recently began to stockpile chlorine tablets. He’s also been looking for different chemicals to keep pools sanitized and his customers happy. “We’re looking for anything that we can get that we don’t have here in North Texas,” Saliture said. “We’ve been to about six states and 15 cities [for...

A shortage of chlorine could have a significant impact on public and private pools this summer. The shortage comes amid a surge in demand for chlorine tablets as homeowners and municipalities begin to prepare their pools for the warm summer months. “It’s probably going to be in short supply this summer,” Pat Allman, general manager of Tampa-based Odyssey Manufacturing, told the Miami Herald. “You’re going to go to your local pool store, and they’re going to be out for a day or two. It’s not going to be all gloom and doom. You just might not shock or clean or...

Four young violent leftists were sentenced last week on charges they created a road hazard as a stationary target. Then the young leftists hurled a chlorine bomb at the police officer when he stop to clear the road.

I live in Arkansas and have been waiting to hear if our community, public swimming pools and aquatic centers will open this year. Well the other day the state released rules for opening the pools on the latter part of this month. Among the rules, only 50% of capacity allowed, families can sit together, social distancing for all others, this next point is confusing, it seems they want social distancing in the pool. In addition all surfaces must be wiped today on a regular basis, bathrooms, snack bar, and all railings, etc. My opinion is that you are out in...

Cleaning products and hand sanitizers will not be fully stocked at stores and online retailers for several more months supply chain experts have said. As coronavirus became more widespread in the United States and social distancing measures got stricter brand name household cleaning products like Lysol and Clorox quickly sold out across the country and germ-killers such as Purell became reserved for frontline businesses. America's popular brands have not been able to keep up with the demand of panic buyers as most of the raw materials are obtained from China and stocks likely won't return to pre-pandemic levels until July...

Research reveals that plate tectonics started on Earth 600 million years before what was believed earlier... Where it was previously thought that plate tectonics started about 2.7 billion years ago, a team of international scientists used the microscopic leftovers of a drop of water that was transported into the Earth's deep mantle - through plate tectonics - to show that this process started 600 million years before that. An article on their research that proves plate tectonics started on Earth 3.3 billion years ago was published in the high impact academic journal, Nature, on 16 July... For their research, the...

I took a boat through 96 million black plastic balls on the Los Angeles reservoir to find out why they're there. The first time I heard about shade balls the claim was they reduce evaporation. But it turns out this isn't the reason they were introduced. Huge thanks to LADWP for arranging this special tour for me. Next time let's put the GoPro on the submersible! The balls are made of high density polyethylene (HDPE) which is less dense than water so they float on the surface of the reservoir even if they break apart. They are 10cm (4 inches)...

Fears over chlorine-washed chicken and hormone-fed beef are "myths", according to the US ambassador to the UK. In the Daily Telegraph, Woody Johnson urged the UK to embrace US farming methods after Washington published its objectives for a UK-US trade deal. EU rules currently limit US exports of certain food products, including chicken and beef - but Mr Johnson wants that to change in the UK after Brexit. Downing Street has repeatedly denied it will accept lower food standards. A No 10 spokeswoman said: "We have always been very clear that we will not lower our food standards as part...

A rebel attack on Aleppo has left dozens suffering of breathing problems and blurred vision, with a smell of gas reported over the city, according to Syrian media. Officials said all of the victims were civilians. At least 50 people have been treated for symptoms including breathing difficulties and blurred vision in Aleppo, after rebels fired shells into two regions of the city. Syrian officials and residents suspect the shells contained poisonous gas, with symptoms suggesting chlorine, according to medical official Haj Taha. A doctor told Syrian state TV on Saturday that at least two people, including one child, were in critical...

This document contains an update on the work of the OPCW Fact-Finding Mission in Syria (FFM) regarding the alleged use of toxic chemicals as a weapon in Douma, the Syrian Arab Republic, on 7 April 2018. The work of the FFM was conducted in accordance with preambular paragraph 8 and operative paragraphs 5 and 6 of decision EC-M-48/DEC.1 (dated 4 February 2015) and other relevant decisions of the OPCW Executive Council (hereinafter “the Council”), as well as under the Director-General’s authority to seek to uphold at all times the object and purpose of the Chemical Weapons Convention, as reinforced by...

"The US state department said it is monitoring the "very disturbing" reports, and that Russia - which is fighting alongside the Syrian government - should be held responsible if deadly chemicals had been used."

Full Headline: GAS PANIC Packed tourist hotspot Beachy Head evacuated and 238 people ‘decontaminated’ in hospital with HUNDREDS more suffering burning eyes and breathing difficulties after mystery ‘chemical mist’ blows in from sea A Sussex Police spokesperson said: "Patients were dealt with as a precaution with a full decontamination treatment, but it became clear that this was not necessary. "Anyone suffering the effects are advised by Public Health England to irrigate their eyes if they are irritated and to wash all over with plenty of soap and water, which will be sufficient to decontaminate their bodies. "If you were affected...

Sean Keeley of The American Interest noticed a curious statement from National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster when he briefed reporters on the Syrian strike. And the one thing that I will tell you though, there was an effort to minimize – to minimize risk to third-country nationals at that airport – I think you read Russians from that – but that – and we took great pains to try to avoid that. […] And then there were also measures put in place to avoid hitting what we believe is a storage of sarin gas, so that that would not be ignited...

US Ambassador Robert Ford resigned from his State Department post a month ago, after a long and difficult time as the envoy to Syria. Ford showed great personal courage in his service while Bashar al-Assad instigated attacks on Western embassies and eventually provoked a massive civil war which has turned into a regional threat, thanks to the collapse of his power in large regions of Syria. The collapse of American policy in Syria over the past year was presumed to have prompted Ford’s departure, which he confirms with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour in an interview today.This is interesting for more...

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I need to power down for a bit this weekend, so I leave you with this to discuss amongst yourselves: From the Washington Free Beacon – some reporter had the audacity to press BHO on his waffling on the red line in Syria. So Big Guy schooled him on the fact that chlorine is just a toilet bowl cleanser: During a press conference at Camp David, President Obama said that chlorine isn’t ‘historically’ a chemical weapon.“We have seen reports about the use of chlorine in bombs that had the effect of chemical weapons. Chlorine, chlorine, itself, historically has not been...