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11-4: Five quick things for your Saturday

11-4: Five quick things for your Saturday

Winter's coming. We all have chores to do. Let's make this simple: Five quick hits to keep you up to date on our environment and health.



Gov't climate report at odds with Trump and his team

Coverage of the federal climate assessment takes Trump to task:

AP's Seth Borenstein:

As President Donald Trump touts new oil pipelines and pledges to revive the nation's struggling coal mines, federal scientists are warning that burning fossil fuels is already driving a steep increase in the United States of heat waves, droughts and floods.

Our new look and feedback

Two weeks into our new look, and we continue to refine and adjust it. Like it? Loathe it? Let us know how we can better serve you.

It's time to be loud: We deliver news that drives the discussion on environmental health and climate change.

Drop us a line at feedback@ehn.org ("Attaboys" always welcome).

Three top stories for Saturday

  1. New Jersey sets new PFOA level below Vermont standard. New Jersey last week set its safe drinking water standard for the chemical PFOA at 14 parts per trillion, 30 percent lower than Vermont's standard. (Vermont Public Radio)
  2. Louisville neighborhoods use trees to fend off heart disease. The poets were right all along: Trees are a drug, in ways marvelous and often misunderstood. We underestimate at our peril the powers of a walk in the woods. (USA Today) (thanks to Univ. of Louisville's Alex Carll for pointing us to that story)
  3. Will the bird that dodged a bullet pay the price of peace? "Armed conflict is good for preventing deforestation." (Mike Shanahan, Under the Banyan)

One must-read opinion

As ice shelves crumble and the Twitter president threatens to pull out of the Paris accord, author Jonathan Franzen reflects on the role of the writer in time of crisis (The Guardian)

One beautiful thing

Those are my kids (and dog), at 6:30 a.m. on a Saturday. Eleven inches of snow fell overnight in Bozeman, Montana.

It's ski swap weekend here, and people are lining up to nab sweet deals on winter gear.

I said we weren't moving the car until the driveway was clear.

Amazing how much energy a motivated kid has.

Today's gift in Bozeman is reminder for us all: Get outside and enjoy the weather. It's beautiful out there.

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Today's top news

Kids’ glyphosate exposure linked to liver disease and metabolic syndrome

In a first-of-its kind study, researchers found children exposed to the controversial herbicide were more likely in early adulthood to have a collection of symptoms that increase risk of heart disease, diabetes and stroke.

Op-ed: Farmworkers’ vicious cycle of precarious employment, exploitation and climate change

“We cannot be complacent with the exploitation of these vulnerable workers.”

Op-ed: Beignets, coffee and petrochemicals

Though Black History Month is coming to an end, let’s continue to amplify the voices of fenceline communities fighting toxic pollution.

From our newsroom

In 1996, the EPA was ordered to test pesticides for impacts on people’s hormones. They still don’t.

New lawsuit aims to make the agency do what Congress ordered more than 25 years ago.

REI to ban PFAS in outdoor clothing and cookware

The major outdoor retailer will ban the toxics from its suppliers starting in fall 2024.

Citing birds and bees, groups petition EPA to close pesticide loophole

“The failure to regulate treated seeds creates a gigantic regulatory blind-spot — allowing one of the largest and most widespread uses of pesticides to go almost completely untracked and unregulated."

Op-ed: The FDA needs to start protecting us from obesity-promoting food chemicals

New report finds the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is not testing food, additives or packaging for chemicals that cause obesity or disrupt our metabolism.

LISTEN: JoRee LaFrance on water research and advocacy for the Crow Tribe

“I have a responsibility as an Apsáalooke woman to care for our lands.”