Waste

"When Leslie Stewart moved to her home in a rural expanse of Lincoln County outside of Oklahoma City more than 20 years ago, she thought she’d found a slice of heaven. ... But several years ago, her neighbor began applying sewage sludge, which consists largely of human waste left over from municipal wastewater treatment facilities, as a fertilizer on his farmland, causing a rancid smell so powerful it nearly took her breath away."

"After decades of lax oversight, new efforts are underway to protect communities from toxic emissions without putting the industry out of business."

"The proposed expansion of a Quebec landfill that accepts hazardous waste from the United States has ignited a turf war between the Quebec provincial government and local leaders, who say they oppose putting US trash into a local peat bog."

"Ingesting plastic is leaving seabird chicks with brain damage “akin to Alzheimer’s disease”, according to a new study – adding to growing evidence of the devastating impact of plastic pollution on marine wildlife."

"Lee Zeldin, the E.P.A. administrator, said the agency’s mission was to make it cheaper to buy cars, heat homes and run businesses."

"The case could establish the nation’s first independent repository for spent nuclear fuel in West Texas, despite the objections of state leaders."

"The United Nations Environment Programme on Monday said a new round of negotiations toward a global plastics treaty will take place from August 5 to 14 in Geneva, Switzerland, after countries failed to agree on the parameters of a final agreement last December in Busan, South Korea."