Water & Oceans

"High lead levels have been found in drinking water of all five Vermont schools tested so far in a new state program."

"Environmental officials say heavy metals from coal ash have seeped into groundwater at a Duke Energy complex along Florida’s Gulf Coast."

"Plastic was the furthest thing from Gregory Wetherbee’s mind when he began analyzing rainwater samples collected from the Rocky Mountains. “I guess I expected to see mostly soil and mineral particles,” said the US Geological Survey researcher. Instead, he found multicolored microscopic plastic fibers."

"Floods and landslides have killed more than 270 people in India this month, displaced one million and inundated thousands of homes across six states, authorities said on Wednesday after two weeks of heavy monsoon rains."

"New test results indicate that the extent of the lead contamination crisis in Newark, N.J., may be broader than previously thought and the state now says it needs federal help to respond, according to new court filings."

"Over and over, Michigan environmental regulators sounded alarms as they reviewed a proposed large, open-pit ore mine in the Upper Peninsula near the Menominee River, prized for walleye fishing and a major tributary to Lake Michigan. ... Then the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and then-Michigan Department of Environmental Quality approved the mine anyway."

"Environmental groups urged Georgia officials to reject plans by Georgia Power to keep coal waste in ponds at several power plants."

"The Environmental Protection Agency told staff scientists that it was no longer opposing a controversial Alaska mining project that could devastate one of the world's most valuable wild salmon fisheries just one day after President Trump met with Alaska's governor, CNN has learned."

"For more than a year, Newark officials denied the city had a widespread lead problem with its drinking water. Then, in an abrupt shift last fall, New Jersey’s largest city began giving out water filters to some residents."

"The Trump administration is proposing changes to federal regulations that could fast-track the approval of natural gas pipelines and other energy infrastructure. Environmental advocates say the move will weaken the ability of states and tribes to protect their waters."