"People living in nearly 600 neighborhoods across the country are breathing concentrations of toxic air pollutants that put them at a much greater risk of contracting cancer, according to new data from the Environmental Protection Agency."
On a global average, the amount of mercury falling out of the sky has tripled since the Industrial Revolution, primarily because of the burning of fossil fuels. Although this atmospheric deposition has long been considered the key vector for the widespread contamination of freshwater and coastal ecosystems, some scientists are focusing on another potential source: subterranean flows of terrestrial groundwater.
"A group of chemicals called hydrofluorocarbons, long hailed as a substitute for gases that can destroy the ozone layer, are now seen as a growing greenhouse threat given their outsize ability to warm the atmosphere."
"As their attorneys shuffle between four similar lawsuits that allege the Walt Disney Co. has for decades contaminated groundwater with cancer-causing chromium 6 and other toxic chemicals, stories of ill health from the plaintiffs are beginning to emerge."
A National Research Council report says it may be impossible to know whether contaminated drinking water at the Camp Lejeune Marine base caused birth defects and illness among people seeking $33.9 billion in claims.