POPs in the news

10/12/2019 -

They’re a family of chemicals famous enough to have a Hollywood movie made about them. They are also known to cause cancer, thyroid problems and other serious health issues. And worryingly for environmental justice advocates and disadvantaged communities, growing data highlighting the per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) problem nationally and in California suggest that the impact may be hardest felt by those on the lower rungs of the economic ladder. More:

Research on PFAS

Topic of Cancer: How PFAS Threaten Our Water

They’re a family of chemicals famous enough to have a Hollywood movie made about them. They are also known to cause cancer, thyroid problems and other serious health issues. And worryingly for environmental justice advocates and disadvantaged communities, growing data highlighting the per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) problem nationally and in California suggest that the impact may be hardest felt by those on the lower rungs of the economic ladder. More:

Research on PFAS
04/12/2019 -

With heightened awareness around the country about the health effects of PFAS, calculations for what artificial turf installations actually cost over their full life-time may send a shock through the artificial turf industry. Intrepid reporting revealed that the so-called 'forever chemicals'—PFAS (perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances)—are used in the production of artificial turf. More:


Hidden gotcha in artificial turf installations - PFAS

With heightened awareness around the country about the health effects of PFAS, calculations for what artificial turf installations actually cost over their full life-time may send a shock through the artificial turf industry. Intrepid reporting revealed that the so-called 'forever chemicals'—PFAS (perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances)—are used in the production of artificial turf. More:

03/12/2019 -

The harbour porpoise calves in waters around the UK carry a more neurotoxic cocktail of pollutants than their mothers, a study suggests. New research shows that the 209 variants of Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) have varied levels of persistence in marine mammals. More:


UK porpoise calves exposed to chemical pollutants in mothers’ milk

The harbour porpoise calves in waters around the UK carry a more neurotoxic cocktail of pollutants than their mothers, a study suggests. New research shows that the 209 variants of Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) have varied levels of persistence in marine mammals. More:

26/11/2019 -

PFAS stands for per or polyfluoroalkyl substances, a group of hundreds of manmade chemicals that are used for a variety of industrial and commercial uses ranging from the firefighting foam used at airstrips and on military bases to waterproof or nonstick products, such as stain repellent, cleaning products or food packaging. More:


What you need to know about PFAS or 'forever' chemicals

PFAS stands for per or polyfluoroalkyl substances, a group of hundreds of manmade chemicals that are used for a variety of industrial and commercial uses ranging from the firefighting foam used at airstrips and on military bases to waterproof or nonstick products, such as stain repellent, cleaning products or food packaging. More:

22/11/2019 -

Exported Australian plastic waste may be "poisoning" villages in Indonesia, according to a new report which found eggs near dumping grounds had some of the highest levels of dioxins recorded in Asia. More:


Australian plastic among waste 'contaminating' Indonesian food chains, report finds

Exported Australian plastic waste may be "poisoning" villages in Indonesia, according to a new report which found eggs near dumping grounds had some of the highest levels of dioxins recorded in Asia. More:

18/11/2019 -

In 1973, an accident at a chemical plant in the small town of St. Louis in the middle of Michigan’s mitten triggered one of the largest mass poisonings in American history.. Before the crisis was over, nearly the entire state population – about 9 million residents – ate food contaminated with a toxic fire retardant called PBB that workers erroneously mixed into cattle feed. More:


"Here we are again:" Decades after PBB crisis, echoes seen in current PFAS crisis

In 1973, an accident at a chemical plant in the small town of St. Louis in the middle of Michigan’s mitten triggered one of the largest mass poisonings in American history. Before the crisis was over, nearly the entire state population – about 9 million residents – ate food contaminated with a toxic fire retardant called PBB that workers erroneously mixed into cattle feed. More:

15/11/2019 -

A new study that sampled chicken eggs around sites in the country where plastic waste accumulates identified alarming levels of dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls long recognised as extremely injurious to human health. More:


Indonesia's food chain turns toxic as plastic waste exports flood in

A new study that sampled chicken eggs around sites in the country where plastic waste accumulates identified alarming levels of dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls long recognised as extremely injurious to human health. More:

13/11/2019 -

Waste-to-energy (WtE) incineration has been raised as a solution. While turning plastic waste into energy may sound good, it creates more pollution and delays a necessary transition to a circular economy. More:


Why municipal waste-to-energy incineration is not the answer to NZ’s plastic waste crisis

Waste-to-energy (WtE) incineration has been raised as a solution. While turning plastic waste into energy may sound good, it creates more pollution and delays a necessary transition to a circular economy. More:

10/11/2019 -

Searching for survivors in the wreckage of last year’s deadly Camp fire, the Marin county battalion chief, Jeremy Pierce, had to hear and feel his way through the debris. Black, murky smoke had disappeared entire streets in and near the small California town of Paradise. More:


'Nobody gets out without damage': what fighting fire does to the body

Searching for survivors in the wreckage of last year’s deadly Camp fire, the Marin county battalion chief, Jeremy Pierce, had to hear and feel his way through the debris. Black, murky smoke had disappeared entire streets in and near the small California town of Paradise. More:

08/11/2019 -

Herring is one of the most common species of fish in the Baltic Sea, but sales of it for human food are restricted by the EU. Lower concentrations of dioxins and PCB compounds could remove restrictions on selling and exporting this abundant fish species. Now most of the catch goes to feed fur animals and farmed fish, with dioxins removed during the process of making fishmeal. More:


Toxin levels in Baltic herring drop significantly, spurring export hopes

Herring is one of the most common species of fish in the Baltic Sea, but sales of it for human food are restricted by the EU. Lower concentrations of dioxins and PCB compounds could remove restrictions on selling and exporting this abundant fish species. Now most of the catch goes to feed fur animals and farmed fish, with dioxins removed during the process of making fishmeal. More:

08/11/2019 -

The chemicals called “PFAS” have been in the news a lot lately — like the recent revelation that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was allowing PFAS-contaminated water to be treated in Lowell and discharged into the Merrimack River, or the news that chemical giant 3M is suing the state of New Hampshire over the state’s strict PFAS drinking water standards. More:

Human Exposure and Health Effects Monitoring data Regulation Alternatives

What Are PFAS Chemicals, And Should I Be Freaking Out About Them?

The chemicals called “PFAS” have been in the news a lot lately — like the recent revelation that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was allowing PFAS-contaminated water to be treated in Lowell and discharged into the Merrimack River, or the news that chemical giant 3M is suing the state of New Hampshire over the state’s strict PFAS drinking water standards. More:

Human Exposure and Health Effects Monitoring data Regulation Alternatives
25/10/2019 -

A pesticide linked to cancer - chlordecone - was sprayed on banana crops on the islands for two decades and now nearly all the adult local residents have traces of it in their blood. More:


Pesticide poisoned French paradise islands in Caribbean

A pesticide linked to cancer - chlordecone - was sprayed on banana crops on the islands for two decades and now nearly all the adult local residents have traces of it in their blood. More:

24/10/2019 -

The widespread environmental contaminants known as PFAS cause multiple health problems in people, according to Linda Birnbaum, who retired as director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the National Toxicology Program earlier this month. More:


Top Toxicologist Banned From Saying PFAS Causes Disease in Humans. She's saying it now

The widespread environmental contaminants known as PFAS cause multiple health problems in people, according to Linda Birnbaum, who retired as director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the National Toxicology Program earlier this month. More:

23/10/2019 -

Disease ecologist Andrew MacDonald and his Stanford University colleague Erin Mordecai analyzed more than a decade of data showing the occurrences of malaria in nearly 800 villages, towns and cities across the Brazilian Amazon. They also looked at satellite-tracked deforestation over that same time frame. More:


Malaria surges in deforested parts of the Amazon, study finds

Disease ecologist Andrew MacDonald and his Stanford University colleague Erin Mordecai analyzed more than a decade of data showing the occurrences of malaria in nearly 800 villages, towns and cities across the Brazilian Amazon. They also looked at satellite-tracked deforestation over that same time frame. More:

22/10/2019 -

Flame retardants are everywhere from your TV to your couch to your car. In the U.S., we’ve largely switched out an old class of retardants with another class that may be much more toxic and widespread than what they were created to replace. More:


New Study Shows 'Everybody on the Planet' Is Exposed to Toxic Flame Retardants

Flame retardants are everywhere from your TV to your couch to your car. In the U.S., we’ve largely switched out an old class of retardants with another class that may be much more toxic and widespread than what they were created to replace. More:

16/10/2019 -

At first, teachers at Sky Valley Education Center simply evacuated students and used fans to clear the air when the fluorescent lights caught fire or smoked with noxious fumes. When black oil dripped onto desks and floors, they caught leaks with a bucket and duct-taped oil-stained carpets. Then came the tests that confirmed their suspicions about the light ballasts. More:


Toxic PCBs linger in schools; EPA, lawmakers fail to act

At first, teachers at Sky Valley Education Center simply evacuated students and used fans to clear the air when the fluorescent lights caught fire or smoked with noxious fumes. When black oil dripped onto desks and floors, they caught leaks with a bucket and duct-taped oil-stained carpets. Then came the tests that confirmed their suspicions about the light ballasts. More:

15/10/2019 -

First there was Fred Stone, the third-generation dairy farmer in Maine who discovered that the milk from his cows contained harmful chemicals. Then came Art Schaap, a second-generation dairy farmer in New Mexico, who had to dump 15,000 gallons of contaminated milk a day. More:

PFAS occurrence and exposure


America’s Dairyland May Have a PFAS Problem

First there was Fred Stone, the third-generation dairy farmer in Maine who discovered that the milk from his cows contained harmful chemicals. Then came Art Schaap, a second-generation dairy farmer in New Mexico, who had to dump 15,000 gallons of contaminated milk a day. More:

PFAS occurrence and exposure

10/10/2019 -

PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, refers to a class of chemicals used abundantly in common household items to make objects water or fire resistant. A new study published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives looked at levels of PFAS in people who ate fast food versus those who ate homecooked meals. More:

Food Packaging


Fast food increases exposure to a 'forever chemical' called PFAS

PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, refers to a class of chemicals used abundantly in common household items to make objects water or fire resistant. A new study published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives looked at levels of PFAS in people who ate fast food versus those who ate homecooked meals. More:

Food Packaging

09/10/2019 -

The study is the first to link certain foods and PFAS exposures in Americans and adds to mounting evidence that food packaging, especially grease-resistant boxes, wrappers, and bags used for burgers, pizza, and popcorn, is a major source of exposure to the toxics for people. More:


PFAS with your pizza? People who eat more takeout have higher levels of harmful chemicals in their bodies

The study is the first to link certain foods and PFAS exposures in Americans and adds to mounting evidence that food packaging, especially grease-resistant boxes, wrappers, and bags used for burgers, pizza, and popcorn, is a major source of exposure to the toxics for people. More:

08/10/2019 -

It was a Sunday tradition at Bethany Slavic Missionary Church. After morning services, Florin Ciuriuc joined the line of worshipers waiting to fill their jugs with gallons of free drinking water from a well on the property, a practice church leaders had encouraged. More:


Firefighting foam leaves toxic legacy in Californians’ drinking water

It was a Sunday tradition at Bethany Slavic Missionary Church. After morning services, Florin Ciuriuc joined the line of worshipers waiting to fill their jugs with gallons of free drinking water from a well on the property, a practice church leaders had encouraged. More:

Page 43 of 77First   Previous   38  39  40  41  42  [43]  44  45  46  47  Next   Last   

DISCLAIMERS

This publication may contain advice, opinions and statements of various information and content providers, and in particular extracts from electronic journals, newspapers and magazines or from other materials (hereinafter the “materials”), about the Stockholm Convention (SC) on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPS). Please note that the views expressed in these materials are the views of their authors and do not necessarily reflect the views nor carry the endorsement of the Secretariat of the Stockholm Convention (SSC), of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) or of the United Nations (UN). Therefore, SSC, UNEP or the UN shall not be responsible for the accuracy or reliability, or completeness of any advice, opinion, statement or other information provided by any information provider, or by any other person or entity, in the contents of these materials. Reliance upon any such advice, opinion, statement, or other information, shall also be at the User's own risk. Neither SSC/UNEP/the UN, nor their respective affiliates, agents, employees, information providers or content providers, shall be liable to any User or anyone else for any inaccuracy, error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, alteration of or use of any content herein, or for its timeliness or completeness, nor shall they be liable for any failure of performance, computer virus or communication line failure, regardless of cause, or for any damages resulting therefrom. SSC/UNEP/the UN shall not be liable for any loss or damage that may be occasioned, directly or indirectly, through the use of, or reliance on, the contents of these materials. 

The designations employed and the presentation of the materials in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of SSC, UNEP or the UN, concerning the geo-political situations or the legal status of any country, territory, or city or area or their authorities, or concerning the delimitation of their frontiers or boundaries. 

Mention of the names of companies and of commercial products does not imply their endorsement by the UN, UNEP, and by the BRS Conventions’ Secretariats.

For more information please consult the Terms of Use of the Stockholm Convention website.