By Dave Dempsey •
September 18, 2009
A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employee samples river water for endocrine disrupting pollutants.
Study results publicized this week suggest Twin Cities water resources and the Mississippi River downstream from the Cities are suffering from pollution by road salt and endocrine disrupting chemicals.
The results are from U.S. Geological Survey analysis of watersheds around the U.S. The road salt results indicate chloride levels that may imperil aquatic life in creeks and rivers in the Twin Cities. A study by the University of Minnesota released last winter found that about 70% of the salt applied to roads in the area remained in the Mississippi River and tributaries. Nearly 350,000 tons of road salt are applied for de-icing in the Twin Cities metropolitan area annually.
The U.S.G.S. also reported that 73% of male smallmouth bass sampled in the Mississippi River near Lake City, Minnesota have characteristics of both genders, which researchers believe may be the result of exposure to endocrine-disrupting compounds in wastewater.
By Kay Sexton •
August 3, 2009
While there are many conservation issues that regularly top the policy bill, such as destruction of habitat, over-hunting, fisheries collapsing and so on, a new concern has recently emerged through scientific studies. Wildlife cancer.
By Cate Nelson •
July 30, 2009
A new Health Canada study found that bottles marketed as “BPA-free” actually leach the hormone-disrupting chemical into liquids.
The study says that these bottles contain “trace amounts”, but some sources cite an internal memo, which says that two brands contain “high doses”.
For their part, bottle manufacturers claim that the study must have been performed wrong.
By Cate Nelson •
March 5, 2009
In the first law of its kind in the States, the Suffolk County Legislature voted Tuesday to ban polycarbonate baby bottles. BPA would have to be removed from sippys and bottles intended for children under 3, or those products would have to be removed from store shelves.
Says bill sponsor Legis. Steve Stern,
There are plenty of viable, cost-effective and safe alternatives.
The county now says they’re evaluating the impact of the law pending an upcoming public hearing.
By Amy Stodghill •
May 31, 2007
Temperatures are on the rise (for those of us in the northern hemisphere) and the sun can really pack a punch especially during the heat of the day. Make sure your SPF is doing its job without those pesky chemicals.
Many brands of sunblock contain chemicals with estrogenic properties - meaning they can be endocrine disruptors, which confuse the body's natural hormonal balance. Look for sunscreens that use titanium dioxide or
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Editor's note: In the newest edition of Red, Green and Blue, writers Shirley Siluk Gregory and Jimmy Hogan take a look at the "smaller" concerns of environmentalists, and whether it's worth worrying about such issues when there are much greater and more pressing matters affecting our lives and health.
Shirley: When the Environmental Working Group last week announced its release of an updated and expanded "Skin Deep," its online database of chemicals
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By Amy Stodghill •
May 9, 2007
Sandal wearing season is just around the corner and the toes will come out to play. If you're using a splash of color on your little piggies, make sure your nail polish is phthalate-free.
