Safety slowdown: In 2010, the Environmental Protection Agency sent the White House a list of widely used chemicals it wanted to flag as “chemicals of concern” because they may cause human health risks. (Industry, of course, opposed the list.) The administration’s Office of Management and Budget was supposed to review the proposal and respond within 90 days. It’s now been 638 days and counting with no response, and thus no EPA action. Consider us concerned. iWatch News
Poisoned kisses: New tests by the Food and Drug Administration show that some popular lipstick brands are exceeding or coming in just under the safe standard for lead. An advocacy group is asking the agency to take action. Before 638 days would be nice. Forbes
And in more scary chemical news…: Looks like BPA, an ingredient in plastics and the lining of food cans, is linked to type 2 diabetes. ScienceNews
The real thing: Bottled water sales will soon be banned at the Grand Canyon -- over Coke’s objections. Reuters
The gas we pass: Air quality sampling from near a Colorado natural gas field has yielded “the first hard evidence that the cleanest-burning fossil fuel might not be much better than coal when it comes to climate change.” Nature News
Who you calling pro-life?: A group of environmentally minded evangelical Christians is supporting EPA’s proposed rule to cut mercury emissions from power plants as “pro-life,” because it would … you know … save lives. Other evangelicals don’t like them using that term for something other than opposing abortion and say environmental concerns (like global warming) are “unfounded.” The Hill
See no evil: The State Department’s inspector general says the agency had no conflict of interest when evaluating the safety of the proposed Keystone XL tar sands pipeline -- but it still did a bad job. New York Times
Cold reception: Drilling in the Arctic is poised to be the next Keystone XL. Mongabay
That’s why they call it the Golden State: California rocks when it comes to passing major public health initiatives that then spread to the rest of the country. CNN
Objection, your honor: Yes, BP had a spotty safety record before the Deepwater Horizon disaster. No, plaintiffs suing the company for damages over the Gulf oil spill won’t be able to share that record with jurors -- because the judge said it would take too long. Times-Picayune
Tips: @OnEarthMag (tag it #greenreads)
Image: Bronx/Flickr
