Environment
Extra Extra Monday: Faltering courts, the curse of fertilizer, nuclear byproduct, stranding the mentally ill
Faltering Courts, Mired in Delays | The New York Times“The Bronx courts are failing. With criminal cases languishing for years, a plague of delays in the Bronx criminal courts is undermining one of the central ideals of the justice system, the promise of a speedy trial.” The Curse of Fertilizer | National Geographic Magazine“Runaway nitrogen…
Read MoreLeaking gas pipelines across Michigan create an underground danger
“Crisscrossing Michigan are more than 3,100 miles of old wrought- and cast-iron natural-gas pipelines — the type federal regulators consider the most at risk of corrosion, cracking and catastrophic rupturing. The state’s two largest utilities have replaced less than 15% of these pipelines — 542 miles — in the past decade,” according to an investigation…
Read MoreMinnesota draining its supply of water
“Minnesotans have always prided themselves on their more than 10,000 lakes, great rivers and the deep underground reservoirs that supply three-fourths of the state’s residents with naturally clean drinking water. But many regions in the state have reached the point where people are using water — and then sending it downstream — faster than the rain…
Read MoreLack of transparency, nervous feelings surround three Haiti mining permits
Haiti Grassroots Watch reports: “The population of Cadouche, a small village about 12 kilometers south of Cap-Haitian in Haiti’s North department, is nervous about three new mining exploitation permits granted last December in an opaque and secretive process.” Residents of the area, who told Haiti Grassroots Watch they are concerned the mining will poison their…
Read MoreExtra Extra Monday: Public schools lose millions to crooks, radon hotbeds, campaign-finance funded luxury
Center for Investigative Reporting/EsquireThe Shooter“The man who shot and killed Osama bin Laden sat in a wicker chair in my backyard, wondering how he was going to feed his wife and kids or pay for their medical care.” The Tampa Bay TimesPublic schools lose millions to crooks and cheaters“Axson’s case points to a larger problem with…
Read MoreIowa hospital sends $180,000 in food waste to landfill
University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics threw away 355,000 servings of food worth $181,600 last year, according to The Gazette in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The hospital prepared roughly 3 million total servings of food in 2012, not counting patient meals. The Gazette found that the hospital’s dining room serving doctors and nurses from operating rooms threw away…
Read MoreTesting around metal recycling plants reveals known carcinogen in the air
An investigation by the Houston Chronicle has found that over the last five years several complaints, including red and yellow smoke, explosions and fire, have been reported around metal recycling plants. These complaints led Houston air authorities to discover dangerous levels of hexavalent chromium, a known carcinogen.
Read MoreExtra Extra Monday: Several enterprise stories tackle gun control issues
The Washington PostReview of FBI forensics does not extend to federally trained state, local examinersThe Washington Post reports that thousands of criminal cases at the state and local level may have relied on exaggerated testimony or false forensic evidence to convict defendants of murder, rape and other felonies, according to former FBI agents. The Journal…
Read MoreShale drillers eager to move wastewater on barges
The shale gas drilling industry wants to move its wastewater by barge on rivers and lakes across the country. But the U.S. Coast Guard, which regulates the nation’s waterways, must first decide whether it’s safe.
Read MoreTaxpayers may foot the bill for lead cleanup
“In the latest installment in USA TODAY’s “Ghost Factories” series, reporter Alison Young examines who is responsible for cleaning up lead contamination around old lead smelter sites.”
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