Health and Public Safety

October 2, 2013 - Duke University scientists studied a site where treated wastewater from oil and gas drilling operations is discharged into a Pennsylvania creek and found radium levels 200 times higher than upstream, creating environmental risks for thousands of years to come.

September 23, 2013 - Joey Yerkes was a fisherman in Florida when the BP oil disaster occurred, and he and many others ended up chronically ill from spill-related chemical exposures. Three years later, the health crisis in the region continues and must not be forgotten.

September 13, 2013 - A group of prominent Democrats has launched a project to promote the idea that coal is part of a sustainable U.S. energy future -- even as new evidence emerges showing just how environmentally destructive coal really is.

September 5, 2013 - An official state study group is recommending that North Carolina be given the power to compel non-consenting landowners into fracking leases. The N.C. Mining and Energy Commission is set to review those recommendations this week before they're passed along to the legislature.

August 21, 2013 - A new report documents the extensive pollution released in Louisiana last year during Hurricane Isaac, a relatively mild Category 1 storm. It serves as a warning for storm-vulnerable states like Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina now considering opening up their coasts to energy exploration.

August 19, 2013 - Fisherman on the Gulf Coast long for the days before BP's "well from hell" spewed crude oil for 87 days and before nearly 2 million gallons of toxic dispersant were sprayed into Gulf waters that have sustained their families for generations.

August 15, 2013 - It was a year ago this month that a massive sinkhole opened up at the site of Texas Brine's operations in Assumption Parish, La., with improper mining the suspected cause. The state has sued the company, which is in buyout negotiations with some of the hundreds of residents affected by a mandatory evacuation order.