The Environmental Protection Agency is reconsidering whether facilities that recycle plastic chemically should be held to the same strict air pollution standards as incinerators. The possible change is alarming environmental advocates who say it would lead to more dangerous pollution spewing into communities, with fewer or no checks at the federal level. The plastics industry disputes that, saying it would clear up confusion while still controlling emissions. The facilities use heat or chemicals to break down plastics. The main method, a process known as pyrolysis, has long been regulated as incineration by the Clean Air Act. The agency says a potential new rule could instead recognize pyrolysis as manufacturing.
The Iran war is unleashing a toxic mix of chemicals, heavy metals and other pollutants that threaten everything from agriculture to drinking water to people’s health. Experts also say it's leaving behind environmental damage and health risks that could persist for decades. They say attacks on oil- and gas-related sites create some of the worst environmental risks because of impacts to air quality and soil and water pollution. But they also worry about potential damage to nuclear sites and critical desalination plants, as well as water pollution that could damage fisheries and important ecosystems.
As President Donald Trump's administration seeks to roll back funding for transit, walking and biking projects, some states are trying to advance them on their own. A seven-state group known as the Clean Rides Network gained momentum this year in its advocacy for environmentally friendly transportation projects that it says the federal government has abandoned. Lawmakers in Maryland, Illinois and Massachusetts have introduced proposals this session that would require major highway construction to be offset by other projects that reduce greenhouse emissions. Colorado and Minnesota enacted similar policies in past sessions.