How does plastic waste affect the environment? - EHN
Jun 4, 2020 · About 79% of plastic is ending up in landfills or as litter in our environment. (Credit: Tom Fisk/Pexels) Plastics are an untamed and unmanaged beast: More than 1 million plastic bags are used every minute, with an average "working life" of only 15 minutes. 500 billion plastic bags are used annually—and that's just plastic bags.
Where does PFAS contamination come from? - EHN
Feb 15, 2022 · Discarded products such as clothing, carpet, bedding, and food packaging can release PFAS into landfills, where rainwater moves it (along with other chemicals), creating a concentrated toxic waste that infiltrates soil and nearby water sources like rivers and lakes. Typical landfill waste treatment systems do not remove PFAS.
What environmental health problems affect our health? - EHN
Jul 21, 2022 · A few specific examples include: Air pollution: Living near factories or heavy traffic worsens air quality and leads to health impacts on the lungs and heart such as asthma and increased risk of heart attacks or stroke. Water contamination: Drinking lead-contaminated water can cause IQ loss, behavioral issues, learning disabilities and more.
Fossil fuel industry is disproportionately harming low-income, …
Sep 17, 2024 · HOUSTON — Black, Latine and Indigenous women are disproportionately suffering from the fossil fuel industry in North America, according to a new report. The report, published by Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN), analyzed existing research about fossil fuel extraction and related facilities to explore the unequal impacts on ...
A lasting legacy: DuPont, C8 contamination and the community of …
Jan 7, 2020 · PARKERSBURG, W. Va. – Tommy Joyce is no cinephile. The last movie he saw in a theater was the remake of "True Grit" nearly a decade ago. "I'd rather watch squirrels run in the woods" than sit through most of what appears on the big screen, he said.
Ocean plastic pollution - EHN
Jul 26, 2023 · Additional impacts of ocean plastic pollution: Death of marine life. Many marine animals such as turtles and dolphins mistake plastic fragments for food. Ingesting plastic is often fatal to animals, as the plastic blocks their digestive tract and causes them to starve. Many seabirds, seals, turtles, and whales also get entangled in plastic ...
In the crucial swing state of Pennsylvania, new poll finds 90% of ...
Oct 9, 2024 · Credit: Upswing/Ohio River Valley InstituteFracking Survey Analysis These safety measures were among the regulatory changes proposed as part of a grand jury investigation on the health effects of fracking that was completed in 2020 by then-attorney general Josh Shapiro, who now serves as governor of Pennsylvania. Environmental health advocates have expressed frustration over Shapiro’s ...
Chemical recycling and its environmental impacts - EHN
Sep 28, 2022 · Enter chemical recycling –– processes that use high heat, chemicals, or both to break used plastic goods down into their chemical building blocks to, in theory, make more plastics. Proponents say that chemical recycling can complement more traditional recycling by handling mixed and harder-to-recycle plastics.
Can "Blue Zones" be a solution to environmental injustice? - EHN
Oct 27, 2022 · While Blue Zones Projects aren’t known as environmental justice initiatives, Dr. Morris thinks the project has potential to promote it. “For me, environmental justice means the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, nationality, income or zip code,” Dr. Morris told EHN.
Greer Hamilton
Greer Hamilton is a transitional postdoctoral fellow and assistant professor at the University of Michigan School of Social Work.