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Areas of Focus
 

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Research

Canaries in the Kitchen

Telfon-coated cookware poses a hazard when it is heated to high temperatures. EWG tests show that in 2 to 5 minutes on a conventional stovetop, cookware coated with Teflon and other non-stick surfaces can exceed temperatures at which the coating breaks apart and emits toxic particles and gases linked to hundreds, perhaps thousands, of pet bird deaths and an unknown number of human illnesses each
Research

DuPont Hid Teflon Pollution For Decades

Secret tests conducted in 1984 by the DuPont chemical company found a Teflon-related contaminant (C8) in the tap water of the Little Hocking Water Association in Ohio, just across the river from the company's Teflon plant in Parkersburg, West Virginia. But the company never told the community, its water utility or state regulators about the tap water testing program, which continued through at
Research

Glacier Vended Water and Contaminants in California

Glacier Water Services, the largest owner-operator of drinking water vending machines in California and the U.S., claims its machines sell “safe, chemical-free water.” But statewide testing found that a third of Glacier machines sold water that failed to meet state standards for a class of chemicals linked to increased risk of cancer and birth defects.
Research

Every Breath You Take

Independent scientific monitoring by the Environmental Working Group found dangerously high concentrations of a partially banned pesticide in the air San Joaquin Valley residents breath. One-third of ambient air monitoring samples detected the pesticide chlorpyrifos, which the federal government has recently banned for home use as unsafe for children but remains the most widely used agricultural

Research

Uncontrolled Lusts

California regulators have failed to order cleanup or take other legally binding enforcement action on more than 90 percent of the thousands of underground fuel storage tanks known to be leaking toxic chemicals into water and soil throughout the state, although many of the leaks were first reported more than 10 years ago, according to an Environmental Working Group (EWG) computer-assisted

Research

Judicial Integrity

Documents indicate that one of President Bush's nominees for the U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit (which covers Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware) had financial interests that he failed to disclose, yet issued numerous rulings in a major financial fraud case.
Research

As You Sow

State and private laboratory tests show that fertilizer manufacturers routinely add undisclosed amounts of toxic waste to farm and home fertilizers sold in California. These companies buy toxic waste from industrial facilities to obtain low-cost plant nutrients, such as zinc or iron. Unfortunately, such waste streams are often highly contaminated with persistent toxic chemicals, including heavy
Research

Power Plants Caught Cheating

The Justice Department and USEPA announced actions against 32 power plants that they claim are operating in violation of the Clean Air Act.
Research

Up In Smoke

Electricity generation from old, heavily-polluting coal-fired power plants rose 15.8 percent nationwide between 1992 and 1998, an increase big enough to power all the industries, businesses and homes in the state of California for a year. This jump, which was spurred in large part by loopholes in the Clean Air Act and the deregulation of the wholesale electric power market, threatens to erode

Research

Into the Mouths of Babes

n a little-noticed decision earlier this year, the EPA's top scientific committee on children's health declared that protections against the toxic weed killer atrazine in food and water should not be considered safe for infants and children. According to the Office of Children's Health Protection Advisory Committee:

Research

Above the Law

An Environmental Working Group analysis of recently released enforcement records from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) reveals a persistent pattern of “significant violations” of the Clean Air Act (CAA) in five major industries. Hundreds of large facilities in auto assembly, iron and steel, petroleum refining, pulp manufacturing, and metal smelting and refining are threatening

Research

Ban Methyl Parathion Now

In January 1998, the Environmental Working Group called on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to ban the insecticide methyl parathion in all foods consumed by children. We supported our recommendation with a detailed analysis of dietary risk of organophosphate exposure for children aged five and under. One year later, we again call on the agency to ban this highly toxic pesticide, based on
Research

Same as it Ever Was

On June 25, 1993, the Clinton-Gore Administration made headlines when it announced a bold new national policy to cut pesticide use in agriculture and make the protection of children the paramount consideration in federal pesticide regulation.
Research

Dumping Sewage Sludge On Organic Farms?

In December, 1997, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) proposed draft national standards for organic agriculture. As part of this proposal, the department invited the public to comment on the idea of allowing application of municipal sewage sludge on land used to grow organic foods. The Environmental Protection Agency's top sludge regulator urged the department to allow “high quality

Research

Tests Find Methyl Bromide Drifting Into Mobile Home Park

On Aug. 21, 1997, owners of the Nakama Ranch began fumigating a 90-acre strawberry field in Camarillo, Calif., with methyl bromide. The field is next to the Lamplighter Mobile Home Estates, whose residents, concerned about the dangers of exposure to the acutely toxic pesticide, had appealed to the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) to stop the fumigation. DPR denied the appeal

Research

The Other Clean Air Rule

EPA's supplemental notice (1996) and draft Final Rule reflect major concessions made to the industry. The chief consultant for the American Hospital Association (AHA) has referred to the EPA proposal as "painless," acknowledging a reversal in EPA's direction on the rule.
Research

People of Color in California Breathe the Most Heavily Polluted Air

Residents of communities of color in California will be among the prime beneficiaries of an embattled EPA proposal to cut toxic airborne particle pollution by half. An Environmental Working Group (EWG) analysis of air pollution data from 161 locations across the state shows that residents of communities of color are nearly three times more likely to breathe dangerous levels of air pollution than

Race, Class, and Climate Change in the Wake of Hurricane Sandy

Hurricane Sandy ravaged much of the eastern seaboard, leaving some dead, many without shelter, and all of us wondering how such an event could happen. What we realized, though, is that we can no...

Cooking Through Winter's Bitter Bounty

When the weather turns, the days get shorter and it's time to get out the winter clothes, it's also high season for the Brassicaceae, or mustard family, on your family's dinner table.

EWG's Guide to Healthy Cleaning: How did we do it?

What's in those bottles on top of my washing machine and under my sink? We've been asked that question thousands of times - especially by fans of EWG's Skin Deep database, who value our brand of...

BPA: Recent Research Shows Continued Need for Government Action

There is now solid evidence that Americans have gotten the message that the plastics chemical bisphenol-A, a synthetic estrogen that can disrupt the hormone system, is hazardous to their health.

Don't wipe out: The hidden hazards of antibacterial wipes

Grocery stores dispense them for wiping down carts, gyms, for spiffing up exercise equipment. Some schools hand them out so kids can scrub their desks and ask parents for wipes as back-to-school...

Johnson & Johnson Takes a Big Step in the Right Direction

This week marked a huge victory for consumers. Johnson & Johnson, global manufacturer of such well known health and personal care products as Johnson's Baby Shampoo, unveiled plans to reformulate many...

EWG's 2012 Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce

Well, as we do each year, EWG released (on June 19) the latest Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce and as we suspected, eaters around the country are still concerned about high levels of toxic...