Hacker News with Generative AI: Environmental Issues

Big oil pushed to kill bill that would have made them pay for wildfire disasters (theguardian.com)
In the year preceding the devastating Los Angeles county wildfires, big oil fiercely lobbied to kill a “polluter pay” bill that moved through the California senate and would have forced major fossil fuel companies to help cover the costs of climate disasters.
Climate Change, Environmental Issues, Oil Industry, Politics, California
6 points by croes 11 hours ago | 1 comments
What is the pink fire retardant used to control the L.A. fires? (nbcnews.com)
As the wildfires in Southern California continue to burn, streaks of bright pink fire retardant have become a familiar sight.
Wildfires, Fire Retardant, California, Environmental Issues, News
7 points by heresie-dabord 17 hours ago | 2 comments
3M knew firefighting foams containing PFAS were toxic, documents show (theguardian.com)
The multibillion-dollar chemicals company 3M told customers its firefighting foams were harmless and biodegradable when it knew they contained toxic substances so persistent they are now known as “forever chemicals” and banned in many countries including the UK, newly uncovered documents show.
Environmental Issues, Chemistry, Corporate Misconduct, Lawsuits
8 points by jmsflknr 3 days ago | 0 comments
The case for letting Malibu burn (1995) (longreads.com)
Many of California’s native ecosystems evolved to burn. Modern fire suppression creates fuels that lead to catastrophic fires. So why do people insist on rebuilding in the firebelt?
California Wildfires, Environmental Issues, Fire Management, Urban Planning
179 points by pseudolus 5 days ago | 265 comments
Two fire experts interviewed about L.A. wildfires (latimes.com)
For decades, Jack Cohen and Stephen Pyne have studied the history and behavior of wildfires. The magnitude of destruction this week in Los Angeles and Altadena, they argue, could have been mitigated. Society’s understanding and relationship to fire has to change if the conflagrations like these are to be prevented.
Wildfires, California, Environmental Issues, Climate Change
74 points by hodgesrm 6 days ago | 129 comments
Gigantic SUVs are a public health threat. Why don't we treat them like one? (vox.com)
With an annual toll of 40,000 American lives, the deadliness of secondhand smoke is now common knowledge. But it was only a few decades ago that puffing on a cigarette was defended as an act that affected only the smoker.
Public Health, Automobiles, Safety, Environmental Issues
3 points by rntn 11 days ago | 0 comments
Foods with the Most Plastic Chemicals: Study Reveals Surprising Results (newsweek.com)
From popular brands like Burger King, McDonald's, Starbucks, and Whole Foods to everyday kitchen staples such as rice and salt, a new study highlights the alarming extent of plastic contamination in foods.
Food Safety, Environmental Issues, Consumer Products, Science, Health
17 points by XzetaU8 11 days ago | 1 comments
List of Products with Microplastics (plasticlist.org)
Microplastics, Environmental Issues, Consumer Products
6 points by IG_Semmelweiss 15 days ago | 3 comments
Toxic waste from Bhopal gas leak factory removed after 40 years (bbc.com)
Authorities in India have removed hundreds of tonnes of toxic waste from a chemical factory that witnessed one of the world's deadliest gas leaks 40 years ago.
Environmental Issues, India, Accidents, History, Chemical Industry
9 points by sohkamyung 16 days ago | 0 comments
The mighty Mekong River's growing plastic problem (japantimes.co.jp)
Flowing more than 4,300 kilometers from the Tibetan Plateau in China, through mainland Southeast Asia and then into Vietnam’s Mekong Delta before finally emptying into the South China Sea, the Mekong River is among the top 10 waterways in Asia most responsible for riverine plastic waste reaching the world’s oceans.
Environmental Issues, Pollution, Mekong River, Southeast Asia, Plastic Waste
5 points by PaulHoule 19 days ago | 0 comments
What happened to the American chestnut tree? (npr.org)
In the early 20th century, a blight fungus wiped out most of the 4 billion American chestnut trees on the eastern seaboard. The loss was ecologically devastating.
Environmental Issues, Ecology, History, Forestry, Disease
6 points by rbanffy 21 days ago | 0 comments
Where Will All of Big Tech's Nuclear Waste Go? (gizmodo.com)
Nuclear waste is spread across 94 different nuclear sites in the U.S. and has no permanent home. Big Tech is going to add more to the pile.
Nuclear Waste, Technology, Environmental Issues, Big Tech
18 points by rntn 28 days ago | 0 comments
Cannabis pollen dispersal across the United States (nature.com)
For the recently legalized US hemp industry (Cannabis sativa), cross-pollination between neighboring fields has become a significant challenge, leading to contaminated seeds, reduced oil yields, and in some cases, mandated crop destruction.
Cannabis, Agriculture, Science, Environmental Issues
86 points by PaulHoule 30 days ago | 78 comments
Nigeria's lithium boom: many mines are illegal and children do much of the work (apnews.com)
Growing demand for the lithium used in batteries for electric vehicles and energy storage has created a new frontier for mining in Nigeria. But it’s led to exploitation of children who are often poor and take work in small, illegal mines to support themselves and their families.
Nigeria, Mining, Lithium, Child Labor, Environmental Issues
6 points by clumsysmurf 36 days ago | 0 comments
Attorney General Ken Paxton sues companies over "forever chemicals" (texastribune.org)
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit Wednesday against chemical giants 3M and DuPont, accusing them of decades-long misrepresentations and omissions regarding the safety of PFAS, or “forever chemicals,” sold for use in countless consumer products.
Lawsuits, Environmental Issues, Chemicals, Texas
7 points by adomasm3 36 days ago | 0 comments
South Korea's mountain of plastic waste shows limits of recycling (japantimes.co.jp)
South Korea has won international praise for its recycling efforts, but as it prepares to host talks for a global plastic waste agreement, experts say the country's approach highlights its limits.
South Korea, Recycling, Environmental Issues, Plastic Waste, Global Agreements
12 points by PaulHoule 37 days ago | 7 comments
Cups tossed in recycling bins at Starbucks tracked to incinerators and landfill (cbsnews.com)
Environmental Issues, Waste Management, Starbucks, Recycling
31 points by ilamont 42 days ago | 22 comments
Lead exposure in last century shrank IQ scores of half of Americans (today.duke.edu)
A new study calculates that exposure to car exhaust from leaded gas during childhood stole a collective 824 million IQ points from more than 170 million Americans alive today, about half the population of the United States.
Health, Science, Environmental Issues, United States, Lead
43 points by geox 45 days ago | 9 comments
South Korea may become the first country to disappear from the face of Earth (indiatimes.com)
South Korea, Geopolitics, Climate Change, Environmental Issues
9 points by rustoo 47 days ago | 12 comments
Five Companies Produce Nearly 25 Percent of All Plastic Waste Worldwide (sierraclub.org)
Plastic Waste, Environmental Issues, Companies, Sustainability
82 points by FuturisticLover 52 days ago | 142 comments
Fiji is already relocating villages because of climate change (zmescience.com)
Climate migration is no longer a distant fear — it’s a reality. In Fiji, it’s a particularly pressing reality. Rising seas and extreme weather have forced entire communities to move. For this Pacific island nation, the question isn’t whether to relocate people but how to do so in a way that protects lives and livelihoods. Meanwhile, the rest of the world is watching closely as one billion people may find themselves in a similar situation in a matter of decades.
Climate Change, Environmental Issues, Pacific Islands, Migration, Global Warming
10 points by Brajeshwar 54 days ago | 0 comments
Spanish villages where people are forced to buy back their own drinking water (theguardian.com)
Spain is increasingly either parched or flooded – and one group is profiting from these extremes: the water-grabbing multinational companies forcing angry citizens to pay for it in bottles
Water Scarcity, Spain, Environmental Issues, Corporate Greed, Water Management
43 points by c420 55 days ago | 8 comments
Feds release options for Colorado River as negotiations between states stall (phys.org)
Federal officials released a range of scenarios on Nov 20 that could be used to manage the over-allocated and shrinking Colorado River as time for the seven basin states to reach an agreement grows short.
Water Management, Colorado River, Environmental Issues, Politics
13 points by bikenaga 56 days ago | 0 comments
14-Year-Old Casper Wind Farm Has Not Turned a Blade in at Least 3 Years (cowboystatedaily.com)
For the past 14 years they have loomed over the landscape of northeastern Casper, once the symbol of the county’s first step into green energy. Now some say they are just an eyesore.
Energy, Wind Farms, Wyoming, Environmental Issues, Rural Development
38 points by LinuxBender 57 days ago | 72 comments
Illegally logged wood from Cambodia likely ending up in U.S. homes (mongabay.com)
U.S. consumers risk using flooring products made of wood illegally logged from Cambodia’s rainforests, a recent Mongabay investigation suggests.
Illegal Logging, Cambodia, Environmental Issues, Consumerism, Rainforest
133 points by PaulHoule 60 days ago | 87 comments
This is Life in America's Water-Inequality Capital. It Might Be About to Change (time.com)
In the Navajo Nation—a sweeping landscape of red-rock canyons and desert that takes in the Four Corners—water is not taken for granted. Here, more than 1 in 3 Diné, as Navajo people call themselves, must haul water to their homes, often across long distances.
Water Inequality, Navajo Nation, Environmental Issues, Indigenous Communities, Social Justice
15 points by mooreds 66 days ago | 0 comments
How Oil and gas companies disguise their methane emissions (ft.com)
FT analysis shows that firms regularly hide leakages of the deadly greenhouse gas — despite this being one of the easiest climate fixes there is
Methane Emissions, Climate Change, Environmental Issues, Business
42 points by mrtedbear 66 days ago | 1 comments
Islands of the Feral Pigs (hakaimagazine.com)
In Hawai‘i, people, pigs, and ecosystems only have so much room to coexist, and the pigs exist a little too much.
Wildlife, Hawaii, Environmental Issues, Conservation
46 points by PaulHoule 67 days ago | 26 comments
Cop29 CEO filmed agreeing to facilitate fossil fuel deals at climate summit (theguardian.com)
The chief executive of Cop29 has been filmed apparently agreeing to facilitate fossil fuel deals at the climate summit.
Climate Change, Politics, Environmental Issues, Fossil Fuels
9 points by Geekette 69 days ago | 0 comments
EPA holds meeting updating Fifth Ward residents on testing for toxic chemicals (click2houston.com)
The Environmental Protection Agency held another meeting in Houston’s Fifth Ward providing an update on the agency’s testing regarding toxic chemicals in the area.
Environmental Issues, Local News, Government, Health
4 points by Jimmc414 69 days ago | 0 comments