Numerous studies have clearly outlined the health and environmental dangers that are associated with pesticides, more specifically, agricultural pesticides. They’ve been linked to cancer, birth defects, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, kidney failure and many more. It’s remarkable how we continue to spray these all over our food. In the past decade alone, scientists from all…

For Mexico‘s state oil giant, the expansion of organized crime into fuel theft is a growing menace. Now, a bungled attempt to illegally tap an oil pipeline has threatened an environmental disaster in the northern state of Nuevo Leon, after an estimated 4,000 barrels of crude oil poured into the San Juan River. The alleged failed theft on August…

You sling a message in a bottle into the vast Pacific Ocean. The ocean is huge, you reason, high on romanticism and not considering your contribution to pollution. It could wind up anywhere, you think. Researchers from the University of South Wales in Australia, however, recently monitored the direction and speed of ocean swells over a 48-month period. Those…

Food forests or Forest gardening have been around for a long time with many of the native cultures practicing this form of sustainable agriculture. It is a form of low-maintenance plant-based food production which replicates natural ecosystems, incorporating fruit and nut trees, shrubs, herbs, running vines and perennial vegetables. Beneficial plants and companion planting is a big part of the food forest…

Doug Obegi, Staff Attorney, Western Water Project, San Francisco Virtually all of California – 99.8 percent – is in severe drought. The toxic blue-green algae that shut down Toledo’s drinking water supply earlier this month is thriving in Stockton’s waterways, thanks to warm, stagnant water and low river flows. Many farmers and cities across the…

Elizabeth Shope, Advocate, Washington, D.C. It’s surprising that in the 21st Century, nearly 750 million people lack access to safe drinking water and 2.5 billion people –more than one-third of the world’s population—don’t have an adequate place to go the bathroom. This is so, despite decades of work and dedicating substantial resources to reduce severe…

Veena Singla, Staff Scientist, Health Program, San Francisco Today, the California legislature voted to give consumers the right to know whether they are bringing home a toxic couch. This first-in-the nation legislation (SB 1019), authored by Senator Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), requires the furniture’s attached label to clearly declare the presence or absence of added…