Tag: Environment

Jun 17

2013

Link between air pollution and learning disabilities

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Researchers have found a link between traffic-related air pollution and more attention deficits in young boys in Boston. The researchers from Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in Manhattan said this is the first time that an association is made between black carbon exposure and decreasing attention skills among low-income, urban children. The study found boys were more susceptible than girls. Black carbon is an indicator of combustion sources such as diesel and has a wide range of public health impacts. The researchers made the association after adjusting for numerous factors, including IQ, blood-lead levels, stress and tobacco exposure. “Inattention and hyperactivity are[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Jun 11

2013

Ugly month for sewer overflows in Erie County

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For the first time, the numbers are flowing in on sewer overflows across the state and it isn’t pretty. In Erie County, almost 7 million gallons of untreated sewage were discharged into local waterways in May. This information wasn’t publicly available on the Internet until the Sewage Pollution Right to Know Law went into effect last month. Based on what’s reported so far, the biggest repositories of raw sewage were Ellicott Creek (2 million gallons),  Scajaquada Creek (1 million) and the Niagara River (679,000). Heavy rain or snow melt is often the cause of these overflows. The ground water seeps through cracks in the sewer[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Jun 10

2013

Global carbon dioxide emissions rose in 2012

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Energy use was responsible for 31.6 gigatons of carbon dioxide emissions, a 1.4 percent increase for this past year. Not only is this a record, but it also brings the planet closer to temperatures many scientists believe will have catastrophic impacts on life as we know it. A Washington Post report.

Posted 12 years ago

Jun 8

2013

Peace Bridge neighbors to finally see some plans

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Buffalo’s West Side residents will get their first opportunity to see and comment on plans for what the state is calling the “NY Gateway Connections Improvement Project to the U.S. Peace Bridge Plaza.” That’s a clever name for a project that involves work on roads leading to and from the plaza, rather than expansion of the plaza itself. For more detail on this project, read our April 4 report. Tuesday’s meeting is at D’Youville College at 329 Porter Ave. in the Porterview Room on the second floor. The open house parts are from 3-5 p.m. and 6-8 p.m. Presentations will be at[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Jun 4

2013

A pollution hunter

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Michael Heimbinder created a system that allows him to measure air quality in neighborhoods. “You’re not going to be able to tell the difference between clean air and moderately unhealthy air,” he said. “You can’t see it.”

Posted 12 years ago

May 31

2013

Houston’s air pollution fight rages on

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Houston is already in violation of federal ozone standards. Now the city is struggling to meet federal standards for fine dust particles, known as PM 2.5. The highest reading is at a monitor near the Port of Houston, where there’s a lot of truck traffic. A report by Texas Tribune.

Posted 12 years ago

May 25

2013

Asthma plagues Peace Bridge neighborhood

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D’Youville Porter School is a few blocks from the Peace Bridge. Some 660 students attend the elementary school. A quarter have asthma. Instruction at the school includes reading, writing and, for some pupils, how to use an inhaler. “It is very difficult for these kids who are having asthma problems,” said Assunta Ventresca, director of health related services for Buffalo schools. Asthma is an epidemic on the Lower West Side. The victims, sometimes wheezing and struggling for breath, are in one in of every three households. Studies found asthma rates are nearly four times the national average in the neighborhoods[...]

Posted 12 years ago

May 24

2013

Sewer overflows now public

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The stinky truth is finally public. The state Department of Environmental Conservation has begun publishing sewer overflow reports from across New York. The reports, which are in Excel format, are posted here. Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the “Sewage Pollution Right to Know Law” in August. The law requires public sewage treatment plants and sewer systems to notify the DEC whenever there is a sewer overflow of untreated or partially treated sewage and stormwater into waterways. Combined sewer systems, like the one in Buffalo, take both untreated sewage and stormwater into one pipe before making its way to a treatment plant. But[...]

Posted 12 years ago
Investigative Post