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WASHINGTON (AP) - Seeking quick repairs and millions of dollars in
penalties, the government filed lawsuits Wednesday accusing utility companies of
releasing huge amounts of air pollution at coal-fired electricity plants
throughout the Midwest and South. Targeted are 32 aging coal-fired power plants
in 10 states from Florida to Ohio. The government argues that the companies made
illegal repairs rather than employing more modern pollution-controlling
technology. Carol Browner, the Environmental Protection Agency administrator,
said, "Today's actions will help us stop millions of tons of pollutants that
cause choking smog and corrosive acid rain throughout the Midwest and up and
down the East Coast." The utilities said they would contest the government's
charges. See full
story *** Also: List of power plants in EPA lawsuit, see full
story
ROSEMONT, Ill. (AP) - Genetically altered corn may not pose as widespread a threat to monarch butterflies as previously thought, researchers say. However, current research on the corn's toxicity is not yet extensive enough to determine any conclusive impact on the monarch, said Richard Hellmich, a U.S. Agriculture Department researcher at Iowa State University. Scientists released 17 separate studies Tuesday in response to a May report by Cornell University that linked deaths of monarch larvae with pollen from genetically-altered Bt corn. The corn, which contains a bacteria that kills certain insect pests, is one of the most widely planted genetically-modified crops in the U.S. See full story |
