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U.S. Agencies Track Environmental Carcinogens and Exposures to Protect Public Health

U.S. Agencies Track Environmental Carcinogens and Exposures to Protect Public Health

Various U.S. agencies are actively involved in tracking environmental carcinogens and assessing human exposure to them. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) supports surveillance, biomonitoring, and environmental public health tracking. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), part of the CDC, conducts occupational research related to environmental health. The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), an NIH institute, focuses on how environmental exposures influence human health and disease, including through its Superfund Research Program. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) assesses risks and enforces regulations concerning air, water, chemicals, and waste. These efforts collectively aim to understand the totality of a person’s environmental exposures across their life course, a concept known as the 'exposome,' which was proposed by cancer epidemiologist Christopher Wild in 2005. This comprehensive approach involves measuring chemic...
Wilmington Star-NewsWilmington Star-News
Environmentalists say Chemours not doing enough to reduce PFAS discharges

Environmentalists say Chemours not doing enough to reduce PFAS discharges

Cape Fear River Watch and the Southern Environmental Law Center say Chemours isn't meeting the requirements of 2019 consent order to reduce PFAS pollution.
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Hawaiian Airlines Implements New 50-Minute Check-In Rule for Neighbor Island Flights

Hawaiian Airlines Implements New 50-Minute Check-In Rule for Neighbor Island Flights

Hawaiian Airlines has updated its check-in policy for Neighbor Island flights, now requiring passengers to complete check-in and baggage drop at least 50 minutes before departure. This is an increase from the previous 30-minute requirement. At Honolulu’s Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL), international Hawaiian Airlines departures are being consolidated into Terminal 2, Lobby 4, while Neighbor Island check-in will remain in Terminal 1. The Hawaii Department of Transportation indicates that this earlier deadline is intended to improve baggage handling efficiency and contribute to more on-time departures. This change is also part of broader operational preparations for the airline's future transition to Boeing 737 aircraft for interisland services. Travelers are advised to verify flight details, terminal assignments, and baggage requirements before heading to the airport, and to consider the airport's general recommendation of arriving 90 minutes before interisland flights.
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Hawaii Anticipates Heavier Rainfall Midweek as Early-Season Trough Approaches

Hawaii Anticipates Heavier Rainfall Midweek as Early-Season Trough Approaches

Hawaii is preparing for potential heavier rainfall in the coming week, particularly midweek, due to an early-season trough settling northwest of the state. Stable conditions and moderate to breezy trade winds are expected through Monday, with winds becoming lighter on Tuesday, which could lead to afternoon clouds and showers in interior sections of the islands. Forecast models indicate that this trough will pull deep tropical moisture northward, resulting in more showers, especially for the western parts of the state. Kauai and Oahu are specifically identified as areas that could experience heavier rain and flash flooding from Wednesday night through Thursday, with the threat potentially lasting longer for Kauai. Additionally, a small long-period swell is anticipated to arrive late Sunday, boosting south-facing shorelines, while north shore waves will decline. East shore surf will remain choppy due to trade wind swell. Mariners should note a small craft advisory in effect for windier coastal and channel wa...
GolfweekGolfweek
Jeeno Thitikul wins Lotte Championship in Hawaii to earn her fourth LPGA title in 2026

Jeeno Thitikul wins Lotte Championship in Hawaii to earn her fourth LPGA title in 2026

The LPGA Player of the Year race maybe has a new candidate.
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EPA Publishes Guidance on Surfactant Reference Values Using New Approach Methods

EPA Publishes Guidance on Surfactant Reference Values Using New Approach Methods

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recently published four documents related to New Approach Methods (NAMs) to its New Chemicals Division (NCD) Reference Library. These documents provide guidance on surfactant reference values, specifically outlining a refined approach for inhalation risk assessment for surfactants. The NCD's new methodology utilizes the MucilAir™ three-dimensional human airway epithelial model, which underwent favorable peer review by the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) Scientific Advisory Panel (SAP) in 2018. The EPA is deriving human-relevant points of departure (POD) for respiratory irritation for two reference surfactants, Triton X-100 and oleoyl sarcosine, with the intent to incorporate a broader range of structurally diverse surfactant analogues as human-relevant data becomes available.
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New Study Reveals Complex Wolbachia Patterns in Hawaiian Mosquitoes, Impacting Chikungunya and Dengue Control Efforts

New Study Reveals Complex Wolbachia Patterns in Hawaiian Mosquitoes, Impacting Chikungunya and Dengue Control Efforts

A recent study published in the journal Parasites & Vectors has provided a detailed analysis of Wolbachia infection patterns in the Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus) across the Hawaiian Islands. This mosquito species is a significant vector for diseases such as dengue, chikungunya, and Zika viruses. The research, led by Sangwoo Seok and senior authors Eric P. Caragata and Yoosook Lee of the Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory at the University of Florida, found that Wolbachia is nearly universally present in Hawaiian Aedes albopictus populations, with 98.5% of tested mosquitoes infected. However, the composition of these infections is more complex than previously assumed. While every infected specimen carried the wAlbB strain, only 28.6% were superinfected with wAlbA, meaning the majority carry only a single Wolbachia strain. This finding deviates from the typical assumption of double infection for this species. The study also revealed sex-specific differences in infection dynamics, with females mo...
GolfweekGolfweek
Nelly Korda attends Packers game as Jeeno Thitikul chases a win in Hawaii

Nelly Korda attends Packers game as Jeeno Thitikul chases a win in Hawaii

As the No. 2-ranked golfer closes in on her fourth LPGA title of the season in Hawaii, the No. 1 player is close to home cheering on her favorite team.
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North Carolina DEQ Details NPDES Wastewater Permitting and Compliance

North Carolina DEQ Details NPDES Wastewater Permitting and Compliance

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NC DEQ) has provided comprehensive information regarding its National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Wastewater program. This program is responsible for regulating all wastewater discharges into surface waters within North Carolina to control water pollution. The Clean Water Act of 1972 established strict controls, with enforcement delegated to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which then created the NPDES to track and control point sources of pollution. North Carolina received permitting authority from the EPA in 1975. The primary method of control involves issuing permits to dischargers, setting limitations on wastewater flow and constituents. The NPDES program at the Division of Water Resources manages the issuance of these permits, determining the quality and quantity of treated wastewater a receiving stream can assimilate, and collaborating with regional offices. The program also establishes limits for various pollutants ...
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Former Republican Congresswoman Patricia Saiki of Hawaii Dies at 96

Former Republican Congresswoman Patricia Saiki of Hawaii Dies at 96

Patricia 'Pat' Saiki, the first Republican woman to represent Hawaii in the U.S. House of Representatives, has passed away at the age of 96. Saiki died of natural causes at her Honolulu home on September 30. Her political career spanned decades, beginning with her election to the Hawaii House of Representatives in 1968, followed by service in the state Senate. In 1986, she made history by becoming the first Republican elected to the U.S. House from Hawaii since its statehood in 1959, and only the second woman to represent the state in Congress. During her two terms in Washington, she played a key role in securing Republican support for legislation that provided an official apology and financial compensation for Japanese Americans incarcerated during World War II. She also advocated for environmental protections in Hawaii, successfully urging President George H.W. Bush in 1990 to halt the U.S. Navy’s use of Kahoʻolawe as a military bombing range. After an unsuccessful bid for a U.S. Senate seat, she was app...
AP NewsAP News
Florida's dengue outbreak is now the largest in the continental US in decades

Florida's dengue outbreak is now the largest in the continental US in decades

Florida is experiencing its largest dengue outbreak in decades, with over 250 locally acquired cases reported this year
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Largest Superfund Project Underway in Silver Bow Corridor to Remove Contaminated Material and Create Green Space

Largest Superfund Project Underway in Silver Bow Corridor to Remove Contaminated Material and Create Green Space

Work has commenced on the largest Superfund project in the Silver Bow Corridor, focusing on the 30-acre Diggings East site south of George Street. This site, previously an unpermitted municipal landfill and recreation area, is undergoing extensive cleanup. Approximately 400,000 cubic yards of tailings, wastes, and contaminated soils are being excavated. The project involves removing 240,000 cubic yards of dry material, followed by 160,000 cubic yards of wet material. Atlantic Richfield is funding the project under a consent decree finalized in 2020, with EPA approval. The cleanup is expected to take 4 to 5 years, after which the area will be transformed into a public green space, similar in design to the Shiloh Conservation District in Billings. Temporary traffic lights are in place at Kaw Avenue and George Street, and a haul route is established along Montana and Excelsior Streets to the Butte Mine Wastes Repository.