Two major cosmetic companies will omit harmful chemicals from products Revlon Inc. and L'Oreal USA have pledged to follow the European Union's relatively strict new anti-toxics rule in formulating their perfumes, hair dyes, makeup, and other products for sale in the U.S. The two companies were convinced to take the step by San Francisco's Breast Cancer Fund, which wants to shield Americans from a noxious soup of chemicals -- suspected of causing cancer, infertility, and birth defects -- commonly found in products applied directly to bare skin and scalps. The U.S. cosmetic sector is governed by an industry-financed review board, …

Anti-nuke opposition muted even as U.S. nuclear industry expands Opponents of nuclear power in the U.S. have been having a rough time of late attracting attention to their cause, even as the nuclear-power industry gears up to build five new reactors by 2015 and as many as 50 by 2050, with enthusiastic backing from the Bush administration. Concerns over high oil prices, enthusiasm over the prospect of nuke-plant jobs, and smart, targeted lobbying by nuke execs have combined to put the industry on its strongest footing in years. Generous new federal subsidies and the prospect of more in the near …

Inauguration funded by industry; cynics jump to conclusions Yesterday we reported on an interview in which President Bush said that nuclear energy answers the "environmental issue" and the "dependency issue." Turns out it also partially answers the "incredibly expensive inauguration issue." The Nuclear Energy Institute, a lobbying group, is coughing up $100,000 for the lavish $40 million-plus affair, though that's small beans compared to the bucks being put up by a number of oil, gas, and mining companies. They join more than 100 interests (companies, trade associations, and individual executives), nearly all of which have benefited from the Bush administration's …

EPA finds possible risks in Teflon, will study further The U.S. EPA yesterday released the preliminary results of its inquiry into the health effects of a chemical used in making Teflon, saying it found "a potential risk of developmental and other adverse effects" but also that there are "significant uncertainties" in its assessment. The agency has called together a special panel for further study of perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA, an agent used to make fluoropolymers, which in turn are involved in the manufacture not only of Teflon but telephone cables, clothing, computer chips, carpets, and other consumer goods. Part of …

Silicon Valley gets excited about clean-energy tech Rising oil prices and increasing competition from fast-developing countries like China have some energy entrepreneurs in California's tech-savvy Silicon Valley increasingly excited about the potential of good ol' American ingenuity to curb the world's addiction to fossil fuels -- and make a buck doing it. Companies like SunPower are working to make solar panels among the most efficient in the world, and Genencor expects to be able to make clean-burning plant-derived ethanol competitive with gasoline in three to five years. Bob Epstein, founder of Environmental Entrepreneurs, a Silicon Valley clean-technology group, sees the …

Lots more hybrids and hydrogen cars in the pipeline We begin with a public service announcement: Quit driving so damn much. Ride your bike. Take a bus. Walk. OK, with that out of the way, we turn to auto news, which is plentiful. Ford announced it would add four new hybrids to its lineup, at least one by the end of the year. GM announced that it would add two, both SUVs. GM also made a splash by unveiling the Sequel, a hydrogen fuel-cell-powered car with a range of 300 miles, something of a milestone in the hydrogen car biz. …

eBay joins tech companies to launch electronics recycling program Wondering what to do with that old Commodore 64 or Macintosh II gathering dust in your basement? According to an eBay survey, you're not alone -- some 50 percent of American households have unwanted PCs in storage. That's why the online auction giant has launched an electronics recycling program they call Rethink. In a partnership with environmental groups, postal services, and major tech names including IBM, Intel Corp., Apple Computers, and Hewlett-Packard, eBay will serve as a conduit for sales, donations, or recycling of old electronic equipment. Enviros hope the program …

Monsanto agrees to pay $1.5 million in penalties for Indonesian bribes When agrochemical giant Monsanto's bid to introduce genetically modified cotton to Indonesia was met with widespread protests from farmers and activists, it bribed a government official in order to avoid having an environmental impact study conducted on its GM crop. Yesterday Monsanto agreed to pay $1.5 million in fines -- $1 million to the U.S. Justice Department and $500,000 to the Securities and Exchange Commission -- for violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The proximate cause was a $50,000 payment to a member of Indonesia's Ministry of the Environment, …

Specter pushing asbestos-claims bill that would create trust fund Amid a continuing flood of lawsuits against the allegedly cancer-causing asbestos industry, the new chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), has drafted a bill to try to stem the flow. Specter's legislation would establish a trust fund into which asbestos companies would pay billions of dollars to compensate victims; victims would be allowed to return to the courts if their claims remained unpaid. Past attempts to establish an asbestos victim trust fund, most recently in 2003, have failed, as asbestos-victims advocates maintain that the roughly $140 billion proposed …

ConocoPhillips withdraws from Arctic Refuge lobbying group ConocoPhillips, the third-largest energy company in the U.S., has withdrawn from Arctic Power, a lobbying group the sole purpose of which is to convince Congress to allow oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The company is playing down what it calls "merely a business decision," saying its intent is to focus on getting more black gold out of its current holdings on Alaska's North Slope. However, enviros and socially responsible investors are playing up the role of a campaign they organized, culminating in a shareholder resolution, urging the company to drop …