Articles by Grist staff

Fat City

Environmental problems ranging from toxic waste to air pollution have long been recognized as having human health effects — but what about urban sprawl? A study released yesterday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says sprawl creates or exacerbates many common health problems, such as obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and asthma. The report […]

"Failure to Act" — Can We Blame Hollywood?

A coalition of California environmental, health, and community organizations sued the U.S. EPA yesterday for neglecting to enforce clean air standards in the state’s infamously smoggy Central Valley. An EPA official acknowledged that the agency had “failed to act” on a 1997 plan to improve air quality and said the lawsuit would force the agency […]

Oak Ridges: Boy!

Almost 1.2 million acres of threatened land north of Toronto would be protected by legislation to be announced today by the Ontario government. The conservation effort would protect more than 90 percent of the Oak Ridges Moraine, which is the source of groundwater for much of southern Ontario. The province plans to establish a $250 […]

Our Snicker

The Bush administration tucked its tail between its legs and decided yesterday to toughen the limit for arsenic in drinking water from 50 parts per billion to the 10 ppb. The stricter standard was originally approved by the Clinton administration, but then rejected by current U.S. EPA Administrator Christie Whitman, who questioned the science behind […]