Articles by Grist staff

Arsenic and Old Delays

Under threat of a lawsuit from enviros, the U.S. EPA yesterday proposed strict new regulations that would cut by 90 percent the permissible levels of arsenic in tap water. Arsenic, which can cause cancer and other health problems, is currently found at harmful levels in at least 10 percent of the nation’s community water supplies. […]

Take That Smog and Shove It

New York Gov. George Pataki (R) signed a controversial bill yesterday that aims to limit pollution drifting into New York from coal-burning power plants in the Midwest and South. The measure will fine New York companies that sell pollution allowances, which they earn by cleaning up their own emissions, to polluting facilities in Midwestern and […]

The Bonus Collector

A man enviros love to hate, Charles Hurwitz, chair and CEO of Maxxam Inc., got a good deal richer last year when he finally acceded to a government buyout of the Headwaters stand of ancient redwoods in Northern California. Filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission show that Hurwitz, whose company owns Pacific Lumber, was […]

Zion Tamer

Zion National Park in Utah yesterday became the first national park in the lower 48 states to ban automobiles from its most popular area. The National Park Service launched a shuttle-bus system that requires most visitors to leave their vehicles at the park entrance; people are also encouraged to bicycle and walk in the park. […]