EHN Originals

Tara Dennehy moved to the Pacific Northwest in search of friendlier weather. East Coast summers were too hot, and winters aggravated her arthritis. Now, she lives in Vancouver, Canada, where winters are more accommodating to her disabilities. This summer, however, nearly sent her to the hospital. Dennehy has autonomic dysfunction, caused by underlying autoimmune conditions.…

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Take a moment and visualize: You’re walking down a street in a large city when you happen upon a bus stop. You see a few people waiting for the bus. The bus rolls up, passengers get off, and those waiting at the stop climb on. Who do you see? As the bus drives away, you…

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Editor’s note: This letter to the editor is in response to EHN’s Oct. 29 article, The ghosts in our water. Melanie Benesh presents an argument regarding strengthening EPA regulation of polyfluoroalkyl substances contaminating water sources utilizing the Clean Water and Air Acts. In this op-ed, she claims that although Congress was able to revise how…

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Pete Myers—founder and chief scientist of Environmental Health Sciences, which publishes Environmental Health News—will join the Healthy Materials Lab at Parsons School of Design tomorrow for a live podcast taping on plastic pollution and toxicity. The podcast is part of the Lab’s “Fall of Plastics” series, which features three online lectures about the need to…

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Since 2019, more than 320 toxic substances have been detected in U.S. drinking water systems, according to a new analysis by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a nonprofit environmental advocacy organization. Those harmful chemicals are linked to cancer, adverse birth and reproduction outcomes, impaired brain development, and a revolving door of other deleterious health impacts.…

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The world’s governments are gathering in Glasgow to work towards an international climate change agreement. The last 30 years since the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change launched has seen a lot of ups and downs. The U.S. has been a mercurial partner. National governments have argued over costs, responsibility, equity, and accountability. More…

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Let’s lend our senses to the bird song of Sacred Roots Herbal Sanctuary in West Virginia. Founded by Hillary Banachowski, this mixed forest and regenerative agricultural landscape is a haven for life. Hillary dives into her motivation behind creating Sacred Roots as well as her journey into medical herbalism: healing in connection with the Earth.…

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On a steamy June day in 1988, NASA scientist James Hansen testified before a U.S. Senate committee on the likelihood of climate change and its impacts. The hearing, chaired by then-Senator Al Gore, marks the first time that climate change received major attention in U.S. media. Axios took measure of Hansen’s—and by extension, Gore’s—predictions 30…

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Every year, 3.8 million people lose their lives to illness from household air pollution caused by cooking with unclean fuels such as wood, charcoal, coal, animal dung, and crop waste, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). New research suggests the potential long-term economic fallout from the pandemic and possible fuel price spikes caused by…

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If we are to have any chance of addressing the global plastics crisis, Polyvinyl Chloride plastic (PVC) also known as vinyl, has got to go. It cannot be produced sustainably or equitably. It cannot be “optimized.” It cannot be recycled. It will never find a place in a circular economy, and it makes it harder…

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