Wednesday, 15 Aug 2007

Lead, Swallow, or Get Out of the Play

Mattel adds to recall of millions of lead-painted toys

In yet another blow to Big Toy, Mattel Inc. yesterday recalled some 9 million China-made playthings. While most were sets containing potentially swallowable magnets, the toymaker also pulled 253,000 lead-painted die-cast cars. Earlier this month, Mattel pulled an additional 1.5 million toys thought to be colored with lead paint, the first time it had ever issued a recall due to that toxic substance; the dangerous-toy recall boom kicked off in June with RC2's pullback of 1.5 million lead-painted Thomas the Tank Engine trains. All of the recalled toys originated in China, as did nearly all of the 6.7 million pieces of lead-painted children's jewelry recalled by the Consumer Product Safety Commission earlier this year. China produces about 80 percent of children's toys sold in the U.S. "There is no excuse for lead to be found in toys entering this country," says acting CPSC chairperson Nancy Nord. "It's totally unacceptable and it needs to stop." And soon -- the holiday shopping season is nigh!

Um, If It's Not Too Much Trouble?

EPA suggests wishy-washy compromise in Indiana BP permit mess

Officials from the U.S. EPA have stepped in to quell the furor over a controversial permit the state of Indiana granted to a BP refinery. The permit will allow BP to discharge more ammonia and sludge into Lake Michigan -- at legal limits, but increased over previous amounts. Residents and politicians in Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and nationwide are up in arms over the decision: several city councils have passed resolutions opposing it, as has the U.S. House of Representatives; at least one Chicago alderman is calling for a BP boycott; and Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels (R) has called for a review of the state's permitting process. So what's EPA's solution to the whole mess? The agency, meeting with company officials today, will nicely ask BP to invest in nearby pollution-reduction projects like sewer upgrades and shoreline restoration. "If BP can't or won't do more at its own facility," says EPA regional administrator Mary Gade, "perhaps they can do more to protect the lake in other ways."


Conventional meat production is a nasty, cruel business. So is organic meat production any better? Do organically raised piggies get to frolic amongst the flowers? Advice maven Umbra Fisk pokes around for porcine enlightenment, explaining what organic actually means in this context -- and suggesting a couple of other certifications that might better ease meat-eaters' minds.

Evian Is Just Evil Misspelled

Hatin' on plastic water bottles is all the rage

Forget SUVs and Styrofoam: hip-to-the-times green folk are directing their ire at plastic water bottles. In the last few months, the energy-intensiveness of bottled water -- 1.5 million barrels of oil go into making the bottles for the U.S. market each year, and oodles more to transporting the H2O -- has seeped into the public consciousness. Big-city mayors have urged residents to stop hitting the bottle, and highfalutin restaurants are serving filtered tap water. Advocates point out that water flows freely in nearly every U.S. home, while 38 billion recyclable plastic vessels are trashed every year. Hoping to cash in on the latest consumer trend, Nestle will roll out its water brands in a bottle made of 30 percent less plastic, while Nalgene has teamed up with water-filtration giant Brita to launch a bottle-reduction campaign called FilterForGood. Then again, some Nalgenes and other hard plastic containers contain the icky chemical compound bisphenol A. Which is why we stick with martinis.

Two, Four, Six, Eight, Why Do We Procrastinate?

Big Auto to host fuel-economy rallies in Midwestern cities

Revved up over fuel-economy rules, Detroit's Big Three automakers and the United Auto Workers will hold rallies in Chicago and St. Louis this week and next. The demonstrations are a reaction against the U.S. Senate energy bill, passed in June, which would raise fuel economy for both cars and trucks to 35 miles per gallon by 2020; Big Auto is throwing its steely heft behind a lamer House fuel-economy bill, which would keep car and truck standards separate and make improvements more slowly. "This is a bottom line, food-on-the-table concern for these workers," said John Bozzella, a Chrysler VP who is one of many seeking to paint the ol' environment vs. economy picture. "It's all about whether auto plants in the Chicago area will continue to operate." But David Friedman of the Union of Concerned Scientists shot back, "It's the kinder, gentler scare tactic that's based on misinformation ... Are they really telling these workers if fuel economy standards go up, they are going to shut down their plant?"