Water Online's EPA Weekly

  1. EPA Stream Restoration Research Supports Chesapeake Bay Recovery 6/4/2019

    Fifty-one billion gallons. That’s the average amount of water flowing into Chesapeake Bay on a daily basis. And as all that water seeps, flows, and cascades across the watershed before it spills out into the Bay — the nation’s largest estuary — it picks up signature characteristics of where it has been.

  2. EPA Researchers Share Lessons Learned From Citizen Science Research Projects 5/21/2019

    Environmental Health Assessments (EHAs) are used to better understand the range of possible effects of environmental factors on a community’s health and wellbeing. These assessments are defined by EPA researchers as “methodical evaluations of air, water, and soil pollution impacts on human health and the environment.”

  3. Update To Chemical Dashboard Adds Wealth Of Chemical And Biological Data And Improves User Interface 5/7/2019

    To ensure informed chemical safety decisions can be made about thousands of chemicals, scientists and decision makers need a constantly evolving set of tools for quickly and efficiently evaluating chemicals of interest. EPA scientists have recently released an update to the online Computational Toxicology (CompTox) Chemicals Dashboard to help advance these efforts. The website has been updated with new data and functionality every six months for the past three years.

  4. New Research Shows That Exposure To Chemicals Like BPA Disrupts Microbial Communities In Zebrafish 12/18/2018

    Bisphenol A (BPA) is an industrial chemical that has been used to make certain plastics and resins since the 1960s. In recent years, science has shown that exposure to BPA and its alternatives can result in possible human health effects. Adverse effects on neurodevelopment, behavior, metabolism, and the immune and cardiovascular systems have been found in human and animal models. As a result, regulators and researchers are interested in learning more about bisphenol chemicals.

  5. EPA Uses Floating Vegetated Islands To Remove Excess Nutrients From Water 12/4/2018

    Harmful algal blooms — the overgrowth of algae in water — are a major problem across the nation. Blooms occur when excess nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus), combine with sunlight, and warm temperatures in water bodies. They can cause severe, negative impacts on aquatic ecosystems, the economy, and human health.

  6. Helping Preserve And Promote The Cultural Significance Of Kingsbury Bay And Grassy Point 11/9/2018

    The cities of Duluth, Minnesota and Superior, Wisconsin, and the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa reservation are all situated at the western end of Lake Superior, along the St. Louis River where it flows into the lake.

  7. Onshore Crude Oil Decontamination Using A Water Security Test Bed 11/6/2018

    Onshore crude oil production has increased in the United States over the past few years. Oil producers, specifically the North Dakota Pipeline Authority and the Bakken Shale field producers are transporting crude oil by rail and train to both the East and West Coast oil refineries. While rail tends to be one of the safer and more efficient ways of transporting crude oil, there is still a risk of a spill. Oil spills are threats to both ground and surface waters, which can ultimately impact drinking water.

  8. Identifying The Best Lead Sampling Techniques To Protect Public Health 10/23/2018

    If lead is found in drinking water, it is important to identify where it is coming from within the water system — that means taking samples at every stage, from the distribution system all the way to the plumbing system inside the home, also known as premise plumbing.

  9. New Testing Method For Lead And Arsenic In Contaminated Soil Saves Money And Protects Public Health 10/10/2018

    EPA recently validated an innovative new technology to guide the cleanup of soils contaminated with arsenic and lead. The new laboratory method, based on a “virtual stomach” that mimics human digestion, estimates the bioavailability of arsenic and lead in soils quickly and inexpensively relative to animal models. This method will increase the accuracy of Human Health Risk Assessments, potentially reducing remediation costs.

  10. Microbial Source Tracking: How Did That Get In There? 9/13/2018

    An estimated 90 million illnesses each year are caused by exposure to microbial contaminants in U.S. recreational waters, costing approximately $2.2- $3.7 billion in medical bills. Much of the contamination is a result of human or other animal feces getting into the water.