TennesseeCitizenScienceWatch

Report Presents Designs for Study of Cancer Risks Near US Nuclear Facilities - ScienceNewsline

A proposed study could help determine if there is a link between living near nuclear power plants or other nuclear facilities and having a higher risk of cancer, but challenges and limitations exist, says a new report from the National Research Council, the operating arm of the National Academy of Sciences and National Academy of Engineering. The report recommends that a pilot study be completed first to evaluate the feasibility of a full-scale study, although the ultimate decision about whether to perform either would be the responsibility of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC), which sponsored the Research Council report.

Read the whole story at www.sciencenewsline.com

The pilot study focus would look at six nuclear power plants and one fuel cycle facility that provide a broad representation of plant designs and operating histories: Dresden, Ill.; Millstone, Conn.; Oyster Creek, N.J.; Haddam Neck, Conn.; Big Rock Point, Mich.; San Onofre, Calif.; and Nuclear Fuel Services, Tenn.

You can download the NAS study proposal free at the National Academies Press page for this report.

Radioactive iodine in Phila. water tied to thyroid patients

Government officials have now confirmed what they strongly suspected a year ago: The radioactive iodine-131 in some of the region's waterways, also found in minute amounts in Philadelphia's drinking water, is coming from thyroid patients.

After patients swallow the chemical in capsule or liquid form, some of it passes into their urine, which then enters the wastewater-treatment system and winds up in rivers that provide drinking water, the officials said.

Read the rest of the story at www.philly.com

Effects of environmental toxicants reach down through generations

ScienceDaily (Mar. 2, 2012) — A Washington State University researcher has demonstrated that a variety of environmental toxicants can have negative effects on not just an exposed animal but the next three generations of its offspring.

via www.sciencedaily.com

Here is the abstract from the study which you can download free at PLoS ONE:

Environmental factors during fetal development can induce a permanent epigenetic change in the germ line (sperm) that then transmits epigenetic transgenerational inheritance of adult-onset disease in the absence of any subsequent exposure. The epigenetic transgenerational actions of various environmental compounds and relevant mixtures were investigated with the use of a pesticide mixture (permethrin and insect repellant DEET), a plastic mixture (bisphenol A and phthalates), dioxin (TCDD) and a hydrocarbon mixture (jet fuel, JP8). After transient exposure of F0 gestating female rats during the period of embryonic gonadal sex determination, the subsequent F1–F3 generations were obtained in the absence of any environmental exposure. The effects on the F1, F2 and F3 generations pubertal onset and gonadal function were assessed. The plastics, dioxin and jet fuel were found to promote early-onset female puberty transgenerationally (F3 generation). Spermatogenic cell apoptosis was affected transgenerationally. Ovarian primordial follicle pool size was significantly decreased with all treatments transgenerationally. Differential DNA methylation of the F3 generation sperm promoter epigenome was examined. Differential DNA methylation regions (DMR) were identified in the sperm of all exposure lineage males and found to be consistent within a specific exposure lineage, but different between the exposures. Several genomic features of the DMR, such as low density CpG content, were identified. Exposure-specific epigenetic biomarkers were identified that may allow for the assessment of ancestral environmental exposures associated with adult onset disease.

Skytruth Alert: Herbicide Chemical near Jackson, TN

Report Details
NRC Report ID: 1004744
Incident Time: 2012-03-05 08:06:00
Nearest City: Jackson, TN
Location: CORNER OF UNIVERSITY PRKWY AND NORTH HIGHLAND
Incident Type: MOBILE
Material: HERBICIDE CHEMICAL
Medium Affected: LAND
Suspected Responsible Party: TRU GREEN
SkyTruth Analysis
Lat/Long: 35.696004, -88.829754 (Approximated from intersection)
Reported Spill Volume: 150 gallons
Report Description
CALLER STATED A BUSTED PIPE ON A TRUCK RESULTING IN A SPILL OF A HERBICIDE CHEMICAL.

via alerts.skytruth.org

New Environmental Justice Strategies Designed to Protect Health of All Americans

“Working together we have been able to make environmental justice a focus not just for EPA, but for agencies across the administration. Each of our federal partners plays a unique role in serving the American people, and each has a unique opportunity to ensure that our communities get the health and environmental protections they deserve,” said U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa P. Jackson. “If we aspire to build an economy and a society that works for every American, we can’t allow the heaviest burdens of pollution and health threats to fall on our poorest citizens. Bringing together our federal partners to tackle these challenges is a major step toward health, environmental and economic benefits in communities across the nation.”

“We know that all too often, low-income and minority families live in the shadows of some of the worst pollution, leading to higher rates of diseases and threatening the economic potential of their communities,” said Nancy Sutley, Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality. “With these environmental justice strategies, Federal agencies are following through on the Obama Administration’s commitment to reduce public health threats.”

via yosemite.epa.gov

See the Memorandum of Understanding and speific agency plans at EPA website.