The Sciences
Losing Ground: Southeast Louisiana Is Disappearing, Quickly
A football field–sized area of land is being washed away every hour, and lawsuits are being filed to hold oil and gas companies responsible for the destruction
Stories by ProPublica
Tech
"Less Lethal" Flash-Bangs Leave Some Feeling the Burn
Flash-bang devices are one of many military-style weapons being used in Ferguson, along with tear gas and beanbag munitions
Sustainability
Drillers Illegally Using Diesel Fuel to Frack
An analysis by an environmental group finds hundreds of cases in which drillers used diesel fuel without obtaining permits and sometimes altered records
Sustainability
EPA Criticized for Weak Oversight of Drillers' Toxic-Waste Disposal Wells
A Government Accountability Office report says environmental regulators are failing to adequately enforce rules for wells used to dispose of toxic waste from oil and gas drilling
Sustainability
California Halts Injection of Fracking Waste into Ground
The state warns that fracking for natural gas might be contaminating aquifers used as a source for drinking water
Sustainability
Fracking Regulations Weak and Scarce Despite Natural Gas Bonanza
In Ohio, where gas drilling is booming and toxic waste abundant, legislators have acted modestly to address concerns about public safety
Sustainability
In Fracking Fight, How to Measure Health Threats?
The more than 6,000 active gas wells in Pennsylvania generate scores of complaints each week, many about terrible odors and contaminated water
Society & Policy
Drilling for Certainty: The Latest in Fracking Health Studies
The health implications of hydraulic fracking for natural gas remain understudied, however, some findings point to birth defects and low birth-weight babies
Health
Why a Safety Device That Can Stop Overdoses by Kids Isn't Widely Used
A flow restrictor on liquid medicine bottles could prevent accidental ingestions, but drugmakers have yet to promise or deliver such protection on many pediatric medicines
Health
Leading Drug Company to Quit Paying Doctors for Promotional Talks
GlaxoSmithKline, which makes Advair for asthma, Lovaza for high triglyceride levels and the diabetes drug Avandia, is under pressure facing all drug companies for greater transparency in payments to doctors, a provision of Obamacare...
The Sciences
Federal Flood Maps Left New York Unprepared for Sandy, and FEMA Knew It
FEMA missed chances to make changes that could have protected city dwellers from some of the worst of Sandy’s destruction
Health
How Many Die from Medical Mistakes in U.S. Hospitals?
An updated estimate says it could be at least 210,000 patients a year, more than twice the number in a frequently quoted Institute of Medicine report
Sustainability
High Levels of Arsenic Found in Groundwater Near Fracking Sites
A new report finds poisonous arsenic contamination in Texas occurring in close proximity to natural gas extraction
Tech
5 Basic Unknowns about the NSA "Black Hole"
It's still unclear if the National Security Agency has been collecting all Americans' phone and other records, and for how long
Sustainability
New FEMA Flood Maps Needed, but Funding Is Slashed
Updated flood insurance maps, made with LiDAR, laser radar or new computer programs, are increasingly important with global warming
Sustainability
Why Didn't Regulators Prevent the Texas Fertilizer Explosion?
Seven different agencies regulate fertilizer plants in Texas, but none has authority over how close they are to homes and schools
Health
In Second Case of Flawed Drug Research, FDA Response Was Slow and Secretive
A recently exposed case of the agency's handling of drugs that reached the market in spite of fraudulent studies is no anomaly. The agency's response mirrors how it handled an earlier instance of scientific misconduct at another contract research organization...
Health
FDA Lets Drugs Approved on Fraudulent Research Stay on the Market
The FDA in 2011 announced years' worth of studies from a major drug research lab were potentially worthless, but it has not pulled any of the compounds from the market nor identified them...
Sustainability
Poisoning the Well: How the Feds Let Energy and Mining Companies Pollute Underground Water
Aquifer exemptions give industry permission to pollute underground freshwater reservoirs
Sustainability
How Safe Are America's 2.5 Million Miles of Pipelines?
The nation's aging oil pipelines are roughly 70 times safer than trucks when it comes to transporting fuel. But when a pipeline does fail, the consequences can be catastrophic
