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Study Finds High Rates of PTSD and Depression in East Palestine Months After Train Disaster
Nine months after a train derailed in East Palestine releasing toxic chemicals into the environment, locals were still feeling the effects — physically and mentally. That’s according to a new study published in the Journal of Traumatic Stress. In a survey of 1,000 adults who lived within 65 miles of the derailment site, more than half reported at least one physical health concern since the disaster. And many reported mental health effects too.
The study found the rate of PTSD among residents to be around 15%, about double the national average. The rate of major depression was high as well, with 13% of respondents meeting criteria for the disorder.
“These results are quite consistent with what we know about exposure to natural disasters and human-caused technological disasters,” said study author Cameron Pugach, with the Medical University of South Carolina. Researchers found similarly elevated rates of PTSD and depression following the lead water crisis in Flint, Michigan.
Explosion at Louisiana Oil Plant Leaves Black Community Coated in Toxic Fallout
Tyreik Taylor had barely wiped the oil from his hands when the sky behind him lit up.
Fifteen minutes after the 26-year-old drove home, a roar thundered from the plant where he helped mix chemicals for motor oil and had just punched out. Fire consumed the air, the collapsing metal groaning and liquids hissing as they escaped into the surrounding water, soil, and air. From his yard, he saw neighbors pointing at the rising smoke, not knowing he had been inside the plant only minutes before.
On Aug. 22, a catastrophic explosion erupted at Smitty’s Supply, a major lubricant manufacturing facility in a predominantly Black town about 60 miles northeast of Baton Rouge. The blaze swept through the 15-acre complex that housed half a million gallons of flammable materials. By Aug. 29, the Environmental Protection Agency confirmed toxic substances were found in soot following the Smitty’s Supply explosion.
An analysis of water and soil following the explosion detected arsenic, barium, chromium, lead and other hazardous materials like cancer-causing nitrobenzene. The agency maintains the position that the toxins are not a threat to human health.
Map Shows Thousands More Areas Where Groundwater Could Be Contaminated
A new study revealed there could be tens of thousands more groundwater sources contaminated with high concentrations of carcinogenic chemicals than previously found.
The researchers at the PFAS Project Lab predict there are 79,891 additional groundwater sites — up from the 57,412 sites initially reported — likely to have levels of PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as forever chemicals) higher than the Environment Protection Agency’s maximum contaminant level.
More than 40% of America’s population rely on groundwater for their drinking water supply, according to the National Groundwater Association. It is also used by the bottled water industry — in 2001, the industry used as much as 5.34 billion gallons of groundwater.
PFAS are classified as a Group 1 carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, and studies have continued to outline their potential health risks, including thyroid disease, liver disease and many others.
World Bank Urges Fresh Push on Economic Threat of Pollution
Degraded land, polluted air and water stress pose a direct global economic threat but using natural resources more efficiently could cut pollution by half, one of the World Bank’s senior managing directors told Reuters. The damage is particularly acute for low-income countries most at threat from poverty, climate change and biodiversity loss, Axel van Trotsenburg said.
Speaking alongside the publication of a new report on Monday, he said around 80% of people in low-income nations were exposed to all three and the World Bank was committed to responding even as many countries cut aid budgets.
More broadly, 90% of the world’s population face at least one of the challenges, with the report urging countries to repurpose subsidies currently spent on harmful activities.
The report is published against a fractious political backdrop ahead of November’s COP30 climate talks in Brazil. The World Bank and other multilateral lenders are also awaiting the outcome of a U.S. of their operations ordered by President Donald Trump in February.
PEER Petitions MAHA Commission to Remove PFAS From U.S. Food Chain
On Aug. 13, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) announced that it petitioned the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission to remove per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from the food chain. PEER notes that its petition highlights three human exposure pathways it asks the MAHA Commission to address:
Biosolid fertilizers made from sewage sludge contain high levels of PFAS. According to PEER, nearly 20 percent of U.S. agricultural land is estimated to use sludge-based fertilizers and as many as 70 million acres of farmland may be contaminated. PEER notes that PFAS from the sewage sludge are taken up by plants and accumulate in fruits, vegetables, meat, eggs, and dairy.
PEER states that “[t]he fluorination process used by a large manufacturer of plastic containers creates PFAS in their linings which leach into their contents, including into edible oils and flavorings.” According to PEER, an estimated 200 million containers a year are made this way.
Pesticides containing PFAS are used throughout the country on staple foods such as corn, wheat, kale, spinach, apples, and strawberries. PEER states that they “are also widely used in people’s homes in flea and tick treatments for pets and insect-killing sprays.”
Wealthy Enclave’s Sewage Reveals Higher Than Average Cocaine Levels in the Water
The sewage in New England’s exclusive Nantucket retreat is full of cocaine, according to local authorities, who this summer began testing it to monitor potential drug use in a popular summer getaway for the rich and powerful.
“During COVID, a lot of these communities, and most communities, decided that it was important for them to start testing the water to see if there were any spikes in COVID in the region.” said Randolph Rice, a Maryland attorney and legal analyst.
“But what Nantucket has now decided to do as of the beginning of the summer is to actually start testing for other types of substances, particularly drugs, nicotine and other items…within the system there. And what they’re finding is that there is a high level of cocaine.”
