The Huge Cost of Toxic Algae Contamination
The city of Toledo, Ohio, is spending an astounding $54 million on a new treatment facility to remove contaminants, including toxins produced by algae blooms, from its drinking water.
Articles by Anne Schechinger
Out-of-Season Algae Outbreaks on the Rise
Outbreaks of toxic algae in U.S. waterways usually happen in warmer months. But in a sign that the problem is growing worse, algae blooms were reported in December in Michigan and Washington state...
Farm Crisis? What Crisis? Ag Interests Cry Wolf on Economy
In the wake of President Trump's tariffs, agriculture interests are claiming that the farm economy is crashing. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said recently that farm debt is rising to levels not...
Update: Algae Outbreaks Rose 40 Percent in 2018
Outbreaks of potentially toxic algae in U.S. lakes, rivers and other waterways rose by an additional 40 percent this year compared to 2017, according to EWG's tracking of news reports.
UPDATE: Across U.S., Alarming Rise in Algae Outbreaks Plagues Lakes, Rivers and Beaches
Outbreaks of potentially toxic algae in U.S. lakes, rivers, streams and even the Gulf of Mexico continue to rise sharply this summer, according to EWG's ongoing tracking of algae outbreaks.
Florida’s Beaches and Waterways Devastated by Unprecedented Algae Outbreaks
An unprecedented environmental catastrophe is striking Florida's storied beaches, lakes and rivers this summer. Outbreaks of three separate strains of harmful algae are killing fish and other marine...
UPDATE: Algae Outbreaks Rise Sharply from Coast to Coast
Outbreaks of potentially toxic algae are rising sharply this summer in lakes, rivers and streams in the U.S., according to EWG's ongoing tracking of algae outbreaks.
This Fourth of July, Watch Out for Toxic Algae Blooms in Lakes
Millions of people could be exposed to potentially toxic algae blooms this July Fourth holiday.
Senate Farm Bill Amendment Would Rein in Crop Insurance Subsidies for the Rich
A new amendment to the Senate farm bill that limits crop insurance subsidies for the wealthiest farmers would save taxpayers more than $490 million dollars over the next 10 years.
Algae Outbreak Poisons Another City’s Drinking Water
An outbreak of poisonous algae has forced officials in Salem, Ore., to warn citizens that infants, children and vulnerable adults should not drink the city's tap water.
As House Weighs GOP Farm Bill, Subsidy Spending Keeps Soaring
Federal farm subsidies are now likely to cost almost $12.6 billion more than originally anticipated when lawmakers passed the 2014 Farm Bill.
House Committee’s Farm Bill Would Make It Easier for Millionaires to Get Subsidies
The majority of federal farm subsidies already go to the wealthiest farmers: The top 10 percent of recipients received 77 percent of subsidies between 1995 and 2016. But a provision in the House...
Strict Work Requirements to Get Food Stamps, But Not Farm Subsidies
Proposals to tighten work requirements for low-income Americans who receive food stamps are halting progress on a new farm bill – meanwhile, work requirements for farm subsidies are almost nonexistent...
New USDA Subsidy Program Will Send Hundreds of Millions of Dollars to Cotton Farmers
A new federal farm subsidy program for cotton growers could cost taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars.
USDA Confirms Subsidies Overwhelmingly Flow to Wealthiest Farmers
A new report from the Department of Agriculture confirmed what EWG has been saying for years: Farm subsidies overwhelmingly go to the largest and most successful farm businesses, instead of to...
Double Dipping: How Taxpayers Subsidize Farmers Twice for Crop Losses
Between 2014 and 2015, three federal farm subsidy programs paid farmers multiple times for the same loss in crop yield or decline in crop price.
Planting Trees Helped End the Dust Bowl. Crop Subsidies Reward Farmers Who Rip Them Out.
During the Dust Bowl of the 1930s, the federal government planted 220 million trees to stop the blowing soil that devastated the Great Plains.
Rice and Beans: $1.20 in New York, $73 in Haiti
People in developing nations don't go hungry because there's not enough food to go around. It's because they're poor.
Congressional Budget Office: Farm Subsidies Costing Taxpayers $7.5 Billion More Than Expected
While many Americans were anxiously awaiting the Congressional Budget Office's analysis of the Senate health care bill, this week the CBO released another important analysis: that the price tag on...
‘Retired’ Sensitive Cropland: Here Today, Gone Tomorrow?
Instead of expanding CRP, more funding in the 2018 Farm Bill should go to both of these highly effective programs. That would be a better deal for taxpayers, the environment and public health.
