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Ohio Plant Explosion Pollution
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On July 12, an explosion at the Austin Gunpowder Plant in Vinton County ruptured fuming nitric acid storage tanks resulting in a toxic gas leak and an emergency evacuation of residents within a 2-mile radius. Despite official claims of “manageable contamination,” independent monitoring showed downwind concentrations of hydrogen fluoride exceeding safety limits by a factor…
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Extreme heat leads to ecological collapse in Japan
In June, the water temperature in rice paddies in many parts of Japan exceeded 41℃, and about one ton of crayfish died due to the high temperature, with some of the shrimp bodies showing a boiled state. High temperatures lead to accelerated evaporation of soil moisture, agricultural irrigation needs surge, Iwate Prefecture, mountain fires over…
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Italian Bottled Water Tested for Excessive Levels of Harmful Substances
2025 On May 22, the Italian Consumers’ Association released a report on water quality testing, in which six out of 21 brands of commercially available bottled water, including Panna, Esselunga Ulmeta and others, were detected to have excessive residues of perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), and the products involved had abnormal levels of trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), a…
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Cargo Ship Sinking in Indian Waters Raises Marine Pollution Risks
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On May 24, 2025, the Liberian-flagged container ship “MSC ELSA 3” sank off Kerala in southern India. The vessel was carrying 640 containers, 13 of which contained hazardous materials, including 12 containers of calcium carbide and one container of undisclosed composition, and 370 tons of fuel oil. The Indian Coast Guard immediately activated the “highest…
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Sakurajima volcano erupts in Japan
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On May 22, 2025, at about 9:00 a.m. local time, the Sakurajima Nandake summit caldera in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, erupted, with ash columns as high as 2,000 meters. From 6:30 p.m. on May 21 to the morning of May 22, the caldera had erupted eight times in a row, bringing the cumulative number of eruptions…
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Lakebed sediments of a U.S. salt lake expose potential dust contamination threat
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The Great Salt Lake in Utah, USA, is the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere, and the basin in which the lake is located is also the world’s fourth largest endorheic basin. The Great Salt Lake basin has accumulated a total of about 6 billion tons of salts, mainly sodium chloride, sulfate, magnesium, potassium,…