Weekly Clips

 

Weekly Clips Current Issue

More Than 800 New Laws Will Go into Effect in Texas on Sept. 1. Here Are Some of the Significant Ones.

More than 800 new laws are about to take effect in Texas, and they are set to bring sweeping changes to the state’s education systems, water infrastructure and more.

Read Full Article

Corpus Christi’s Water Gamble: Behind the Promises, A Deal Built on Unknowns

In public, an elected official promised Corpus Christi a drought solution with "ridiculously low" water rates. Behind closed doors, the city's water experts couldn't get straight answers about the most basic questions: How much would it cost? What's the quality of the water? When could it be delivered?

Read Full Article

Corpus Christi Leaders Question Groundwater Deal as Critical Studies Remain Incomplete

Water is running low in South Texas, and some city leaders are questioning a proposed groundwater desalination deal. The South Texas Water Authority asked Corpus Christi to join its project with Seven Seas Water Group, potentially expanding from 3 to 30 million gallons of water per day. But with redacted documents and missing studies, council members are asking: What are we really signing up for?

Read Full Article

Texas Power Plants and Chemical Companies Benefit as Trump Eases Pollution Rules, Experts Say

For Donna Thomas, smokestacks are a typical sight from her home in Fort Bend County. Since she was a child, she has seen the coal and natural gas-powered W.A. Parish Generating Station puff clouds of haze during the day and light up brightly at night. The facility — which has been around since 1958 — is both part of the background and all she thinks about.

Read Full Article

A Cautious Case for Plastics Manufacturing Growth

For many years, I have enthusiastically advocated for a revitalization of the U.S. manufacturing sector. During this time, I maintained an optimistic attitude that not only was such a transformation possible but also that America would find a way to make it happen. Unfortunately, our elected leaders were either unable or unwilling to enact policy changes that would support such a transformation — until recently.

Read Full Article

Trump Tariffs Force Much-Needed Petrochemicals Contraction

U.S. President Donald Trump's trade wars are nudging the global plastics industry toward a painful but necessary restructuring to address acute overcapacity that has kept the industry’s profits in a prolonged slump.

Read Full Article

The Hidden Network that Makes Packaging Recycling Work

An efficient packaging recycling infrastructure underpins a circular economy, enabling materials like cardboard, glass, plastic and metal to be collected, sorted and transformed into new products.

Read Full Article

US Interior Department Proposes Adding Copper to Critical Minerals List

The U.S. on Monday proposed adding copper and potash among others to the draft critical minerals list for 2025, for their importance to the economy and national security. The Geological Survey, a branch of the U.S. Department of the Interior, released the draft list in the Federal Register and it will be open for public comment for 30 days.

Read Full Article

EPA Strips ‘Affirmative Defense’ from Polyether Polyols Air Toxics Rule

EPA is stripping “affirmative defense” provisions from its air toxics regulation governing polyether polyols (PEPO) manufacturers, as part of an ongoing effort to remove the measures that provide a shield from civil liability for industry in the event of malfunctions, after courts found such provisions unlawful.

Read Full Article

California’s Plan to List Microplastics as Candidate Chemical Draws Concern From Key Sectors

Industry groups have warned that California’s proposal to add microplastics to its Safer Consumer Products (SCP) candidate chemicals list could lead to unintended downstream consequences for transportation, fire safety, textiles and other critical areas.

Read Full Article

New Illinois Laws Restrict PFAS in Consumer Products and Firefighting Gear

Illinois has enacted a pair of laws banning intentionally added PFAS in consumer goods and prohibiting the persistent chemical class from firefighting personal protective equipment (PPE).

Read Full Article

New Map Exposes Which US Communities Have Dangerous Levels of Toxic Air Pollution — These Areas Are Most at Risk

Toxic air isn't spread evenly across the U.S. — some communities are being forced to shoulder the worst of it. A new map is exposing exactly where petrochemical pollution is most dangerous, and who's responsible.

Read Full Article

US Companies Launch Initiative to Improve Flexible Packaging Recycling

A coalition of companies has launched the US Flexible Film Initiative (USFFI), which aims to advance scalable solutions for recycling flexible packaging. A 13 August statement from USFFI said that while its members are developing designs for recyclability and increasing the use of recycled content, they recognise investment is needed to accelerate end-of-life solutions for flexible packaging such as bags, wraps and pouches.

Read Full Article

Industry News