News & Press
Report: Dozens of Products in Maine Contain Phthalates
For the first time, manufacturers who use hormone-disrupting chemicals known as phthalates in their products have reported their use to the state of Maine. A new report released Thursdayby the Environmental Health Strategy Center reveals that phthalates are in more household items than previously thought. Read and listen to the full story here.
State filings show 130 products sold in Maine contain controversial chemical
A chemical suspected of causing health problems is found in 130 products sold in Maine, from hair conditioner to greeting cards, according to a new analysis of manufacturers’ data filed with state regulators. Read the full story here.
Maine Citizen-Led Effort Results in First-Ever Reporting of Toxic Phthalates
Maine is at the center of a new national report on hormone-disrupting chemicals called phthalates. What Stinks? Toxic Phthalates in Your Home, presents recently-disclosed information showing that hormone-disrupting chemicals are used in a broader range of household products than previously known. Thanks to Maine activists, manufacturers of paints and cleaning products available across the country… Read more »
The Consumer Game of Whack-a-Mole with Chemical Dangers
“The issues and regulation of BPA and its replacements are the story of the failed chemical safety system,” says former Maine House Speaker Hannah Pingree, the lead sponsor of the state’s first-in-the-nation Kids-Safe Products Act. “We weren’t wrong to try to phase out certain flame retardants or BPA, given their health impacts. But that the… Read more »
BPA Found in a Majority of Canned Foods
This television news report by WCSH6 reporter Chris Rose features Maine moms and an Environmental Health Strategy Center staff member.
Grant by Bangor Savings Bank Foundation an Investment in Biobased Manufacturing
BANGOR, Maine, April 5, 2016–The Bangor Savings Bank Foundation has awarded the Environmental Health Strategy Center a $15,000 grant to help develop a ”roadmap” for attracting investment in new Maine manufacturing that can help meet the rising global demand for renewable, petroleum-free raw materials and consumer products. “This grant award from our Foundation to Environmental Health Strategy Center signifies… Read more »
Moms and Doctors React Strongly to New Report on Toxic Chemical BPA
PORTLAND, Maine, March 30, 2016–Maine moms and doctors are voicing concern about the findings of a national report released today that show the results of testing nearly 200 cans of food for the presence of the dangerous chemical Bisphenol A (BPA). The tests revealed BPA’s presence in the linings of two out of three cans… Read more »
Health Organizations Call for Expanded Arsenic Testing in Well Water
“In 2004, I started having trouble with my skin,” says Richard Minoty, who with his wife moved into a housing complex in Belgrade in 2002. Belgrade is a hot spot for elevated arsenic levels. “Got more cancer — skin cancer – than anybody I’ve ever known,” Minoty says. Exposure to arsenic has been linked to… Read more »
Maine health and education organizations press LePage for action on arsenic in water
A coalition of health and education organizations are pressing the administration of Gov. Paul LePage to step up its efforts to reduce exposure of state residents to arsenic found in well water across the state. . . . The Environmental Health Strategy Center, the Maine Public Health Association, the Maine chapter of the American Academy… Read more »
Leading Maine Organizations Demand Action on Health Crisis
PORTLAND, Maine, March 2, 2016—Sick with a form of cancer linked to arsenic poisoning, Richard Minoty had lived for 11 years in an apartment complex in Belgrade when his doctor reviewed test results of drinking water from Richard’s kitchen. The doctor issued a prescription within minutes: move to a new home. “The doctor looked at… Read more »