This paper brings together over 250 published and unpublished studies on the environmental properties, fate, and toxicity of the four major, high-volume surfactant classes and relevant feedstocks. The surfactants and feedstocks covered include alcohol sulfate or alcohol sulfate (AS), alcohol ethoxysulfate (AES), linear alkylbenzene sulfonate (LAS), alcohol ethoxylate (AE), and long-chain alcohol (LCOH). These chemicals are used in a wide range of personal care and cleaning products.

In June, 2014, 20 experts from nine countries met at the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC; Lyon, France) to assess the carcinogenicity of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), tetrafluoroethylene (TFE), dichloromethane (DCM), 1,2-dichloropropane (1,2-DCP), and 1,3-propane sultone (1,3-PS). These assessments will be published as volume 110 of the IARC Monographs.

Children today are sicker than they were a generation ago. The past few decades have seen a rapid rise in the consumption of synthetic pesticides. The world now uses about 2.3 million tonnes of pesticides every year, which is 50 times more than in 1950.

Greenpeace has recently published a number of investigations showing that a wide range of textile products, manufactured and sold in many countries around the world, can contain residues of hazardous substances, including hormone-disrupting alkylphenols and their ethoxylates, reprotoxic phthalates, highly persistent per- and polyfluorinated chem

Greenpeace International has found a broad range of hazardous chemicals in children's clothing and footwear produced by eight luxury fashion brands. Read the report on this investigative study.

Cypermethrin is a synthetic pyrethoid mainly used against mango insect pests. Clams are good indicators of pesticide pollution and are known to be tolerant to pesticide accumulation. Acute toxicity experiment of Cypermethrin is carried out on estuarine clam, Marcia opima. The clam exhibited significant increase in protein content of gill in LC0 and LC50 group of clams while foot, male gonad and female gonad exhibited considerable decrease in protein content. Whereas, in LC0, mantle showed high protein content. In LC50 group, hepatopancreas exhibited high protein content.

Dietary exposure of children to Bisphenol A through feeding bottles under real use conditions was investigated. Polycarbonate is widely used in the manufacture of food containers and Bisphenol A can leach out into liquid food material. Three sets of six feeding bottles each from different brands were used in the study. In all cases the bottle treatment and the leaching conditions were selected so that each set of six bottles was subjected to real use conditions and for each liquid (milk, apple juice and water) a new set of six bottles was used.

Acute catastrophic events can cause significant damage to marine environments in a short time period and may have devastating long-term impacts. In April 2010 the BP-operated Deepwater Horizon (DWH) offshore oil rig exploded, releasing an estimated 760 million liters of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico. This study examines the potential effects of oil spill exposure on coral larvae of the Florida Keys.

Chronic exposure of bumblebees to two pesticides (a neonicotinoid and a pyrethroid) independently and in combination, at concentrations approximating field-level exposure, impairs natural foraging behaviour and increases worker mortality, with knock-on effects for brood development and colony success.

Mercury, a highly toxic heavy metal, has contaminated the environment of Sonbhadra in Uttar Pradesh. This new lab study by Centre for Science and Environment found the metal in not just soil and water samples, but also in people's blood.

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