The Supreme Court will hear arguments next week over a preemption question. John Durnell is one of over 100,000 lawsuits from cancer patients blaming Roundup weedkiller for making them sick. The key to Roundup’s effectiveness is glyphosate, a compound that kills weeds and pests at a plants’ roots without harming crops.

USDA announced reorganization of the Research, Education, and Extension (REE) and Food Safety mission areas. Reorganization will move over 200 technical and administrative staff from the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) out of the National Capital Region and close one of USDA’s historic research centers, the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (BARC). Previous reorganizations have led to loss of staff and knowledge. NSAC submitted feedback to USDA in September 2025.

Diflufenican has been approved in the EU since 2009. Its approval was supposed to expire in 2018, but it has been extended until the end of 2026. The European Commission and Member States will meet on 5-6 May. PAN Europe, Générations Futures, PAN Germany and Global 2000 have urged the Commission to present the non-renewal in line with the science and the law.

A chemical leak at a silver recovery business in Institute, West Virginia, killed two people and injured about 30 others. One person is in serious condition. Shelter-in-place order was issued for the surrounding area, but it was lifted five hours later. The owner of Catalyst Refiners promises to work with local, state and federal officials.

Sarah Giragosian's mother died of esophageal cancer. She has many questions about the cause of her death. Edges are ecotones, transitional zones, places of danger or opportunity. Rachel Carson wrote that there is an ecology of the world within our bodies.

California Senate Bill 982 would make fossil fuel companies pay for climate-driven insurance problems. It was advanced by the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday. The bill would create a fund to pay for the damages caused by climate change. It would also create a grant program to help communities reinforce their homes to better withstand extreme weather and climate disasters. Industry groups oppose the bill.

Minnesota and New Mexico have laws that require manufacturers to provide details to state regulators and the public about products with intentionally added PFAS. The association between some PFAS and adverse health effects means the information could be used to compel cleanups, increase regulatory scrutiny, prompt reformulation of products, and spur scientific research. There are valid reasons to use PFAS in some components.

Paul R. Ehrlich died last month at 93. He was a biologist and author of The Population Bomb. In 1970, he predicted that in the 1970s and 1980s hundreds of millions of people would starve to death. In 2013, he wrote that a global collapse appears likely. In 2018, he stated that a “shattering collapse of civilization is a ‘near certainty’’