lead paint

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That Cute Minnie Outfit You Bought May Be Chock-Full of Lead

Bentex recalls 87K Disney-themed clothing sets sold on Amazon, in TJ Maxx

(Newser) - A manufacturer of children's apparel has issued a recall of 87,000 Disney-themed outfits due to a risk of lead poisoning. The clothing sets made by Bentex—which feature characters such as Minnie Mouse, Baby Yoda, and Winnie the Pooh—were sold on Amazon and at TJ Maxx and...

If Landlords and Insurers Aren't Liable for Lead Paint, Who Is?

Victims are left with little recourse these days

(Newser) - A Virginia real estate developer was on a Caribbean vacation when he learned a tenant had won a $2 million judgement against him over lead paint poisoning. “Bummer,” the man thought, recounts Ellen Gabler for the New York Times , "How am I going to get out of...

Why a 1904 Paint Ad Has Advertisers Worried

It was used to push lead paint, and cited in a recent court ruling

(Newser) - Sherwin-Williams is asking the Supreme Court to take up a case regarding the historical sale of lead paint—and advertisements that go back more than a century. The move comes after a California court found Sherwin-Williams and two other paint brands responsible for health risks tied to lead paint and...

33 Fixer Upper Renovations Broke EPA Rules

Magnolia Homes will pay $40K fine in settlement

(Newser) - Fixer Upper stars Chip and Joanna Gaines are having to pay up for EPA violations seen on their hit HGTV show. The couple's business, Magnolia Homes, has agreed to pay a $40,000 fine after the EPA determined 33 of its home renovations were "conducted without adequate lead...

Paint Firms Told to Cough Up $1.1B for Lead Cleanup

Millions of California homes affected

(Newser) - A long-running California lawsuit has concluded with three paint companies being ordered to pay $1.1 billion to remove lead paint in 10 cities and counties. The judge ruled that the companies had created a "public nuisance" by selling the toxic paint for decades before it was banned in...

The Real Cause of Violent Crime: Leaded Gasoline

Lead poisoning created a generation of criminals: Kevin Drums

(Newser) - Violent crime has fallen in the US for years, but why? Experts have floated theories ranging from police techniques to the "crack epidemic" to the legalizing of abortion, but none quite fit the facts. One, however, does: lead poisoning. In Mother Jones , Kevin Drums reports that the rise and...

Hospital Study Exposed Kids to Lead: Lawsuit

Study placed children in poisonous homes, lawsuit says

(Newser) - Poor black children in Baltimore were exposed to "dangerous levels" of lead during a 1990s housing experiment, a new lawsuit claims. Families in the class action suit say the Kennedy Krieger Institute knowingly placed children in houses with high levels of lead-paint poisoning, the Baltimore Sun reports. But the...

Senate Backs Product Safety Crackdown

Sweeping changes in consumer laws

(Newser) - The Senate has passed a tough new product safety measure covering toys, household appliances and thousands of other products. It would ban lead in toys, increase civil penalties for hazardous products tenfold, enable more state regulation and create a database of dangerous items on the market. It also sets up...

Lead Exposure May Speed Mental Decline

Build-up of pollutants seen contributing to memory loss in elderly

(Newser) - Mental decline is widely considered an unavoidable aspect of aging, but a slew of recent studies link reduced functioning in the elderly to past lead exposure, the AP reports. Common pollutants aren't singlehandedly responsible for memory loss or tremors. But breathing or ingesting lead, pesticides, or mercury early in life...

New Tests: 35% of Toys Contain Some Lead

Many offenders still on shelves, environmental health groups say

(Newser) - Toy shelves are still lined with lead, according to test results released today from environmental health groups in nine states. Checking 1,268 toys, the groups found lead in 35%, with levels often surpassing federal recall standards. Only 23 of those toys have been recalled. “This is not about...

New Chinese Toy Recall Sparks Fury in Congress

Consumer agency 'overwhelmed'

(Newser) - The embattled Consumer Product Safety Commission announced yet another recall of dangerous toys from China yesterday as it came under withering fire in Congress over a recent wave of product safety problems.  Another half million toys made in China are being recalled because of lead paint contamination. The announcement...

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