President Obama and his Russian counterpart, President Dmitri A. Medvedev, have broken through a logjam in their arms control negotiations and expect to sign a new treaty in Prague next month that would slash American and Russian nuclear arsenals, officials from both nations said Wednesday.

It's deadly, it’s America's second-biggest river of industrial waste, and it’s barely regulated. Read Jeff Goodell, noted author of Big Coal, on coal ash.

For decades, Mossville residents have complained about health problems. Many in this predominantly African-American community in southwest Louisiana suspect the 14 chemical plants nearby have played a role in the cancer and other diseases they say have ravaged the area.

CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta explains why a 1976 toxic chemical law may be putting Americans at risk.

Speaking at the Global Zero non-proliferation summit in Paris today, Undersecretary of State Ellen Tauscher said that Washington and Moscow are in the "endgame" of negotiations to sign a successor strategic arms reduction treaty.

U.S. and Russian arms-control negotiators have reached an "agreement in principle" on the first nuclear-arms-reduction treaty in nearly two decades, administration and arms-control officials said Tuesday.

A trio of House lawmakers yesterday introduced a bill to block U.S. EPA's authority to regulate greenhouse gases, marking the latest in a string of bipartisan attacks against forthcoming climate rules.

The coal ash industry manipulated reports and publications about the dangers of coal combustion waste, reports Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). The group stated that the Environmental Protection Agency allowed the multibillon-dollar coal ash industry to have virtually unfettered access to the EPA during the Bush administration and now under President Obama.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on Jan. 21 a new practice that will prevent chemical manufacturers from hiding the identities of chemicals that have been found to pose a significant risk to environmental or public health. The policy is a small step to increase the transparency of the nation's chemical laws.

In a shift of position, the Food and Drug Administration is expressing concerns about possible health risks from bisphenol-A, or BPA, a widely used component of plastic bottles and food packaging that it declared safe in 2008.

In November, researchers released a startling finding: In pregnant women, a study found that developing babies are being exposed to toxic chemicals from consumer products even before they take their first breaths. The finding is yet another confirmation that U.S. chemical safety laws are failing to safeguard health.

The Environmental Protection Agency proposed limiting the allowable amount of pollution-forming ozone in the air from 75 to between 60 and 70 parts per billion for any eight-hour period, significantly tightening rules the Bush administration had set for the nation's most widespread air pollutant.

An article by PSR's Dr. John Fogarty and Dr. Michael McCally discussing the dangers of carbon capture and storage. Full article requires subscription.

A new article by PSR's Dr. John Fogarty and Dr. Michael McCally, published in JAMA, warns of the dangers of carbon capture and sequestration.

Of the 84,000 chemicals in commercial use in the United States -- from flame retardants in furniture to household cleaners -- nearly 20 percent are secret, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, their names and physical properties guarded from consumers and virtually all public officials under a little-known federal provision.

Top US officials are now questioning why the United States still pursues a strategy based on the ability to annihilate its former foe. In a thorough review expected to be completed early this year, the size, structure, and even the very mission of America’s nuclear arsenal are being reconsidered as part of President Obama’s pledge to reduce the role of the world’s most deadly weapons.

Next year will be crucial for global nuclear non-proliferation efforts and all eyes will be on the United States and Russia to see if the two top atomic powers can reach a deal to reduce their arsenals.

An op-ed by PSR's Dr. Ira Helfand on how we can acheive a nuclear weapons free world. Dr. Helfand is representing PSR at this year's Nobel Peace Prize ceremony honoring President Obama.

Physicians for Social Responsibility is another group calling for tougher regulations on existing coal-fired power plants, said Dr. Maureen McCue of Iowa City, who is active with that group. “The health impacts of coal are direct, measurable, serious and significant,” she said.

Physicians for Social Responsibility today released a groundbreaking medical report, “Coal’s Assault on Human Health,” which takes a new look at the devastating impacts of coal on the human body. By examining the impact of coal pollution on the major organ systems of the human body, the report concludes that coal contributes to four of the top five causes of mortality in the U.S. and is responsible for increasing the incidence of major diseases already affecting large portions of the U.S. population.