** The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Wednesday proposed designating one of the toxic substances spilled by a train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, as a high-priority chemical under the Toxic Substances Control Act, the next step to a full ban. Vinyl chloride, a hazardous substance used in the production of plastics, is one of five chemicals for which the EPA announced it will explore a designation.
** Air pollution is worsening near massive e-commerce warehouses as a result of constant traffic around these hubs, a new study found. The new study was led by researchers at The George Washington University and published in the Nature Communications journal on Wednesday, reported The Hill.
** Toxic “forever chemicals” are increasingly appearing in U.S. pesticides — contaminating waterways and posing a possible threat to human health, a new study has found. Pesticides containing these compounds, called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), are used widely nationwide on staple foods, such as corn, wheat, kale, spinach, apples and strawberries, according to the study, published Wednesday in Environmental Health Perspectives.
** A man shot three tree workers while they were clearing trees for a power company before being shot himself by police officers during his arrest, police said. The incident began near Murphytown, North Carolina, located in the Green Mountain area of Yancey County.
** General Motors Co.’s profit surged 60% from a year ago, easily beating Wall Street’s expectations on strong demand for gas-powered trucks in the US.
** Ford loses nearly $50,000 (£38,700) on every electric car it sells, results from the company show, as traditional manufacturers struggle with the switch away from petrol. The company posted a loss of $1.1bn for its electric vehicle division, Ford E – equivalent to about $47,600 per car. It sold 23,957 electric vehicles (EVs), an increase of 61pc from a year earlier.
World
** Japan’s Honda Motor will close a factory in China and halt vehicle production at another plant, the automaker said on Thursday, as it seeks to start producing more electric vehicles amid heavy competition from Chinese brands.
** Nissan tumbled more than 10 percent on Thursday after the Japanese automaker issued a profit warning, citing “intense sales competition”, especially in the United States. The company and its domestic rivals are also struggling to stand their ground in China’s market as fast-growing electric vehicle firms backed by Beijing race ahead.
** A Philippine-flagged tanker carrying 1.4 million litres of industrial fuel oil capsized and sank off Manila on Thursday, authorities said, as they raced to contain a spill. The MT Terra Nova was heading for the central city of Iloilo when it capsized in Manila Bay, nearly seven kilometres (4.3 miles) off Limay municipality in Bataan province, near the capital, in the early hours.