While the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency mulls over the 42,000 letters sent from Earthjustice supporters and others who expressed support for safety standards protecting rural kids from pesticides, it's important to remember that pesticides aren't just limited to the fields.

Every spring, pet owners slick the backs of their dogs and cats with over-the-counter treatments designed to keep fleas and ticks at bay. The problem is that these treatments, which are also found stocked on shelves of pet stores nationwide in the spray, collar and shampoo form, contain toxic pesticides. Think of it as your very own bottle-o-poison.

The EPA has been keeping a watchdog's eye on these so-called spot-on treatments due to an increase in incident reports where pets have experienced adverse reactions that range from mild to downright serious.

Some top stories from the last week at Earthjustice…

While the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service decides whether to grant endangered species protections to wolverines, California had its first sighting of the small, bear-like creature in nearly a decade. DNA analysis suggests that the lovelorn Buddy has Idaho roots, but the verdict's still out on how he got to the sunshine state in the first place.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has its hands full this week sifting through tens of thousands of letters from Earthjustice supporters and their counterparts asking the agency to support an Earthjustice petition that will protect children from pesticide drift—a toxic vapor that travels from nearby agricultural fields.

Earthjustice campaigner Liz Judge summoned up her parents' sage old advice to encourage St. Patrick's Day enthusiasts to go green in a different way by supporting strong energy efficiency standards.

The latest column from Earthjustice president Trip Van Noppen concerning Hawaii's blatant attempt to keep homes and businesses from capitalizing on solar power generated a lot of thought-provoking comments. Enter the controversy here.

Some top stories from the past week at Earthjustice…

Earthjustice lawyers took home a big win after the U.S. Supreme Court denied a request to review a case that eliminated industrial facilities' ability to ignore pollution limits whenever they start up, shut down or malfunction

Light pollution can mean lights out for many animals such as seabirds and sea turtles, who often make the fatal mistake of confusing artificial lights with natural cues like the horizon. Last week, Earthjustice shined the light on one particularly disturbing case—a brightly lit luxury Hawaiian resort that is the single greatest cause of deaths and injuries from artificial lights among endangered Newell's shearwater seabirds.

The environmental community mourned the loss of conservation titan Dr. Ed Wayburn, whose efforts inspired thousands of citizen activists, including many Earthjustice staff, board and supporters.

With a $2.8 billion budget shortfall and a generally bleak economic climate, there's a movement growing in Olympia, Wash. to repeal a generous tax break enjoyed by the state's largest polluter, the TransAlta coal plant in Centralia. Earthjustice is pushing for TransAlta to run a cleaner plant that protects public health.
 

Palila, an endangered Hawaiian bird, perched on a Mamane tree.

It's hard to imagine that the earth is now experiencing a mass extinction like no other in human history.

Online news organization Mother Nature Network recently published an eye-opening graphic that maps out the top 20 countries with the most endangered species. Ecuador tops both the endangered animal and plant species lists, harboring 2,211 endangered animal species alone, while the U.S. comes in second with more than 1,000 endangered mammals, birds and reptiles.