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The Latest by Raviya Ismail

Press Secretary

Raviya was a press secretary at Earthjustice in the Washington, D.C. office from 2008 to 2014, working on issues including federal rulemakings, energy efficiency laws and coal ash pollution.

June 21, 2012

A Community Being Poisoned from Within

By Raviya Ismail  /  Washington, D.C. Office

Last year, the EPA proposed an air rule that would finally limit the amount of cancer-causing chemicals residents in Mossville, Louisiana would have to breathe from the polyvinyl chloride plant nearby. So it came as a blow when the EPA released a final rule that imposes weaker limits at the CertainTeed plant in Mossville—a facility …

June 19, 2012

Advocate for Clean Air Dies

By Raviya Ismail  /  Washington, D.C. Office

Edgar Mouton lived much of his 76 years in Mossville, Louisiana, and for the past decade fought doggedly to obtain federal protections from the toxic pollution that pours into Mossville from the largest concentration of PVC and vinyl manufacturing facilities in the U.S. and a host of other hazardous industrial facilities. As a great-grandfather and …

June 8, 2012

Tr-Ash Talk: Is Poisoned Water Necessary for Jobs?

By Raviya Ismail  /  Washington, D.C. Office

So, you’d think we’d all be in agreement here: clean water is a boon for everyone. That means, keep coal ash (full of mercury, arsenic, hexavalent chromium and other nasty stuff) out of our drinking water, right? Sadly, that doesn’t hold true for everyone. Some members of the House of Representatives think that funding 2.9 …

May 18, 2012

Unplugged: Saving the Planet One Wash at a Time

By Raviya Ismail  /  Washington, D.C. Office

We know we have been critical of the Obama administration of late, calling on the Department of Energy to get moving on publishing crucial energy efficiency standards. But we are happy to applaud the administration when they make good on their promise for a clean energy future. The latest: new clothes washer and dishwasher standards …

April 30, 2012

When Paint Chips are Not the Only Danger

By Raviya Ismail  /  Washington, D.C. Office

We all know the danger that resides in lead-laden paint chips peeling off the walls of old homes. It’s well understood that lead is poisonous and, even in small doses, can harm brain function and cause learning disabilities in children. Lead also is associated with impairment of the cardiovascular, reproductive, kidney and immune systems of …

January 27, 2012

Tr-Ash Talk: The Proof is in the Water

By Raviya Ismail  /  Washington, D.C. Office

Last week we announced our intent to sue the Environmental Protection Agency to force the release of long-awaited public health safeguards against toxic coal ash. Here is just another example of why states aren’t doing an adequate job keeping this toxic muck out of our drinking water. This Charlotte Observer article reports on elevated levels of coal …

January 13, 2012

Tr-Ash Talk: TVA Disaster Spurs More Toxic Dumping?

By Raviya Ismail  /  Washington, D.C. Office

Last month we marked three years since the Tennessee Valley Authority Kingston coal ash spill, underscoring the fact that the EPA has yet to regulate toxic coal ash waste. Now we have even more reason to be concerned. According to analysis by the Environmental Integrity Project, the most recent U.S. Toxic Release Inventory indicates that …

December 22, 2011

Tr-Ash Talk: Not a Day to Celebrate

By Raviya Ismail  /  Washington, D.C. Office

So much has happened since that terrible day three years ago when more than 1 billion gallons of toxic coal ash sludge burst through a dam at the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Kingston Fossil Plant in Harriman, about 150 miles from Nashville. For starters, the Environmental Protection Agency, which had promised to move swiftly to protect …

December 19, 2011

Unplugged: Who Asked GOP To Take On Light Bulb Fight?

By Raviya Ismail  /  Washington, D.C. Office

Usually when our elected leaders fight federal rules, they are going to the mat for their corporate benefactors. Yet we scratch our heads in wonder over who exactly has pushed them to take on this light bulb fight. Last week, the House GOP majority included in their must-pass funding legislation a rider to block funding …

December 7, 2011

Tr-Ash Talk: Some Dirty Air With That Murky Water, Please

By Raviya Ismail  /  Washington, D.C. Office

Looks like that murky glass of water shouldn’t be your only concern.  Several states weak on coal ash disposal also have another dubious claim: many are the worst offenders of air pollution. In August, we released a report detailing the lack of state-based regulations for coal ash disposal and the 12 worst states when it …