Media Contact
Eric Whalen
Communications Coordinator
Coming Clean
(971) 998-8786
ericwhalen@comingcleaninc.org
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Reporters: Please contact Eric Whalen at (971) 998-8786 or EricWhalen@ComingCleanInc.org with inquiries or interview requests.
Coming Clean coordinates a broad range of projects and campaigns for market reform, safe chemical policy, clean energy solutions, and environmental justice. Please contact us with media inquiries or to request interviews with spokespeople on these issues or any of the following projects:
- The Campaign for Healthier Solutions
- Environmental Justice Health Alliance
- Hazardous Chemical Facilities
- Farmworker Health and Justice
- The Workgroup for Safer Markets
- Federal Chemical Policy Reform
- Health Threats of Emerging Technologies
Press Releases:
Release: Environmental Justice Council Urges EPA to Change Course
May 9, 2019
Washington, DC — The US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) National Environmental Justice Advisory Council (NEJAC) issued formal recommendations to EPA Administrator, Andrew Wheeler, urging the agency to address two issues vital to environmental justice communities and public health. Grassroots organizations and people who live in impacted environmental justice communities praised NEJAC's recommendations to the EPA. Read More
Release: Dollar Tree Moves To Address Toxic Chemicals in Products
May 6, 2019
One of the nation's largest discount retail chains, Dollar Tree Stores Inc, has taken an important step toward increased health and safety for customers by joining the Chemical Footprint Project, a bench-marking metric that helps companies assess their market risk from toxic chemicals and understand the opportunities for safer chemicals in its supply chain. This decision may carry important implications for public health, consumer rights, and Dollar Tree's extensive supply chain, as the discount retailer is a Fortune 200 company which operates over 15,000 stores across the United States and Canada. Grassroots justice groups cheered this step toward quantifying toxic chemical risks—but also warned it falls short of a more complete, transparent and protective toxic chemical policy, which should include public disclosures and specific goals to reduce hazardous chemical use. Read More
Release: 99 Cents Only Executives Agree to Meet and Discuss Customer’s Concerns About Toxic Chemicals in Easter Products
April 17, 2019
Los Angeles, CA — As shoppers rush to dollar stores for last-minute Easter Holiday supplies, toys, and candy, allied organizations with the environmental justice group, Campaign for Healthier Solutions, held their own ‘Toxic Easter Egg Activity’ outside the headquarters of LA-based dollar store chain, 99 Cents Only Stores. Children searched for products purchased from 99 Cents Only Stores that didn’t contain toxic chemicals—but had no way to know if each product was safe because the chain has no public toxic chemical policies or protections for customers and their children. Executives from 99 Cents Only Stores agreed to meet with the campaign and discuss customer's concerns but did not commit to any action to protect them from toxic chemicals. Read More
Ejecutivos de 99 Cents Only Acuerdan una Reunión para Dialogar Sobre las Preocupaciones de sus Clientes Sobre Sustancias Químicas Tóxicas en sus Productos de Pascua
April 16, 2019
Los Ángeles, CA — Mientras consumidores acuden a las tiendas de dólar para adquirir materiales, juguetes, y dulces, organizaciones aliadas con el grupo de justiciar ambiental, Campaña para Soluciones Saludables, llevó a cabo su propia ‘Búsqueda de Huevos de Pascua Tóxico’ en Los Ángeles afuera de la sede nacional de la cadena de tiendas de dólar, 99 Cents Only. Niños buscaron entre los productos adquiridos de tiendas de 99 Cents Only con el fin de encontrar aquellos que no incluían sustancias químicas toxicas – pero no tenían manera de saber si los productos eran seguros ya que la cadena no tiene una política disponible al público sobre las sustancias químicas, ni ofrece protecciones para sus consumidores y sus hijos. Ejecutivos de las tiendas de 99 Cents Only acordaron reunirse con la campaña para dialogar sobre las preocupaciones de sus consumidores sobre sustancias químicas toxicas pero no se comprometieron a ninguna acción. Read More
Release: Houston Chemical Fire and Spill Bolsters Case for Needed Reforms
March 29, 2019
The aftermath of a horrific fire at the ITC chemical plant in Houston has reinforced ongoing oversight and enforcement gaps, according to a coalition of groups that filed suit last week in federal court to force the chemical industry to undertake “worst-case scenario” planning. Read More
Advisory: People Impacted by Carcinogenic Ethylene Oxide to Attend EPA Hearing
March 26, 2019
Both before and after a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) public hearing on hydrochloric acid production and ethylene oxide (EtO) emissions, people from communities which have been exposed to ethylene oxide emanating from nearby industrial facilities will be available to tell their stories–some of which have suffered cancers and other health problems linked to the carcinogenic and extremely explosive chemical. These impacted people will be urging the agency not to risk public health by undermining a new assessment from the Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS), which found cancer-risk from EtO exposure to be 30-times worse than previously estimated. Read More
Release: Groups Sue EPA Over Decades-Long Failure to Protect Communities from Most Dangerous Chemical Spills
March 21, 2019
New York, N.Y. – The Environmental Justice Health Alliance, Clean Water Action, and Natural Resources Defense Council today filed a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency for its failure to pass regulations requiring the most dangerous chemical facilities to develop plans to prevent and respond to worst-case scenario spills of hazardous substances, including spills triggered by natural disasters that put people’s health at risk. Congress mandated such regulations in 1990 – but more than 25 years later, EPA has failed to act. Read More
Release: Victory for Environmental Justice Communities as Court Orders Disclosure of Emissions from Chemical Facility Incidents
March 12, 2019
Environmental justice community members celebrated a ruling which will require chemical facilities to disclose unpermitted toxic chemical emissions to the public. Read More
Press Release: Dollar Store Chains Lag on Toxic Chemicals, while 21 Retailers Make Progress to Protect Consumers
November 14, 2018
Los Angeles, CA — A report released today reveals that major retail companies are making slow but meaningful progress at improving the chemical safety of the products, food, and packaging they sell, but nearly half of those scored — including the 99 Cents Only discount retail chain — have failed to take any public measures to help eliminate toxic chemicals from the products they carry. The third annual Who’s Minding the Store? A Report Card on Retailer Actions to Eliminate Toxic Chemicals evaluated and graded the chemical policies and practices of 40 of the largest North American retailers, including grocery and fast food chains, as part of Safer Chemicals Healthy Families’ Mind the Store campaign and the Campaign for Healthier Solutions. Read More
Informe: Cadenas de Tiendas de Dólar Se Quedan Atrás en Cuanto a Sustancias Químicas Peligrosas, Mientras que 21 Comercios Minoristas Muestran Avances para Proteger a Consumidores
November 14, 2018
LOS ANGELES, CA — Un informe publicado el día de hoy revela que las grandes empresas de minoristas están logrando avances lentos pero significativos en cuanto a la mejora de seguridad química en los productos, alimentos y empaques que venden, pero casi la mitad de los que se calificaron — incluyendo la cadena de tiendas de descuento 99 Cents Only — han fracasado en llevar a cabo medidas públicas para ayudar a eliminar sustancias químicas de los productos que surten. La tercera boleta anual ¿Quién está Cuidando la Tienda? Una Boleta de Calificaciones sobre las Medidas de Comercios para Eliminar Sustancias Químicas Tóxicas (Who’s Minding the Store? A Report Card on Retailer Actions to Eliminate Toxic Chemicals) evaluó y calificó a las políticas de sustancias químicas y las prácticas de los 40 comercios de minoristas más grandes de norte américa, incluyendo supermercados y cadenas de comida rápida, como parte de la campaña de Cuida la Tienda de Sustancias Químicas más Seguras de Familias Sanas (Safer Chemicals Healthy Families’ Mind the Store) y la Campaña para Soluciones Saludables (Campaign for Healthier Solutions). Read More
Consumidores Exhortan a Dollar Tree a Implementar Medidas Sobre Sustancias Químicas Toxicas en sus Productos, Comida Chatarra “Áreas de Snacks” en la Junta Anual de Accionistas
June 14, 2018
Norfolk, VA—Hoy, los consumidores y accionistas de Dollar Tree hicieron un llamado por políticas comprensivas sobre sustancias químicas peligrosas durante la junta anual de accionistas. Preocupados por sustancias químicas peligrosas halladas en productos y alimentos adquiridos en las tiendas de Dollar Tree (o las tiendas Family Dollar, que pertenecen a Dollar Tree )—incluyendo sustancias per/polifluorados (PFAS por sus siglas en inglées) en palomitas de microondas, bisfenol-A (BPA por sus siglas en inglés) en comida enlatada, arsenico en cereal infantil de arroz, y metales pesados y ftalatos en productos para el consumidor—padres de familia dueños de acciones en la empresa y expertos en la salud pidieron a los ejecutivos que adoptaran políticas amplias sobre sustancias químicas peligrosas y que las compartieran con el público, así como lo han hecho otras tiendas. Read More
Press Release: New Interactive Online Map Shows Who Lives in Chemical Disaster Zones
September 26, 2018
Our new interactive map and report, titled, Life at the Fenceline, shows that people living within a three-mile 'fenceline' zone of hazardous chemical facilities are disproportionately people of color, impoverished, and suffer a greater risk of cancer and respiratory illness caused by air pollution. The mapping and analysis found that over 124 million Americans (39%) live in constant threat of catastrophic explosion or poison gas release within a fenceline zone of one or more hazardous chemical facilities. Read More
Press Release: Customers Urge Dollar Tree to Act on Toxic Chemicals in Products, Junk Food "Snack Zones" at Annual Shareholder Meeting
June 14, 2018
Dollar Tree customers and shareholders called for comprehensive hazardous chemical policies at Dollar Tree’s annual shareholder meeting. Concerned about hazardous chemicals found in products and food purchased from the Dollar Tree stores (or Dollar Tree owned Family Dollar stores), stock-holding parents and health experts asked executives to adopt comprehensive hazardous chemical policies and share them with the public, as other retailers have already done. Read More
Press Release: Wilmington ‘Environmental Justice Communities’ Suffer Disproportionate Health Risks from Multiple, Overlapping Toxic Exposures
October 19, 2017
Wilmington, DE — Today, the Union of Concerned Scientists, the Environmental Justice Health Alliance, and local community organizations released a new analysis of public health and mapping information showing all of seven ‘environmental justice communities’ studied in the Wilmington area face substantially higher risk of developing cancers and respiratory illnesses linked to toxic pollution in or near their neighborhoods. Read More
Press Release: The Environmental Justice Health Alliance Commends Senator Booker's New Bill to Address Environmental Injustices
October 24, 2017
Newark, NJ — Senator Cory Booker was joined by Michele Roberts, National Co-Coordinator of the Environmental Justice Health Alliance (EJHA), to introduce a new legislation seeking to address some environmental injustices communities across the nation face. 'Environmental justice communities', often composed predominantly of people of color and the poor, suffer disproportionate levels of environmental pollution and its resulting health impacts. Read More
Press Release: Major Retailers Graded on Toxic Chemicals in Products and Packaging
November 14, 2017
Washington, DC – Just in time for the holiday shopping season, today the Campaign for Healthier Solutions and the Mind the Store campaign released their second annual report card on toxic chemicals in consumer products, which found that one-third of 30 major U.S. retailers are leaders, but two-thirds remain serious laggards. The report, Who’s Minding the Store? -- A Report Card on Retailer Actions to Eliminate Toxic Chemicals,includes evaluations of nineteen retailers for the first time. The nation’s largest dollar stores scored poorly, with Dollar Tree earning a grade of ‘D’ and Dollar General earning an ‘F’. Read More
Victoria para la Salud del Consumidor: Siete Cadenas Grandes de Tiendas Se Comprometen a Reducir el Uso de Sustancias Químicas Toxicas en Productos y sus Empaquetados
November 14, 2017
Washington, DC – Justo a tiempo para las compras de la época festiva, hoy la campaña de Mind the Store publicó su boleta anual de calificaciones sobre sustancias químicas toxicas en productos para el consumidor, mismo que encontró que una tercera parte de las 30 cadenas más grandes de tiendas en los Estados Unidos son líderes, pero dos terceras partes permanecen muy atrasadas. Este informe, ¿Quién Está Cuidando la Tienda? – Una Boleta de Calificaciones Sobre las Acciones de Cadenas de Tiendas Hacia la Eliminación de Sustancias Químicas Toxicas (Who’s Minding the Store? -- A Report Card on Retailer Actions to Eliminate Toxic Chemicals), incluye, por primera vez, evaluaciones de diecinueve tiendas. Read More
Press Release: Shoppers, Parents and Health Experts Visit 80+ Dollar Tree and Family Dollar Locations Asking for Toxic Chemical Safety this Holiday Season
December 5, 2017
San Diego, CA—During the busy holiday shopping season, concerned customers and activists alerted dollar store visitors to dangerous chemicals found in some products. Activists then met with store managers at over 80 Dollar Tree and Family Dollar store locations in 20 states, Washington, D.C. and Canada to ask for transparent and more protective chemical safety policies. Read More
Visitan más de 80 Tiendas de Dollar Tree y Family Dollar Compradores, Padres de Familia y Especialistas en Asuntos de la Salud para Solicitar Seguridad de Sustancias Químicas Toxicas esta Temporada de Fiestas
December 5, 2017
San Diego, CA— Durante la temporada alta de compras por los días festivos, consumidores preocupados y activistas dieron a conocer información a los visitantes de las tiendas sobre las sustancias químicas peligrosas encontradas en algunas de los productos de venta en las tiendas de dólar. Después, activistas llevaron a cabo reuniones con los gerentes de más de 80 tiendas de Dollar Tree y Family Dollar en 20 estados, Washington, D.C., y Canadá, para solicitar políticas de seguridad química más transparentes y protectoras. Read More
Press Release: Educational Video Highlights Toxic Chemicals Found in Microwave Popcorn
March 28, 2018
Albuquerque, NM—Today, health experts and community leaders held a press conference to release a new educational video drawing attention to children's health risks from toxic chemicals in microwave popcorn. The fun and engaging video also shows viewers how to make safer microwave popcorn using nontoxic household ingredients. The video was released after independent lab testing found per/polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in 100% of microwave popcorn samples purchased from dollar stores. Read More
View the entire press release archive here.
Reports and Resources from Coming Clean:
- Life at the Fenceline, a chemical disaster zone map, and demographic analysis.
- Who's in Danger? A demographic analysis report of chemical disaster vulnerability zones.
- When the Wind Blows: Tracking Toxic Chemicals in Gas Fields and Local Communities.
- Warning Signs: Toxic Air Pollution Identified at Oil and Gas Sites.
- General Resources
- The Louisville Charter for Safer Chemicals.
Media Contact
Eric Whalen
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