Here are some of the stories we’ve been following this week.

Hurricane Harvey flooded parts of Texas and caused widespread devastation. By SC National Guard (170831-Z-AH923-081) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

  • It’s been two years since the Gold King Mine blowout that poured contaminants into the Animas River. EPA cleanup crews recently found elevated levels of lead at several mine sites along the river.
  • Residents in Bridgeton, Missouri, want officials to excavate a landfill that holds radioactive material and relocate anyone living near it. The site is currently being inspected to determine the most effective remediation strategy.
  • Hurricane Harvey caused widespread devastation when it struck Texas. Two months later, officials expect home values and tax collection to drop as cleanup continues.
  • An oil spill that occurred in the Gulf of Mexico is larger than originally believed. The Coast Guard announced that the spill on October 14th was about 16,000 barrels, nearly double the initial estimates.
  • A new report looking at ethanol spills from trains found that a derailed train in 2015 spilled almost 50,000 gallons of ethanol. Most of the crashes detailed in the report were caused by issues with the railroad tracks.
  • Officials all over the country are battling to woo Amazon.com to build its second headquarters in their cities. However, a closer look at Seattle shows that there are some consequences to hosting the digital giant.
  • In the next five years, a wind farm could be built in Monroe County, Missouri. The plan is still in the early stages, and it would need cooperation from landowners.
  • A high-speed train is proposed to transport people between Washington D.C. and Baltimore, Maryland. However, some communities along the suggested path are concerned about how the project will affect them.
  • In Wilsonville, Alabama, residents are hoping that coal ash left over from a local power plant will be moved to a safer location, but the utility has no plans to transport the coal ash away from the river.