Ike´s Wake: Contaminated water, insect-borne diseases and airborne toxins such as carbon monoxide are among the health concerns facing residents of Galveston, Texas, and nearby towns as the Hurricane Ike cleanup gets rolling.

 

Fox News reports that in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina three years ago, there were more than 50 cases of carbon monoxide poisoning, including five deaths, in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.

 

Yucky Muck: Also like Katrina, Ike has left behind a toxic sludge of mud, human waste, asbestos, lead and gasoline that must be removed before residents can return, the International Herald Tribune reports.

 

Realists, Sticklers and a Tweener: The Washington Post has some intruiguing tidbits about the offshore drilling proposal put forth by Democratic leaders in the House of Representatives last week.

 

Of particular interest, the Post names names. It identifies two "pragmatic" environmental groups that backed the proposal, the Sierra Club and the Center for American Progress; two "purist" groups that opposed it, Environment America and the National Wildlife Federation; and one fence-sitter, the Ocean Conservancy.

 

Heavy Heist: The Los Angeles Times reports that 90 unused copper headstones worth more than $100,000 were recently stolen from a cemetery in nearby Orange County. The thieves probably tried to sell the stones and then gave up and discarded them at a recycling plant. Police are looking for leads.

 

Maybe they should poke around at some area weightlifting gyms ...

 

Pete Fehrenbach is managing editor of Waste News. Past installments of this column are collected in the Inbox archive.

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