Last week, former Real Housewife of New York Bethenny Frankel was in hot water over the inclusion of sodium benzoate, a potentially toxic preservative, in her patented, "all-natural" Skinnygirl Margarita science experiment drink. And you do not mess with a calorie-deprived Skinnygirl! Frankel posted a defensive explanation on her website today, writing: more ›

Whole Foods has pulled the plug on ex-Real Housewife of NYC/bare-naked diet guru Bethenny Frankel's Skinnygirl Margarita, which contains a potentially carcinogenic preservative. more ›

Decontamination efforts are well underway for a toxic Gowanus site, slated to house Brooklyn's first Whole Foods. But though the hole should be contaminant-free by April, the upscale grocery purveyor won't confirm its move to the neighborhood. “Everything I know is that Whole Foods is committed to building on that site,” said John Bogdanski, an environmental consultant for the store. “Still, there is always the option to sell the property.” more ›

Months after residents of a Turtle Bay building found their apartments coated in a layer of dust, an environmental testing firm found "highly elevated levels" of a carcinogen inside the E. 47th Street condo tower. A toxic substance found in mortar called crystalline silica got into apartments while laborers did facade work at the L'Ecole building at 212 E. 47th Street, according to an attorney for tenants who have filed suit over the incident. "It was like there had been a snowfall," said Steven Rosenhaus, who suffered breathing trouble and eye irritation after his 20th-floor apartment was blanketed in the the powder. According to the Post, building management has denied any wrongdoing in court documents. more ›

From stroller recalls to toxic baby bling, it’s been a bad few months for children’s products—that’s why Toys “R” Us wants to give back. From now until February 20 the mega-retailer for all things kiddy is holding a massive trade-in event for those many items that may have proved hazardous to your child’s health. NY1 reported that during this year’s “Great Trade-In” event customers are urged to hand over their strollers, cribs and other baby items in exchange for a 25 percent discount (personally I would ask for a full refund). Eddie Bauer, Evenflo, Graco and Jeep have all volunteered to take part in the promotion, but do they have a choice, really? more ›

There's been so much confusion over whether or not a Whole Foods will open up in Gowanus — last summer, the company stated: "the Brooklyn Paper published a story this week that inaccurately suggests we have definitively decided not to pursue the development of a store on our property at 3rd Street and 3rd Avenue and further that we are planning to sell the property. This is simply not true." more ›

Yesterday, three men working at a Queens recycling plant died when they were trapped in a sewage hole that was full of toxic hydrogen sulfide gas. The NY Times reports the men, including a father and son, were "overcome by toxic fumes Monday afternoon and died, apparently falling one after another into the Stygian gloom of a putrid, manhole-size, 18-foot-deep well they were trying to vacuum." more ›

The Green Energy Council is sounding the alarm on "cold patch," a blacktop material used to patch potholes, estimating that the stuff leaches 240,000 gallons of toxic fuel oil into the soil or gets washed off into the sewage system or evaporates into the air our children breath. The president of the group tells the Post, "You're talking about an extraordinary amount of diesel fuel." Cold patch has been used to fill potholes for years, but there have been no studies on the health impact of its toxic runoff. The city DOT has been a major cold patch consumer, but they recently agreed to buy 5,000 tons of a new type of environmentally friendly biodegradable type of cold patch called GreenPatch. Oddly, the Post insists the DOT "had no clue" GreenPatch was eco-friendy until their know-it-all egghead reporter told the agency. more ›

Tomorrow, a new state task force will convene to talk about the threat of mold to the health of New Yorkers and what can be done about it. The New York State Toxic Mold Task Force was formed at the urging of health experts, who are concerned that there isn't enough being done to combat an organism that wrecks properties and endangers the lives of tenants and homeowners. According to state senator Liz Kreuger representing... more ›