A roundup of recent news stories, including updates on the Takata recall, the Flint water crisis, and the Porter Ranch gas leak.

1. NEWS You Can Use
From the Walker Advertising Research Desk 2/3/16
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Courtesy news clipping service provided to clients of Walker Advertising. All material is copyrighted by respective
publications. For copies of complete articles, contact your sales rep or Walker Advertising at 1-800-4WALKER.
1. Auto Makers Issue More Air-Bag Recalls
Adapted from Wall Street Journal, 1/25/16
U.S. regulators recently announced automakers will recall an additional five million vehicles with
Takata Corp. airbags, bringing the total size of the Takata recall to more than 24 million vehicles. The
number of individual inflators being recalled rose from 23 million to 28 million, according to a
spokesperson from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), who cautioned the
data were still preliminary. The announcement follows the death of a man driving a 2006 Ford
Ranger pickup truck in South Carolina in late December, according to the NHTSA. Prior to his death,
all fatalities from the faulty airbags had occurred in Hondas.
2. Legionnaires’ Link Supported
Adapted from L.A. Times, 1/24/16
Don Kooy, president of Flint’s McLaren hospital, said he and experts suspected the Legionnaires’
disease bacteria found in the hospital’s water system a year ago likely came from the Flint River.
Kooy further expressed his surprise that Michigan and local health agencies failed to inform the
public about an outbreak of the disease in Genesee County in 2014-2015 until a few weeks ago.
During that seventeen-month period, there were at least 87 confirmed cases of Legionnaires’
disease, including nine fatalities, in Genesee County.
3. Workers Get $12M For Valley Fever
Adapted from L.A. Daily Journal, 1/25/16.
Five construction workers who contracted an incurable fungal disease while working for the state
of California were awarded a combined total of $12 million after a Solano County Superior Court
jury concluded the California Dept. of Transportation had subjected the workers to known hazards
and deliberately concealed the dangerous conditions. All five workers contracted Valley Fever after
working to expand a culvert near Route 33 in Kern County. The original suit, filed in 2009, named
seven plaintiffs, two of whom were later dropped and deported after their undocumented status
came to light. During the trial, plaintiff attorney Peter Alfert of Hinton Alfert & Kahn LLP argued that
Caltrans employees possessed a map, which was not shared with Bugler Construction workers,
marking areas known to host the dangerous fungus. Alfert added the contract made no mention of
the presence of the fungus, and alleged that a different standard of care had been applied to
Caltrans employees and contract workers.
4. Monsanto Sues California Over Herbicide Classification
Adapted from N.Y. Times, 1/22/16
On January 21, Monsanto Co. filed a lawsuit against the California Office of Environmental Health
Hazard Assessment in an effort to prevent it from adding glyphosate, the main ingredient in its
Roundup herbicide, to California’s list of known carcinogens. The lawsuit followed the agency’s
September announcement that it was planning to add the chemical to the list after the World

2. NEWS You Can Use
From the Walker Advertising Research Desk 2/3/16
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
Courtesy news clipping service provided to clients of Walker Advertising. All material is copyrighted by respective
publications. For copies of complete articles, contact your sales rep or Walker Advertising at 1-800-4WALKER.
Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer classified it as a probable human
carcinogen. In the 2015 fiscal year, Roundup, which is used worldwide, generated $4.8 billion in
revenue.
5. Swifter Action On Exide Sought
Adapted from L.A. Times, 1/27/16
State and local politicians urged Governor Brown’s administration to act more swiftly to clean up
contamination from a shuttered battery recycling plant in Vernon. In comparison to the relatively
swift action following a natural gas leak near the wealthier Porter Ranch community, incoming
Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood) said legislators should be disheartened by the
slow progress in cleaning neighborhoods affected by pollution from the recycling plant. Rendon
further noted most of the residents of those neighborhoods are low-income Latinos. On January 26,
L.A. County Supervisor Hilda Solis said Exide Technologies, which operated the plant, must be held
responsible for pollution-related costs.
6. Utility Sued By Agency Over Gas Leak
Adapted from L.A. Times, 1/27/16
On January 21, the South Coast Air Quality Management District sued Southern California Gas
Company (SoCalGas), alleging the company was negligent in the design, construction, operation and
inspection of a leaking well at the Aliso Canyon Natural Gas Storage Facility. The lawsuit alleged that
SoCalGas was in violation of air quality regulations and state law. The suit seeks as much as
$250,000 in civil penalties for each day a certain violation occurred. Days before the lawsuit was
filed, the South Coast Air Quality Management District approved an comprehensive abatement
order requiring the company to permanently shutter the damaged well, conduct an independent
health study, and create a system to detect leaks.
7. Common Antidepressant “Could Put Children At Greater Risk Of Suicide”
Adapted from The Guardian, 1/27/16
Researchers found children and adolescents taking selective serotonin and serotonin-
norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor drugs to combat depression had double the risk of aggressive
behavior and suicide. The study authors cautioned there were not enough data available from
clinical trials to evaluate the true risk of all serious harms related to the medication. They
recommended minimal use of these drugs in children, adolescents and young adults. Professor
Shirley Reynolds of the University of Reading asserted that only specialist child and adolescent
psychiatrists should prescribe antidepressants to children, and that such prescriptions required
regular monitoring.

3. NEWS You Can Use
From the Walker Advertising Research Desk 2/3/16
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
Courtesy news clipping service provided to clients of Walker Advertising. All material is copyrighted by respective
publications. For copies of complete articles, contact your sales rep or Walker Advertising at 1-800-4WALKER.
8. 2015 Auto Recalls in U.S. Overtake 2014’s Record
Adapted from N.Y. Times, 1/22/16
Slightly more than 51 million vehicles were recalled in the U.S. in 2015, surpassing the old record set
in 2014. In that year, just under 51 million vehicles were recalled after the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration (NHTSA) adjusted the total to eliminate double counting in the massive Takata
airbag recall. The agency reported almost 900 separate recalls in 2015, up from 803 the year before.
Manufacturers are moving faster to fix problems following millions in fines against General Motors, Fiat
Chrysler and Takata for failing to report safety issues promptly.