Possible cancer cluster
A group of Clarendon residents wants to discover whether there’s a health risk in their community. The group calls itself Clarendon FIRST – for Families Interested in Researching Sickness Together. The group says there’s an unusually high incidence of cancer among townspeople. (Listen to the story online or read the transcript.) (VPR)
Interview: Around-the-world car trip
Steve Delaney continues the conversation with Joe Sherman, who’s reenacting an around-the-world trek in a 1902 Napier automobile. (Listen to the interview online.) (VPR)
Uranium in Marshfield water
There’s new environmental concerns about the uranium found in the Marshfield water supply. State officials are now worried the radioactive material has accumulated in the town’s sewage treatment plant. That could pose problems when the town disposes of the sewage sludge from the plant. (Listen to the story online or read the transcript.) (VPR)
Canadian exporters
Canada’s healthy economy and high yields from interest rates have boosted the dollar’s value. But it’s not all good news for Canadian businesses. (VPR)
Brattleboro Reformer union drive
About a dozen supporters of a union drive at the Brattleboro Reformer went to the newspaper’s offices on Thursday, to present a petition signed by 750 people. The group wants the newspaper to reinstate reporter Eesha Williams. (VPR)
Lyndon water safe after vandalism
Authorities in Lyndon say preliminary tests have shown no contamination in the town’s water supply, following vandalism at a reservoir early this morning. State police say the lock on the reservoir’s cover was pried off. (AP)
Canadian marijuana bill
Some people in northern Vermont are concerned about a Canadian proposal to decriminalize small amounts of marijuana. Under the measure, minors found with a half-ounce or less would face civil penalties rather than criminal ones. (AP)
Castleton State polling institute
Vermont’s Castleton State College plans to establish by this fall a polling institute to measure the public’s attitude on everything from politics to marketing. College President David Wolk, a former state senator, says he wants to have the polling center up and running by next winter’s presidential primaries and caucuses. (AP)
Dean campaigns in NH
Presidential hopeful Howard Dean dashed around New Hampshire Thursday wearing a suit and running shoes. The former Vermont governor , who said he forgot his dress shoes at home, made several appearances to tout his universal health care plan. While talking with a group of doctors in Hollis, New Hampshire, Dean said Palestinians are more fit for a democracy than any other Arab society. He said that democracy stands a chance in a state of Palestine, but only if the violence in Israel stops. Dean is the former governor of Vermont. (AP)
FBI whistle blower
Vermont Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy is raising questions about an FBI probe of a whistleblower. The FBI recently decided to conduct a fourth internal investigation of an agent who raised concerns about the bureau’s work against terrorism. (AP)
Vermont Yankee safety review
Officials from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission are promising careful scrutiny of a plan by the Vermont Yankee plant to boost its power output. But some critics of that plan by plant owner Entergy Nuclear say the NRC has been too quick to approve similar requests from other plants around the country. (AP)
Shelburne burglary suspects
Two 19-year-olds have been arrested in connection with a burglary spree in Shelburne last week. Shelburne police say they arrested Martin Messimer Wednesday night and Ross Wynans yesterday. Police say the two are suspects in some 20 burglaries. (AP)
Benson homicide suspects
Three people have pleaded innocent to charges that they beat to death an 85-year-old Benson man for drug money. A young woman, her boyfriend and their friend have been charged with first-degree murder in the death of Charles Schlosser. Twenty-one-year-old Jessica Anctil of West Haven, 18-year-old Kenneth Barber, Jr. of Castleton, and 51-year-old Denise Bates of Fair Haven were arraigned Thursday in Vermont District Court in Rutland. (AP)