News from around the nation.

Trump addresses the UN General Assembly and meets with multiple world leaders, a new campaign urges Illinois residents to buy Latino to build America, Chesapeake Bay restoration halted by new Trump executive order.

Transcript

The Public News Service Tuesday afternoon update.

I'm Mike Clifford.

President Trump is in New York to address the U.N. General Assembly with leaders from four continents attending.

Reuters knows later in the day Trump will meet with British Prime Minister Andy Burnham and Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky.

Next, our Venezuela's interim leader, Delcy Rodriguez, the prime ministers of Denmark and Greenland, and representatives of the Gulf states of the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Qatar.

The long list of foreign leaders reflects the U.S. president's focus on foreign affairs during his second term, during which he has started multiple wars.

Meantime, during Hispanic Heritage Month, leaders wanting to expand the economic power of Latino business owners asked shoppers in Illinois and elsewhere to do their part.

An initiative called AQI, the accountability movement, launched a campaign asking Americans to commit to spending $30 at Latino-owned businesses during the 31-day commemoration.

Founding executive director Cindy Benavides says the goal was intentionally kept low so more people could commit.

But she says if just 10 percent of U.S. households participate, the campaign could generate 400 million dollars for businesses run by Latinos.

We know that there are many American households that are also hurting financially.

And we wanted to make sure that this was something that was accessible across the board.

Benavidez says the effort has taken on greater urgency as aggressive federal immigration enforcement has hurt local businesses.

I'm Judith Ruiz Branch reporting.

And a new executive order from President Trump repeals the landmark 2009 Obama-era directive coordinating cleanup efforts in the Chesapeake Bay.

Hillary Harp Falk with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation says the 2009 executive order has been foundational for all the progress that's been seen in the last 15 years, and she adds that weakening leadership makes it harder to tackle pollution, flooding, and other major challenges that states are facing.

For decades, federal leadership has been essential to just Big Bay restoration.

We know that pollution crosses state lines, and what happens upstream impacts everyone downstream.

Heartfall questions why the Trump administration is taking these harsh actions after working good faith with state leaders on a new Bay Agreement.

Next, conservation groups are taking the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to court for leasing 179 square miles in Wyoming for oil and gas development.

Julia Stubel with the Wilderness Society says the lawsuit is an effort to defend Wyoming's migrating big game and the hunters who rely on them.

Mildear, elk, antelope, they require undisturbed stopover sites in these corridors for foraging during the long-distance journeys that they take between winter and summer range.

And the agency violated its own regulations that require giving preference to leasing away from these crucial habitats.

But the Trump administration has long argued that opening public lands for fossil fuel extraction is necessary to achieve energy dominance.

I'm Eric Galatas.

This is Public News Service.

New data show cases of black lung are rising among Appalachian coal miners, especially in southwestern Virginia.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health says nearly one in three working underground coal miners with a quarter of century of experience working underground now has the disease.

Brendan McKeon-Bates with Appalachian Citizens Law Center says cases they have worked on include testimony from miners who reported being told by their employer to move or change the dust sampling equipment.

He warns that silica dust exposure limits and action levels are only effective if there's strong federal enforcement through mine inspections.

Our most recent report on MSHA sampling has signaled that the amount of dust sampling that's taking place is below where it had been in years past.

Danielle Smith reporting.

Next, advocates fighting hunger in Mississippi are working harder to ensure residents have food on the table.

Federal cuts made last summer through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act reduced the number of Mississippians eligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program by 43,000 people.

To fill in the gaps, more families are going to food banks.

Dan Nisbet with Mississippi Food Network says in the past year they've seen a 36 percent jump in people seeking assistance from partner food pantries.

Demand was already sharply rising for our services prior to any of those cuts.

Costs of food, gas, housing, and rent are really stretching families' budgets.

During this Hunger Action Month, they're asking people to volunteer, hold a virtual food drive, or donate to food banks.

National Hunger Action Day is September 29th.

I'm Frida Ross reporting.

Finally, new research analyzes wastewater to understand North Carolinians' nutrition.

The Duke University study uses a DNA sequencing tool to detect traces of food left behind in sewage.

The methods used in the research represent a shift in how nutrition studies are typically done.

Many rely on subjects tracking what they eat over long periods of time.

Lawrence David with Duke University says based on his own experience, this can be challenging.

I have tried for different research projects over the years to even just track what I eat myself, and it was a lot of work.

It would take me half an hour to 45 minutes a day if I wanted to be really precise about writing down what I was eating.

Diet diaries also often miss certain sections of the community, like children, seniors, and immigrants who don't primarily speak English.

I'm Edwin J. Viera.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service.

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