When A Christmas Carol was written in 1843, England's early industrial revolution was unencumbered by employment law, workplace safety standards, or any semblance of public health standards.

Two years after the massive Deepwater Horizon oil spill killed 11 people and spewed millions of barrels of oil in the Gulf of Mexico, BP has agreed to plead guilty to 14 criminal charges, including manslaughter charges from the deaths. The company will pay $4.5 billion in damages, including $4 billion for the criminal charges and $525 million to securities regulators. BP will face additional civil fines of up to $20 billion as a result of its violations of the Clean Water Act and the Oil Pollution Act.

According to a recent poll from the American Sustainable Business Council (ASBC), a large majority of small business owners support stronger regulation of toxic chemicals. The results of the survey highlight the overwhelming backing for controlling these chemicals, with most small business owners voicing support for enhanced regulation and disclosure of toxic substances.

Today, OMB Watch and 16 local, regional, and national organizations filed a petition under the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI), calling on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to require the oil and gas industry – including companies engaged in fracking – to report their toxic emissions. Such reporting would provide EPA with more information on the identity, use, and quantity of chemicals used by the oil and gas industry and would help the agency evaluate their health and environmental risks.