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Thousands march in Dublin, abroad for Irish abortion rights

By Padraic Halpin DUBLIN (Reuters) – Thousands of protestors marched in Dublin, and Irish expatriates joined in demonstrations around the world on Saturday, to put pressure on the Irish government to hold a referendum to repeal restrictive abortion laws. Regulations in the once stridently Catholic Ireland are among the strictest in the world and next month Prime Minister Enda Kenny will call a citizens' assembly to advise the government on whether a vote should be held to boost access to abortion. Demonstrators marched in the rain on government buildings from Dublin's main thoroughfare of O'Connell Street, bringing traffic to a standstill by the River Liffey as they chanted, beat drums and held placards saying “My Body, My Choice”.

Protesters in Flint demand new pipes in response to water crisis

More than 500 protesters led by civil rights activist Jesse Jackson marched to the Flint water plant on Friday to demand clean water and the replacement of corroding pipes in response to the city's lead contamination crisis. As a cost-cutting measure in 2014, Flint switched its water system from Detroit to a local river. The more corrosive water from the river leached lead from water system pipes, leading to high levels of lead in hundreds of homes.

EPA chief: Colorado river hit by mine waste back to pre-spill quality

By Lauren Hammond DURANGO, Colo. (Reuters) – The water quality of a southwestern Colorado river rendered bright orange by toxic waste spewed from an abandoned gold mine one week ago has returned to pre-spill levels, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency chief said on Wednesday. The statement from EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy, whose agency has assumed responsibility for inadvertently causing the spill, came as Colorado health officials cleared the way for the city of Durango, just downstream, to reopen its drinking water intakes from the river. McCarthy also ordered the EPA's regional offices to immediately cease further inspections of mines or mine waste sites, except in cases of imminent risk of danger, during an independent review of the accident.