The Jacksonville Daily News (NC) reports:
The federal agency researching past water contamination aboard Camp Lejeune wants to form a community panel for further advice – a plan some consider a step in reserve.The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry proposed creating the five-member panel in its Aug. 26 report – it’s a response to a June report compiled by scientists tasked with examining the feasibility of performing more studies on those who may have been affected between 1968 and 1985. During those years, dry cleaning chemicals from sites on and off Camp Lejeune leaked into the base water supply. The chemicals are suspected of causing numerous birth defects and other ailments to children born to parents stationed there at the time.
The affected wells were later capped. They pose no threat to current base residents.
The scientists, who met in Atlanta in February, recommended that ATSDR work in “full participation” with the affected community, possibly forming a paid staff of community members.
Instead, ATSDR proposed a community assistance panel (CAP), which they have used in similar cases.
“A CAP does not oversee ATSDR’s activities,” the Aug. 26 report reads, “but its recommendations are carefully considered by the agency and made available to the public.”
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Dr. Richard Maas, a member of the expert panel who works at the Environmental Quality Institute at the University of North Carolina at Asheville, said he had a mixed reaction to ATSDR’s response.
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“Having now extensively reviewed this situation, I believe that this water contamination at Camp Lejeune represents one of the worst public groundwater exposure situations that this country has ever seen,” Maas said. “In my extensive experience, I have yet to see another groundwater contamination site which has affected so many people for so long. For this reason, I think ATSDR should be giving this site much higher priority than other Superfund groundwater contamination sites.
“As a panel member, I left feeling that additional studies were important and appropriate but that the biggest need for the victims of this chemical contamination is to have a federal bill passed which provides health-care compensation,” he added. “I’m disappointed that since February there has been no attempt, especially by (state) Senate or House representatives, to initiate such action.”
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