The TCE Blog » News – District of Columbia

…Putting Lipstick on the Pentagon’s Toxic Pig

Neil Fischbein — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 21:45:09 +0000

From DC Bureau via storiesthatmatter.org:

Trento’s Take: Is Obama Putting Lipstick On The Pentagon’s Toxic Pig?

Written by Joseph Trento

Monday, 06 July 2009

For those who think the Obama Administration may be too cozy with corporate interests, there are some disturbing hints that validate this theory that go beyond economic policies.

Such hints can be found in how the Obama White House has treated chemical companies that have endangered the health of millions of Americans with toxins and chemicals left behind by military contractors—including service members and their spouses and children.

[...]

In fact, the Obama Administration has invited into the White House the very chemical companies that have been exposing Americans, including the military and their families, to toxins and chemicals that kill and destroy lives. These chemicals seep into water supplies in and around military bases. TCE and perchlorate are just two. There are many more.

By delaying the EPA’s establishment of interim public health standards, the Pentagon ensures that local governments have no way of setting a safety standard to protect the air, water, and health of those who live in communities that are affected.

Adam Sarvana’s stories on “Poisoned Patriots” and Ray DuBois on DCBureau.org are the tip of a worldwide scandal of Pentagon pollution and a corporate/government partnership to delay and confuse the public while their health suffers and the pollution is not cleaned up.

The Obama White House should shut down the Pentagon’s Chemical and Material Risk Management Directorate and give that budget to the EPA so they can independently supervise the cleanup of the Pentagon’s toxic legacy. Further, President Obama would be wise to reveal who is secretly meeting at the White House with chemical company lobbyists, instead of keeping secret White House visitor logs. Americans are entitled to know which chemical company representatives have lobbied OMB and the Administration as well as the identity of the other “stakeholders” on the White House invitation list. That is change we can believe in.

What is at stake? Further delays prevent local authorities from protecting their citizens and the EPA from dealing with one of the biggest polluters in the world—the United States Department of Defense.

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ATSDR’s National Conversation on Public Health and Chemical Exposures

Neil Fischbein — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 15:32:30 +0000

On Friday, June 26, 2009, ATSDR hosted a kick-off meeting to launch its National Conversation on Public Health and Chemical Exposures. Here’s how ATSDR describes the initiative:

The National Conversation on Public Health and Chemical Exposures is a collaborative initiative to identify and prioritize actions for strengthening the public health approach to chemical exposures. CDC’s National Center for Environmental Health and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (NCEH/ATSDR) are sponsoring this project.

A day-long meeting was held on June 26, 2009 in Washington, DC for a day-long meeting to launch this exciting stakeholder and public involvement initiative. Keynote speakers will include U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson, and National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Director Dr. Linda Birnbaum. Breakout sessions allowed for discussion of specific issues related to public health and chemical exposures.

The 18 month long National Conversation will offer many opportunities for involvement, including: expert working groups, regional and local face-to-face public meetings, and web-based discussions. The resulting action agenda will outline steps for NCEH/ATSDR and other institutions to take to better protect public health from harmful chemical exposures.

Due to scheduling conflicts, we were unable to attend the kick-off meeting but we’re very interested in this initiative and will try to keep readers posted on developments here.

Did you participate in the kick-off of this “conversation?” If so, we’d like to hear from you. Please share your thoughts in the comments or privately at tceblog[at]gmail.com.

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National Academy of Sciences releases doozy of a report on Camp Lejeune (NC)

Neil Fischbein — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 22:53:08 +0000

A report by the National Research Council, Contaminated Water Supplies at Camp Lejeune – Assessing Potential Health Effects, was released yesterday. Money quote:

The available scientific information does not provide a sufficient basis for determining whether the population at Camp Lejeune has, in fact, suffered adverse health effects as a result of exposure to contaminants in the water supplies.

[...]

[T]hese limitations cannot be overcome with additional study. Thus, the committee concludes that there is no scientific justification for the Navy and Marine Corps to wait for the results of additional health studies before making decisions about how to follow up on the evident solvent exposures on the base and their possible health consequences.

Though we’re not yet through the whole thing, the report appears to raise more questions than it answers — not so much about the exposed poisoned population at CL, but about the mindset, approach and conclusions of the NRC.

Andrea over at The Few, The Proud, The Forgotten has posted the the full report (PDF), as well as the report brief (PDF) and the executive summary (PDF).

We’ll be back with thoughts and questions once we trudge through the full report…stay tuned.

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Hall and Hinchey introduce companion to Senate’s TCE legislation (NY)

Neil Fischbein — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 21:59:36 +0000

Earlier this month, a small group of citizens and legislators gathered at the New York home of Debra Hall (Founder of Hopewell Junction Citizens for Clean Water & Clean Air and founding member/co-chair of the New York State Vapor Intrusion Alliance) to announce and unveil legislation requiring the EPA to better protect the public from TCE-contaminated water and air. The new legislation is intended to be the House of Representatives’ companion to Senator Clinton et. al.’s TCE Reduction Act.

Here’s a video of the press conference announcing the new legislation:

This press release comes from U.S. Rep. John Hall’s (D-NY) website:

Standing with Hopewell Junction families who have suffered from cancer and other health problems due to groundwater contamination and vapor intrusion by the carcinogenic chemical trichloroethylene (TCE), U.S. Rep. John Hall (D-NY19) today unveiled legislation to help communities deal with TCE contamination. The TCE Reduction Act, which Hall is introducing with U.S. Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-NY22), would require the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to set stricter regulations to protect the public from exposure to TCE.

“Growing scientific evidence shows the danger TCE pollution poses to people,” said Congressman Hall. “Yet the EPA continues to drag its feet instead of setting a new standard that would help the residents of Hopewell Junction and similar communities throughout the country.”

TCE and other contaminants have plagued Hopewell Junction residents as the result of Hopewell Precision’s disposal of painting and degreasing wastes directly on the ground, resulting in a 1.5 mile long groundwater contamination plume. Chemicals have been detected in local drinking water wells and many homes have experienced significant problems caused by vapor intrusion. The site was listed on the Environmental Protection Agency’s Superfund National Priority List, a list of the most severely polluted sites in the country, in 2005. Yet residents are still suffering from significant TCE contamination.

“TCE is a pervasive, toxic chemical that cannot be allowed to continue to pollute our communities,” said Congressman Hall. “Study has shown that it is a likely carcinogen, can cause nerve damage, lead to developmental difficulties in children, and pose a significant threat to public health. We expect our government at all levels to provide security. When the fire alarm rings, we expect the fireman to show up and put the blaze out. EPA is no exception. But what did EPA do when the alarm rang about TCE spill here and throughout the rest of the country? It recommended more study.”

In 2001, a draft EPA Risk Assessment found TCE to be as much as 40 times more carcinogenic than previously thought, but instead of setting a more protective standard for TCE in drinking water, the Bush Administration called for more study. The National Research Council (NRC) was directed to conduct an in depth study of the health studies involving TCE. The final NRC report, issued in 2006, found that “the evidence on carcinogenic risk and other health hazards from exposure to trichloroethylene has strengthened since 2001.” The report went on to say, “The committee recommends that federal agencies finalize their risk assessment with currently available data so that risk management decisions can be made expeditiously.”

“No action has been taken by the EPA to update the water standard,” stated Debra Hall of Hopewell Junction Citizens for Clean Water. “There is no federal standard to deal with vapor intrusion even though this is a very dangerous environmental issue. I applaud Congressman Hall for taking action to force stricter regulations related to TCE. People living here in Hopewell Junction and the entire nation will benefit greatly when this bill becomes law. Stricter standards will allow more homes to be mitigated. It is obvious that legislation is needed to force protection against cancer and other health issues that are caused by TCE.”

Hopewell Junction resident Sharon Whalen testified that her father developed prostate cancer after living in her home. The house was also dubbed “the sick house” because everyone living there became almost constantly ill. Whalen’s home is impacted by vapor intrusion only and at the highest amount of the entire superfund site.

The TCE Reduction Act addresses both groundwater contamination and vapor intrusion caused by TCE and would require the EPA to:

Issue a revised health advisory for TCE within 6 months of enactment.

Issue revised draft health standards for TCE in drinking water within 12 months of enactment, and final drinking water standards within 18 months.

Issue a health advisory standard for TCE vapor intrusion within 12 months of enactment.

Establish an integrated risk information system reference concentration for TCE vapor which is protective within 18 months of enactment.

Ensure that all standards set under the bill fully protect susceptible populations (including pregnant women, infants, and children) from the adverse health affects of TCE.

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Scottsdale/PV water scare catches Washington’s attention (AZ, DC)

Neil Fischbein — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 05:40:33 +0000

According to the East Valley Tribune (CA):

Two recent drinking water contamination scares that affected Scottsdale and Paradise Valley customers were unprecedented in Arizona, and possibly the nation, federal environmental regulators said Thursday.

“I do not believe that it has happened in the rest of the country,” said Keith Takata, Environmental Protection Agency Superfund Division director.

At the behest of U.S. Rep. Harry Mitchell, D-Ariz., the House Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment, held a hearing in Washington Thursday involving the trichloroethylene, or TCE, scares at a private drinking water facility that serves residential and commercial customers in Scottsdale and Paradise Valley.

Read the full story here.

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Lawmakers want EPA probed for TCE ‘inaction’ (MD, CA, DC)

Neil Fischbein — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 16:58:26 +0000

Representatives Al Wynn (D-MD), the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Environment and Hazardous Materials, and Hilda Solis (D-CA), the Vice Chair of the Subcommittee, are calling for a probe into a number of issues that affect American’s water and health. In a letter to the General Accounting Office (GAO), the lawmakers asked GAO to investigate bottled water, TCE, and the EPA’s rule-setting for other contaminants.

You can read more about the full range of investigation requests in the official press release. Here, we are focused on the TCE-specific portion:

Wynn and Solis are also asking the Government Accountability Office to
examine EPA’s failure to update its current drinking water standard for
Trichloroethylene (TCE). An EPA 2001 assessment found TCE was far more
likely to cause cancer than previously believed. Despite this assessment
and a recommendation from the National Academy of Science, EPA has
failed to update its national drinking water standard for TCE.

“The evidence of the dangers of TCE keep piling up and the EPA keeps
failing to act,” Wynn added. “Hopefully, GAO can shed some much needed
light on the reasons for EPA’s inaction.”

The EPA’s current drinking water standard for TCE allows a maximum of 5
parts per billion, but some have called for a revision of that standard
to reduce the maximum amount of TCE allowed in water.

From the text of the letter sent to GAO [PDF], we learn even more:

[We] request that GAO review the EPA’s failure to update it current drinking water standard for Trichloroethylene (TCE) following its August 2001 draft risk assessment entitled “Trichloroethylene Health Risk Assessment: Synthesis and Characterization.” The EPA 2001 assessment found that TCE was far more likely to cause cancer than EPA had previously believed. We note that in July 2006, the National Academy of Science (NAS) found “that the evidence on carcinogenic risk and other health hazards from exposure to trichloroethylene has strengthened since 2001” and recommended “that federal agencies finalize their risk assessment with currently available data so that risk management decisions can be made expeditiously.” EPA does not appear, however, to have acted consistently with respect to the findings and recommendations of these major scientific studies to protect the public health.

In conducting your review of the regulatory review process, and associated issues specific to TCE, please examine the following issues:

The extent to which EPA’s efforts to revise the TCE drinking water standard complies with the Safe Drinking Water Act’s requirements, and facilitate improvements to public health protection.

The obstacles, if any, that have interfered with EPA’s ability to expeditiously revise its standards for TCE.

The latest research and what it suggests about TCE’s effects on human health and the environment, including information from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry’s study related to Camp Lejeune.

The number of Department of Defense sites contaminated with TCE and the Department’s role, if any, in delaying or interfering with EPA efforts to update a drinking water standard for TCE.

Of course, we already know part of the publicly-accepted answer to #4: There are 1,400 military sites contaminated with TCE. We have reason to believe the actual number may be higher – more on this, and DOD’s interference, another time.

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A peek inside the Toxic Chemical Exposure Reduction Act

Neil Fischbein — Fri, 03 Aug 2007 05:43:00 +0000

Yesterday brought us the introduction of the Toxic Chemical Exposure Reduction Act by Senators Clinton, Dole, Boxer, Lautenberg, and Kerry. Here are the main provisions of the 15-page bill:

The Act establishes that the EPA must:

Publish a health advisory for trichloroethylene that fully protects, with an adequate margin for safety, the health of susceptible populations;
Propose and impose a national primary drinking water standard that protects sensitive populations and is set as close to the maximum contaminant level goal for trichloroethylene as is feasible;
Enforce the requirement that all qualified drinking water monitoring systems accommodate the new drinking water standards proposed and imposed above;
Require monitoring of water supplies currently in the path or proximity of migrating TCE;
Require that Consumer Confidence Reports include the known health risks of TCE exposure and detail any TCE discovered in the monitored water supplies.

With respect to Vapor Intrusion, the EPA must:

Publish a health advisory for trichloroethylene that fully protects the health of susceptible populations from vapor intrusion (again , with an adequate margin for safety);
Establish an integrated risk information system reference concentration of TCE vapor that protects sensitive populations and apply it to potential vapor intrusion-related investigations or actions carried out under CERCLA.

–

We have some thoughts to share on several of these provisions, and will be back shortly to do so.

Meantime, we have emailed representatives for Senator Dodd and Senator Lieberman, both from Connecticut, and have asked if the Senators will be able to support the TCE Reduction Act. So far…no reply. But it’s only been a day.

We’ll keep you posted.

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Senators Clinton, Dole, Boxer, Lautenberg, and Kerry propose TCE legislation (D.C.)

Neil Fischbein — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 05:47:13 +0000

Big day in the TCE world today, marked by 1 word: LEGISLATION.

Okay, maybe two words: PROPOSED LEGISLATION

Today, Senators Clinton, Dole, Boxer, Lautenberg, and Kerry introduced a bill that proposes to:

Amend the Safe Water Drinking Act to protect the health of susceptible populations, including pregnant women, infants, and children, by requiring a health advisory, drinking water standard, and reference concentration for trichloroethylene vapor intrusion, and for other purposes.

Cited formally as the “Toxic Chemical Exposure Reduction Act of 2007″ (get it? “TCE Reduction Act”?) the Senators have proposed that EPA revise the national standard for allowable TCE levels in public drinking water, create a national standard for allowable TCE in indoor air, and enforce nationwide monitoring and cleanups based on these new standards. All of this is proposed to occur within the 3-18 months of the bill’s enactment.

Since the details of the bill are interesting and worth comment, we’ll post them here shortly. For now, we’ll say this: We think this bill, if passed and enforced, could go a long way towards better protecting the public from TCE.

Of course, if the EPA chooses to or is forced to play politics, we also envision ways that they could still stagnate change even if the bill is passed…

As we said, more to come from us on this. Meantime, you can download the full bill here.

Lastly, we are in the process of contacting Senators from our home state, Connecticut, to ask for their support for this legislation. We strongly urge readers to contact their state Senators as well.

(If any readers do contact their Senators for support, please consider letting us know the kind of feedback you receive. If we’re able to keep track of whom has pledged their support, we’ll keep readers posted by running updates on this blog. What could possibly be more exciting?)

UPDATE: For the official press release from Senator Clinton announcing the proposed legislation, see here.

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Hearing tomorrow re: Camp Lejeune; Webcast available (DC, NC)

Neil Fischbein — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 21:24:04 +0000

The Camp Lejeune hearing begins tomorrow. You can watch/listen via webcast here. It appears the witness list for the hearing has been revised. The updated witness list includes:

Panel I

Mr. Jerome Ensminger

North Carolina

Dr. Mike Gross

Texas

Mr. Jeff Byron

Ohio

Panel II

United States Marine Corps

Major General Robert C. Dickerson, Jr.

Commanding General

PSC Box 20005

Camp Lejeune, NC 28542-0005

Accompanied by Ms. Kelley A. Dreyer

Environmental Restoration Program Manager

Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps (I&L)

2 Navy Annex

Washington, DC 20380-1775

United States Navy

Ms. Pat Leonard

Director

Office of the Judge Advocate General

Claims, Investigations, & Tort Litigation (Code 15)

1322 Patterson Avenue, Suite 3000

Washington Navy Yard, DC 20374-5066

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease registry

Thomas Sinks, Ph.D.

Deputy Director

National Center for Environmental Health/ATSD

Mail Stop E-28

1600 Clinton Road

Atlanta, GA 30333

Accompanied by Frank Bove, Sc.D.

Senior Epidimiologist (sic)

and

Morris Maslia

Environmental Engineer

Panel III

Mr. Peter J. Murtha

Director

Office of Criminal Enforcement, Forensics, and Training

Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance

U.S. Enviornmental Protection Agency

1200 Pennsylvanie Avenue, NW

Washington, DC 20460

Accompanied by Mr. Tyler Amon

Special Agent

Criminal Investigation Division

Mr. Franklin Hill

Director, Superfund Division

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Region 4

61 Forsyth Street, SW

Atlanta, GA 30303

Maria G. Crosse, Ph.D.

Director, Public Health and Military Health Care Issues

U.S. Government Accountability Office

441 G Street, NW, Room 5K21

Washington, DC 20548

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MEDIA ADVISORY: Camp Lejeune Congressional hearings this Tuesday (DC, NC)

Neil Fischbein — Sat, 09 Jun 2007 15:09:17 +0000

NEWS RELEASE

Committee on Energy and Commerce

Rep. John D. Dingell, Chairman

For planning purposes: June 8, 2007

Contact: Jodi Seth 202-225-5735

MEDIA ADVISORY:

Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Hearing on Contaminated Drinking Water at Camp Lejeune

The Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will hold a hearing
on Tuesday, June 12, 2007, at 10:00 a.m. in room 2322 Rayburn House
Office Building. The hearing is entitled Poisoned Patriots:
Contaminated Drinking Water at Camp Lejeune.

The purpose of this hearing is to examine issues arising from the
extensive, high-level contamination of drinking water at U.S. Marine
Corps Base Camp Lejeune. This is the first of a series of hearings the
Subcommittee plans to hold on environmental problems at Department of
Defense (DOD) facilities.

The hearing will include testimony from former Marine Corps residents
of Camp Lejeune who, along with their families, drank the contaminated
water, cooked their food in it, and bathed in it. The Subcommittee
will also receive testimony from the Government agencies involved in
dealing with the contamination, assessing the adverse health effects,
and investigating allegations of criminal violations of Federal law,
including the Marine Corps, the Department of the Navy, ATSDR, the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Government
Accountability Office (GAO).

WITNESS LIST

Panel I

Mr. Jerome Ensminger

North Carolina

Dr. Mike Gros

Texas

Mr. Jeff Byron

Ohio

Panel II

United States Marine Corps

Major General Robert C. Dickerson, Jr.

Commanding General

Accompanied by Ms. Kelly A. Dreyer

Environmental Restoration Program Manager

United States Navy

Ms. Pat Leonard
Director

Office of The Judge Advocate General

Claims, Investigations, & Tort Litigation (Code 15)

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry

Department of Health and Human Services

Thomas Sinks, Ph.D.

Deputy Director

National Center for Environmental Health/ATSDR

Accompanied by Frank Bove, Sc.D.

Senior Epidimiologist

and

Morris Maslia, P.E.

Environmental Engineer

No related posts.