| From: | Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org> |
| Date: | 22 Dec 2006 17:10:39 -0000 |
| Reply: | cpeo-irf |
| Subject: | [CPEO-IRF] South Weymouth (MA) critique |
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From: DCatbird37@aol.com Lenny, More political dealings sent to my Congressman and Senator to point out flaws in the system, regards, Dave. Mr. Delahunt, Mr. Fancher, and Mr. Kerry, As the State salutes you (and our towns) with yet more politically trumped up accolades for "Smartgrowth", and as you, the local governments, Congressman Delahunt, and Senator Kerry, continue to disregard my well-founded public safety concerns, I can't help but bestow an additional award on you. Perhaps not as big and shiny as the tribute the Office for Commonwealth Development just awarded you with, this "Shortsighted Foolish Growth Award" will prove no doubt to be well justified. By ignoring precautionary principles in accepting the transference of more and more toxically altered land and streams, you are putting those who live here in harms way. Politics in place are allowing grave injustice to take place here. Mr Fancher, as Director of a governing body appointed to look out for the best interests of the local populace, you continue to disregard the public health as by far our most precious commodity. Mr Delahunt and Mr Kerry, your offices lost interest in my research efforts is particularly unsettling given your growing political aspirations. This entire BRAC process is morally corrupt, and none involved with the process feel it necessary to even attempt to address my concerns now. Evidently, no one can find justifiable debate with my concerns. I'm not surprised. Testing of the French's Stream floodplain would doubtless show dangerous levels of heavy metals and other contamination that has flowed off the base over the decades, to deposit where local children play. Yet, those elected and appointed to protect the local populace, finds a way to turn away. It makes no sense to me, how this is allowed to happen. There is not one among you, who has been able to explain why the Department of Defense should be ultimately responsible for Public Health initiatives in this country. Why is this not an issue to my Congressman and Senator? How is this not a bigger issue to the state Board of Public Health, the state Department of Environmental Protection or the federal Environmental Protection Agency? Politics would be the answer. Politics suppress what gets printed in the newspapers. Politics decide who receives and when most awards are awarded. Politics determine that financial concerns take precedent over public health. New Governor Deval Patrick is currently making an effort to gather concerns from the public for his different "transition teams". Before sending some concerns to his "Energy and Environment" transition team, I see where a leader of that team is former Secretary of the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs John Devillars, the same John Devillars whose private company is currently working for LNR Partners, the development company here. It was reported in Friday's Globe that Mr. Devillars company Blue Wave Strategies is also running a state program Wetland Databank to allow big developers like the LNR Partners "Master Developer" of this former air station who Mr Devillars and Blue Wave are working for can now fill wetlands on the base to best meet their purposes, and recreate them elsewhere, likely far from our water-starved towns. The land holding the South Weymouth Naval Air Station was the site of a vast water-recharging marsh prior to the Navy's arrival, now it appears politics have established a further method to take our natural resources from us and bring them elsewhere. This being done when it is generally accepted by hydrogeologists that recreating wetlands where none existed before is quite impossible. And still, we're robbed of our resources for unjust strategies and politics. The current Massachusetts Executive Secretary of Environmental Affairs just approved the issuing of a certificate which will allow commencing of development of the base prior to responsible completion of Superfund Cleanup. What politics are in place that have the Secretary overruling the many concerns of Public Comment brought to his attention by myself and other members of the public, long engaged in monitoring this air station's environmental remediation. Former Massachusetts Executive Secretary of Environmental Affairs John Devillars of Blue Wave Strategies has politically positioned himself to fill all the wetland LNR Partners needs for their "village". There's no real debating that point. As mentioned, Mr Devillars is also serving on incoming Governor Patrick's Environmental Transition Team, no doubt solidifying his company's political standing in the state. Politics. Connections. Agendas. Strategies, And the Board of Selectmen, Board of Health and Town Manager of my town have no interest in my often shared Public Health Concerns. Do the politics of having the Board of Selectmen's Chairwoman and the town's locally appointed "Development Corporation's" Board member married to a real estate business and each other, bring the possibility of conflicts of interest. I can't see why that question shouldn't be asked? Mr. Devillar's multiple positions and growing prominence likewise sends a red flag up to me. Politics have ravaged the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act. Superfund Law has been undermined by a government running scared from the costs of military released toxin cleanup. Strategies are being developed and loop holes are being created to bring the Department of Defense out from behind what should be their moral obligation to restore our natural resources prior to leaving us. Developers appear only too obliging to help them do this. Toxic landfills are allowed to be capped over, even if abutting known drinking water supplies. Flood plains along streams long running with heavy metals and other toxins are allowed to go irresponsibly untested while local children are left in harms way. The EPA is so politically controlled now, that known neurotoxic substances are allowed to perpetrate in our irresponsibly controlled environment.( see for one, the highly toxic levels of manganese allowed to remain in base perimeter test wells. Lower income communities, due to our lack of political clout, end up with far more than our just share of environmentally triggered health issues. I suppose some would say we're lucky here. Look at the poor folk living and dying with the aftermath of decades of Navy bombing exercises on Vieques Island off Puerto Rico. Reports from people there have stated those islanders suffer as much as a 62% greater incidence of cancerous disease as opposed to those who reside on the Puerto Rican mainland. Politics in place has abandoned the "liberty and justice for all" promise. According to a report just released by Physicians for Social Responsibility, the federal EPA continues to claim that water quality in this country is improving, yet " an EPA audit revealed that 77% of known (water) monitoring and reporting violations, and 35% of known health standard violations have been omitted from the EPA's database. Moreover, the EPA's own records document the number of people affected by drinking water violations rose from 19 million in 2002 to 35.5 million in 2003." How is it that the politics in place allow the EPA to repeatedly mislead the public? It's the earthly power of politics and money superceding what's right. I would request those addressed here to morally regard their decisions before allowing political strategies to unleash anymore environmental injustice on our citizens. sincerely,
David Wilmot, Abington Massachusetts.--
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