DON'T PETITION ATSDR!

[Aimee Houghton <aimeeh@igc.org>]

From: Aimee Houghton <aimeeh@igc.org>

A response I received after posting information about petioning ATSDR 
to do a study at Tooele. An excellent example of relevent information 
exchange.

Aimee Houghton

 ****************************

Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 19:28:47 -0700
From: Laura Olah <olah@speagle.com>

DON'T PETITION ATSDR!

Communities and individuals should seriously consider the
potential consequences of inviting a health assessment or health study by
ATSDR, before taking this precarious step. Based on my professional
experience and discussions with dozens of other communities that have
been there, an ATSDR study has the potential to actually increase risk to
human health by instilling a false sense of security and complacency in
response to real and potential environmental health threats.
 In 1995, The Wisconsin Division of Health (WDOH), acting as an
agent for ATSDR, conducted and published a health assessment of residents
near the Sauk County Superfund Landfill. The WDOH study, approved by
ATSDR, was based EXCLUSIVELY on documentation and data presented by the
County (the owner/operator of the landfill and the responsible party) and
contractors hired by the County -- absolutely none of the data or
concerns presented by community members were included in the report and
predictably the conclusions of the report echoed, almost verbatim, the
claims of the polluter that no health problems or risks were associated
with their site.
 Since the release of the report, concerned homeowners have
discontinued actively monitoring the site as well as associated air and
groundwater contamination, and have resumed the daily activities and
patterns that may be placing them and their children at increased risk
for cancer and other deadly diseases. We have spent over a year
appealing the conclusions and content of the report but to no avail.
Moreover, folks need to know the Health Assessment for the Sauk County
Landfill is just one hundreds of similar inferior reports.
 We also believe that any health assessment should be controlled,
or at least directed, by the stakeholders -- the families and workers at
risk; a study conducted by ATSDR (or an agent acting for the Agency) will
completely disempower stakeholders in this regard.
 ATSDR has publicly acknowledged the quality of their assessments
is lacking but claims lack of funds and personnel has restricted them
accordingly; we, and hundreds of other community groups and
individuals across the country, have confronted ATSDR saying an inferior
assessment places the community at much more risk than none at all!!
 I can tell you right now the proposed ATSDR health assessment for
Tooele will say the Agency was "unable to document a direct correlation
between the facility (source) and elevated cancer rates in the
community". Consider the history of this Agency which found no
correlation between the toxics and high cancer rates at LOVE CANAL!
 
L. Olah, Executive Director, Citizens for Safe Water Around Badger