[CPEO-MEF]

[marty martinson <martymartinson@yahoo.com>]

Hi..I downloaded this from toxicspot.com (http://www.toxicspot.com), can
you >please post it?

           Firefighters Sound Alarm about Toxic Hazards 
     Notification to Every Alameda Point Employee is the Law

The Navy admits they violated Federal Occupational Health and Safety 
Laws by failing to notify firefighters about environmental toxins at 
their work site. Navy firefighters raised concerns in  December 1996 
that one of their work sites, Site 15, was among the 25 identified toxic 
waste sites at  Alameda Point. Every employee who is working at one of 
the 25 identified toxic waste sites at Alameda Point is entitled by law 
to this notification. Every Navy employee, every City of Alameda
employee, every EBMUD employee, every PG&E employee, and every employee 
of every  Alameda Point tenants are entitled to this notification by 
their employer's legal obligation and by terms of their lease agreement. 


Site 15 was used for disposal of PCB transformer fluid and lead acid 
batteries. It was originally identified as a toxic waste site in 1983. 
In 1990, the Navy initiated a Hazard Communication  Program to inform 
workers of the suspected presence of toxic substances at the identified 
toxic waste sites such as Site 15. Despite these events, the Navy 
firefighters maintained the unpaved site along the shoreline of the 
Oakland Estuary for 20 years without information on the contamination 
and  without the personnel protective equipment (gloves, suits, and 
masks) they had at their disposal. 

According to earlier reports (Sacramento Bee, December 1, 1996) Navy 
firefighters first learned  about the PCB contamination at Site 15 after 
reading newspaper accounts of the cleanup at the base. The San Francisco 
Chronicle had reported on Clearwater Revival Company's report "One 
Million  Dollars to No Where, Analysis of Key Decisions, Installation 
Restoration Site 15, Alameda Naval  Air Station," in May 1996. 

In addition to Site 15, the Alameda Naval Air Station Firefighters were 
also housed at a  contaminated site. In December 1998, the Navy's 
Environmental Baseline Surveys adjusted the  boundaries of Site 5 
groundwater contamination plumes to include the Alameda Point Fire 
Station. These contaminants would pose a threat to indoor air quality.


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