OMG: EPA forgets about Parkersburg
We just published a story about an announcement by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that it has lowered the trigger level for DuPont Co. to have to provide alternative drinking water for folks in the Parkersburg area whose water is contaminated with the toxic chemical C8.
EPA posted its deal with DuPont here, and also issued a “Fact Sheet” to provide more information about the matter.
An interesting line in this “Fact Sheet” reports that: “All of the area’s large public water systems, including Belpre, Little Hocking, Lubeck, Mason County, Tupper Plains/Chester and Pomeroy, are already treating water for PFOA.”
Well, what about the largest public water system in the area? That’s the Parkersburg Utility Board, which serves the city itself. It serves more than 36,000 people, according to EPA’s own data.
Parkersburg’s system is currently not treating water to remove C8. As I’ve explained in numerous Gazette stories, residents of the city itself were not part of the landmark class-action settlement that required DuPont to provide water treatment for systems in the outlying areas around Parkersburg. And U.S. District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin refused to certify a class action case against DuPont on behalf of city residents.
That lawsuit settlement required DuPont to provide treatment or alternative water supplies for residents (again, outside of the city of Parkersburg) if their water had more than 0.05 parts per billion of C8.
EPA’s new deal with DuPont requires the company to provide treatment or alternative water supplies where water contains more than 0.4 parts per billion of C8. But this won’t help residents of the city, where C8 has recently been measured at 0.049 parts per billion.
The problem? EPA is setting its limit based only on short-term exposure which it said today should be defined as “weeks to months.”
What about the people of Parkersburg, who have been drinking C8-contaminated water for years and aren’t protected by this EPA action?
In New Jersey, environmental regulators suggested a long-term limit for C8 in drinking water should be on the order of 10 times more stringent (lower) than this EPA short-term level. When that New Jersey guideline was written, the state’s top environmental official was Lisa Jackson — who just happens to be President Barack Obama’s new EPA administrator.
6 comments
What is happening in the Parkersburg area is terrible. It’s a shame that a government agency like the EPA can be bought by large corporations. Yes, you can dump your toxic chemicals that make you billions of dollars, just as long as you pay us a small fine!?!?! What? E-P-A = Environmental Protection Agency. How exactly are they protecting the environment, let alone the people? Shame of the EPA for allowing DuPont to get away with this. It’s been affecting a very large group of people for a very long time!
WHY DONT THEY FILTER ALL AREAS OF C8 OR USE SOMETHING ELSE.THERE IS TOO MUCH DATA ABOUT THIS CHEMICAL BEING A CARCINOGEN.
Corporations can be our best friend or our worst enemy. I once believed, like many citizens, that corporations had our best interests in mind and employees are family. We now know that when it comes to the bottom line “family” are expendable. We are now finding out that citizens of the United States are also expendable. Reasonable profits are out, massive profits are required. These are recent discoveries but to find out DuPont and other corporations have always seen people as expendable is a real shock. DuPont has been poisoning the citizens of Parkersburg, WV and surrounding communities for decades. We trusted them, they were good employers. But at what cost?` What can we do about this?
Despite mounting medical and scientific evidence of the dangers of this extraordinarily toxic, likely cancer-causing , body-accumulating Teflon chemical, DuPont’s secretive bosses and their PR con artists arrogantly insist PFOA or C8 poses “no risk to the general public”.
Are thousands of Parkersburg residents drinking C8-laced water from their taps members of the “general public”? What an outrageously misleading and insultingly vague and legalistic phrase from Fortress Wilmington!
….funfun..
PerFLUORooctanoic acid (PFOA) also known as C-8 is a fluoride compound. Fluoride is a POISON. Fluoride is put in tooth paste, mouthwash, kid’s multiple vitamins,Prozac, Stain resistant carpet and clothing, fast food greaseproof wrappers etc…Fluoride has been linked to: Arthritis, Alzheimers and other central-nervous-systen disorders, Thyroid problems, Down Syndrome,cardiovascular problems, breathing difficulties, mottled teeth( dental fluorosis) ( Yes fluoride damages your teeth),………… The list goes on and on. All of this information and much, much more can be found in the book “The Fluoride deception” by Christopher Bryson. Excellent book!
The government screwed up a long time ago by allowing big business to sell their toxic waste(manufacturing “by product”) to the health industry under the guise and lies that “if a lot can kill you, then maybe a little will be good for you.” (Just like radiation
)This was apparently in an attempt to increase profits. Why pay huge prices to dispose of toxic waste when you can get the health industry to pay you for it!!!! Its only a chemical, and isn’t that what all medicines are made of? ( that is why medication is the no.1 killer in the U.S. They are chemicals that cover up symptoms they don’t cure the problem)Why not pay 1 doctor to say it may be good for your teeth! The E.P.A. has to save face. They will never say this stuff kills after they have allowed it for so long. They will only give acceptable levels. It is up to us to protect the ones we love, not the Gov.. Remember also , the Government receives their paycheck from the taxes they receive from the plants and the workers in those plants.
Hello EPA, just because Parkersburg is upstream from Dupont dont think they arent affected. The wind blows our direction from Dupont and still brings it our way!