PCB Update Report

by Tom Siciliano

(from Jersey Coast Anglers Association July 2001 Newsletter)

In August, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Christie Whitman will decide if the EPA proposed plan to remove the  PCBs from the Hudson River will proceed or not.  It is a battle between GE and everyone who wants to make the earth a better and safer place to share with future generations. There were more than 36,000 public comments made to the EPA on their proposed plan on dredging the Hudson River.  The EPA has until August 17, 2001 to respond to all the written comments.  This is the date when it releases its final cleanup plan for the Hudson River.  When Christie Whitman was governor both she and Governor Pataki came out in favor of the cleanup.  Will she change her mind or have it changed for her?

I think the quote by Cindy Zipf, director of the Sandy Hook-based group Clean Ocean Action sums up the situation very well.  "There are few issues from a national perspective that are going to tell us more about this administration and where they're going to go on cleanup of corporate messes than this decision."

General Electric, meanwhile, is waging a multimillion-dollar campaign regarding the Hudson River problem, saying that the dredging project would actually do more damage to the environment by stirring up the PCBs now lodged in the sediment.  GE is also trying to make this a local problem concerning the towns immediately involved. "This is not just a Hudson River problem. The striped bass that spawn in the Hudson travel widely along the East Coast," said Charles Stamm, director of the New Jersey chapter of the Hudson River Fishermen's Association.

The battle to convince this administration will not be easy.  President Bush recently nominated James Connaughton, a partner in a law firm that represented GE in its battles against the EPA, to chair the Council on Environmental Quality, a White House environmental policy advisory group. Connaughton has said he will not participate for one year in any matter involving GE and the Hudson River. He also plans to withdraw as a partner in the law firm. These steps may satisfy the legal requirements and handle the public portion of the debate.  There will be a lot of behind-the-scenes discussions and it is impossible to believe that he will not make sure that GE’s position is fully and clearly understood.

In a letter to Whitman, three dozen members of Congress from New Jersey and New York said: "PCBs pose a serious threat to the public health . . .. This cleanup plan is a crucial first step towards restoring the Hudson's tremendous social, ecological and economic value for the people of New York and New Jersey."

The list of supporters of a clean Hudson is impressive and is growing daily with individual towns signing up and more and more legislators coming out in favor of the cleanup.   Acting Governor Donald DiFrancesco heads the list of legislators.  It was very important to the success of the effort for him to come out in support of the cleanup and we are very grateful that he did.  Also the NJ Senate Environment Committee unanimously passed a Resolution to support the EPA Plan.

The list of supporters for the Hudson River PCB Cleanup is not complete but certainly gives a perspective of the breadth of support this cleanup has.

American Littoral Society, Clean Ocean Action, Hudson River Fisherman’s Association,

Jersey Coast Anglers Association, New Jersey State Federation of Sportsmen Clubs, Monmouth County Friends of Clearwater, NJPIRG, NY/NJ Harbor Baykeeper, Sierra Club, Tri-State Coalition for Responsible Investment

Federal Officials:

US Senators Bob Torricelli and Jon Corzine,
US Representatives Bob Andrews (D-1), Mike Ferguson (R-7), Rush Holt (D-12), Robert Menendez (D-13), Frank Pallone (D-6), Bill Pascrell (D-8), Donald Payne (D-10), Steve Rothman (D-9), Jim Saxton (R-7), Chris Smith (R-4)

State Officials:

Acting Governor Donald DiFrancesco
State Senator John Bennett (R-12), Majority Leader State Senator Leonard Connors, Jr. (R-9)
State Senators Andrew Ciesla (R-10), Joe Kyrillos (R-13), Joseph Palaia (R-11)
Assemblymen Joe Azzolina (R-13), Joe Doria (D-31), Steve Corodemus (R-11)
Minority Leader Assemblyman Christopher Connors (R-9)
Assemblyman Assemblywoman Clare Farragher (R-12)
Assemblymen James Holzapfel (R-10), Jeffrey Moran (R-9), Thomas Smith (R-11), David Wolfe (R-10)

Local Officials:

Bergen County Board of Chosen Freeholders and Chair Douglas Bern
Hudson County Executives and Director Robert Janiszewski
Mayor of Jersey City, Brett Schundler
Jim McGreevey, Candidate for Governor

Organizations:

Baymen’s Protective Association, Garden Club of RFD, Hudson County Central Labor Council,

NJ Chapter International Seafarers Union, Mid-Atlantic Fisheries Management Council, Natural Resources Protective Association, NJ Council of Diving Clubs, New Jersey State Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs, Oceanport Garden Club, Point Pleasant Garden Club, Point Pleasant Seafood Co-op, Royal Garden Club By the Bay in Perth Amboy, Save the Bay, Terra Nova Garden Club, The Garden Club of Westfield, and the Warren Garden Club.

Even with this impressive list of supporters the fight is not a sure win.  We must all get involved.  We need to make this a national issue and keep up the pressure of public opinion to ensure that President Bush does not side with GE.

To assist in this effort a new group called Citizens to CleanUp GE, a project of the non-profit group Essential Information, has been formed.  They have called upon President George W. Bush to support the EPA's plan to clean up the Hudson River. As part of its campaign, CleanUp GE unveiled a website and will sponsor print advertisements in the New York Times exhorting President Bush to hold GE accountable. The website highlights work done by civic, religious and environmental groups supporting removal of the toxic PCBs.  PCB contamination threatens homes, drinking water and the Hudson. Citizens may view a free copy of the guide at www.CleanUpGE.org.

Walter Hang, President of Toxic Targeting, has some new PCB data that he will be releasing next week.  There will be a Tuesday, June 19^th press conference in Albany or Poughkeepsie, unless Bobby Kennedy, Jr. agrees to participate, in which case the press conference will most likely take place in New York City. "GE is a giant corporate polluter," said Walter Hang.  "They don't care about the environment. They don't care about the public's health."

Visit the website or call Essential Information at 202-387-8030.

On Wednesday, June 13^th, the first of four New York Times ads began running.  The first ad featured Mary Beth Morrison, a victim of PCB poisoning from Moreau, NY.  The ads will run on Wednesdays and will feature other victims of PCBs. 

In addition to the obvious opposition by GE, a lot of the other opposition comes from towns along the Hudson and their concerns about the placement of treatment facilities. Towns up and down the river have voted for a resolution opposing a treatment facility in their town.  It’s the old NIMBY principle.  Not in my Back Yard!  Other opposition comes from CEASE (Citizen Environmentalists Against Sludge Encapsulation).  Tim Havens of CEASE has been questioning the harmful health effects of PCBs.  He states that PCBs have never been proven to be harmful and that the non-cancer health risks are a fallacy.  He claims everyone is living perfectly healthy lives, choosing to ignore people such as Mary Beth Morrison who is a victim of PCBs and the many scientific studies available on the subject such as a study that links PCBs with diabetes which is available at http://care.diabetesjournals.org/cgi/content/full/24/6/1099

There was a recent article in the Detroit News stating that eating Lake Michigan PCB-infested fish poses health risks to adults and their pregnancies, and that PCB fish impair memory and learning. Here is a comment by Tim that I especially like.  “ Low-income people do not eat the fish to survive.  NO ONE is starving and no one needs to eat the fish.”    Sounds like a “LET THEM EAT CAKE” mentality! 

There will be a piece on the Hudson and PCBs on 20/20 in July.  NBC is owned by GE so it will be interesting to see which side they favor.   Don’t miss it and be prepared to take action.

What can you do?  Get the facts.   Write letters.  Make phone calls and make sure that our government knows the WILL of the people.

[News Contents] [Top]