To the editor:
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is notorious for being a revolving door for corporate lobbyists. The polluting corporation in question always has a leg up, which in this case is General Electric (GE). The EPA and GE have numerous failures in cleanups, unsatisfactory plans that can’t be executed properly, and litigation lawsuits leaving a bigger mess than when they started the project. One example is the Housatonic River.
The EPA estimated the GE cleanup of the Housatonic River in 2016 to be $600 million, which would easily be $900 million in 2023. So GE is getting a bargain for only a $400 million partial inadequate cleanup. GE only has to clean up a small portion of the Housatonic River and, within that small portion, only 20 to 30 percent will get cleaned.
GE wants to destroy the town of Lee with a toxic PCB dump, scarring the landscape and forever ruining the gateway to the Berkshires. The people of Lee have spoken and voted against a dump in town. The citizens of Lee want the EPA to treat the PCBs properly with new technologies that break down PCBs, not dredge and dump them.
The proposed toxic PCB dump will be 20 football fields at the base of October Mountain which is the largest state forest in Massachusetts. It will be placed only 150 feet above the river. The proximity of the dump to the river is reason enough for not putting a dump at that location. The geology report states the soil is permeable and not stable and can’t possibly hold toxic PCBs, which will end up back in the river, negating the whole cleanup effort.
The EPA and GE have not taken into account extreme climate change, storm surges, floods, hurricanes, and possible tornadoes that would create more risk of PCBs being released from the dump. The liner that is proposed must be compatible with toxic PCBs. No manufacturer will warranty the use of any liner for PCBs. The liner will fail, and PCBs will leak back into the river, that is the only thing guaranteed to happen.
One of the biggest health hazards of this cleanup is the use of unregulated dump trucks hauling toxic PCBs dredged from the river crossing through Berkshire county. PCBs are 100 percent more volatile when they are airborne. Not only will the dump trucks leak and leave a trail of PCBs on the roads, but the number of diesel fumes that will be released into the atmosphere over 15 years will become a huge health hazard. There is no assurance for the safety of the dump trucks as they travel through the Berkshires, past our homes, schools, restaurants, and workplace.
What happens when the inevitable accident of an overturned leaking truck occurs?
There are so many things left to chance and unanswered. In the EPAs statement of basis in 2016, they write that “there is potential for PCB releases to the Housatonic watershed if the landfills are not properly operated, monitored and maintained.”
These are all reasons why a toxic PCB dump should never become a reality!
There are numerous books and documentaries made over the years about GE and its horrendous track record of poisoning land, waterways, humans, and animals.
Why should we trust GE to do a proper cleanup now?
Cindy Mathias
Lee
