Groups Say Toxic Pollution Data Make the Case to Stop Environmental Rollbacks
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<-- Return To Right-To-Know or Left-To-Wonder?
See report, Ignorance
is Toxic Bliss: The Secret War on Our Right-To-Know
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release:
April 11, 2001
For More Information, Contact:
Jeremiah Baumann, U.S. PIRG, 202-546-9707
Alan Septoff, Mineral Policy Center, 202-887-1872
Rick Blum, OMB Watch, 202-234-8494
Paul Orum, Working Group on CRTK, 202-544-9586
Groups Say Toxic Pollution Data Make the Case to Stop
Environmental Rollbacks
WASHINGTON - New toxic pollution data released today by
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency show that
ongoing industrial toxic pollution continues to affect
American communities nationwide. Environmental and
public interest groups say the data also demonstrate
the need for better environmental protections, while
the Bush administration has moved to roll back several
environmental policies. The data released were the
newest data from the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI)
and document nearly 8 billion pounds of toxic
chemicals that American industries reported releasing
to the environment in 1999. In Utah and Nevada,
industries released more than 1 billion pounds just
within the state. The top industries were the mining
and electric utilities industries, with mining
companies releasing almost half of the total toxic
releases among all industries.
Sponsors
The groups highlighted recent rollbacks of
environmental protections that could help reduce the
billions of pounds of toxic releases, including limits
on arsenic in drinking water and limits on toxic
pollution by mining facilities. The groups further
cautioned against potential rollbacks of right-to-know
policies that produce data like that released today by
EPA, including a new requirement for thousands of
industrial facilities to start reporting their lead
pollution to the TRI which is currently being
considered for withdrawal by the Bush administration.
"The new data show hundreds of millions of pounds of
releases of arsenic and billions of pounds of toxic
pollution from mines, just weeks after the Bush
administration suspended protections for both of these
health threats," said Jeremiah Baumann, environmental
health advocate for the U.S. Public Interest Research
Group (PIRG). "The new information released today
shows exactly why rolling back environmental
protections is a terrible idea and why even thinking
about rolling back our right to know about lead
pollution is an even worse idea."
Several weeks ago, the Bush administration decided to
re-consider new standards for the amount of arsenic
allowed in drinking water. The new data document more
than 600 million pounds of arsenic and arsenic
compounds released to the nation�s land and water in
1999. Arsenic causes several types of cancer. The Bush
administration has also announced its intention to
re-consider regulations on the amount of toxic waste
mines can dump in waterways and on public lands. Mines
reported releasing nearly 4 billion pounds of toxic
chemicals in 1999.
Sponsors
"Mining is the largest toxic polluter in the country,
responsible for polluting 40% of the headwaters of
watersheds in the Western states," said Alan Septoff,
campaign director for the Mineral Policy Center. "For
this administration to roll back the scant protections
we have against the environmental destruction caused
by mining is absurd."
The coalition highlighted potential rollbacks of
community right-to-know protections on the Bush
administration agenda. In January, the EPA corrected a
loophole that had previously allowed industrial
facilities to avoid publicly reporting their lead
pollution, so long as they used less than five tons of
lead. Although lead pollution can cause neurological
effects in children, including lower IQ scores, at
extremely low exposure levels, the Bush administration
and EPA Administrator Christine Whitman are currently
withdrawing the new right-to-know rules. In the 1999
data, which allow do not include data from the nearly
10,000 industrial facilities that would report if the
Bush administration does not roll back the new rules,
industries reported more than 377 million pounds of
lead and lead compounds released to the environment.
"Lead is notorious for its effects on the learning and
development of children," said Paul Orum, director of
the Working Group on Community Right-to-Know. "We need
stronger right-to-know laws to hold both industry and
government accountable, not rollbacks sought by lead
industries."
According to environmental and public interest groups,
a range of other threats to right-to-know programs
exist at EPA. The TRI program is among those receiving
proposed budget cuts and the proposed budget would
eliminate funding for real-time public reporting on
unhealthy air, water pollution, and ultraviolet
radiation. Furthermore, a range of policy changes that
could broaden what industries can hide as confidential
business information or would limit the information
publicly reported by industries in an effort to reduce
their paper work burden.
"There are many ways EPA can make the means of
reporting, collecting, and disseminating information
easier," said Rick Blum, policy analyst at OMB Watch,
a nonprofit public interest organization that promotes
government transparency and the public�s right to
know. "Limiting our right-to-know doesn�t need to be
an option."
The coalition said that the success of the Toxics
Release Inventory shows that EPA should instead look
toward expanding the right-to-know programs. In its
first ten years, the TRI has been credited with a 45%
voluntary reduction in reported releases. During the
same time period, however, the total amount of toxic
waste generated increased, which the environmental
groups argued could be addressed by expanding
right-to-know requirements. The coalition pointed out
that industries don�t currently report chemical use,
requirements that in Massachusetts and New Jersey have
led to dramatic reductions in toxic waste generation.
The coalition also identified other right-to-know
needs, including information on American�s exposures
to the chemicals and information on incidence of
various chronic diseases. Health groups have called
for the creation of a nationwide health tracking
network to monitor environmental impacts on public
health.
For 1999 Toxics Release Inventory data and rankings
see www.epa.gov/triexplorer/
See report, Ignorance
is Toxic Bliss: The Secret War on Our Right-To-Know
<-- Return To Right-To-Know or Left-To-Wonder?
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