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Poughkeepsie, NY - Backed by environmental advocates from around the region, U.S. Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) today called attention to a State University of New York at Albany (SUNY Albany) study that indicates that area residents who live near polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB)-infested areas such as the Hudson River have an increased risk of heart disease. Hinchey called for a new federal study to further investigate and expand the SUNY Albany findings and also announced two new initiatives intended to move the cleanup process forward.
Hinchey highlighted a recent SUNY Albany study that shows a 36 and 39 percent increase in hospitalizations for chronic and acute heart disease, respectively, for residents who live in close proximity to the river when compared to area residents who have had no exposure to PCBs. The study, conducted by Dr. David Carpenter of the university's Institute for Health and the Environment, also linked PCBs to an increase in hypertension, stroke and various respiratory diseases. Carpenter's study concluded that, while people living along the 200-mile stretch of the Hudson River tended to lead healthier-than-average lifestyles, they were nevertheless more vulnerable to heart problems requiring hospitalization than people who had not had the same level of exposure to PCBs.
"Dr. Carpenter's work adds to the growing body of evidence that the ill effects of PCBs go beyond contaminated water and diseased fish: there are very grave health consequences for people who live along the Hudson River," Hinchey said. "When General Electric dumped PCBs in the river, the company may have made area residents much more susceptible to a variety of heart ailments and other serious illnesses. While we need to conduct additional studies to confirm Dr. Carpenter's findings, it is clear that the longer GE stalls on the cleanup of the Hudson River, the longer New Yorkers will face the potentially life-threatening consequences of GE's illegal dumping."
To further develop the findings of the SUNY Albany report, Hinchey announced that he is working with the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) to initiate a federal study that would follow and further document Dr. Carpenter's research. Hinchey's office has already been speaking with scientists at ATSDR to help lay the groundwork for a federal study, which he formally requested in a letter to ATSDR released today.
Because of GE's continued efforts to stall the cleanup process and his own serious concerns about the current consent decree that dictates the first phase of the cleanup, Hinchey also announced two additional initiatives that he is pursuing.
First, the congressman released a letter he sent today to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requesting copies of all GE documents in the agency's possession regarding the company's disputes of the cleanup. GE is reportedly disputing EPA's orders on near shore dredging, habitat replacement, and the removal of PCB-contaminated soils in the floodplain, but the EPA has shielded this information from the public at GE's request. Hinchey's letter would make GE's dispute documents available for public scrutiny, so Hudson River communities can be fully informed about the corporation's reasons for causing additional delays.
Second, Hinchey unveiled his plan to introduce legislation in the next Congress to dramatically increase the pot of money in the Superfund program which is specifically earmarked for the nation's largest contamination sites, like the Hudson River. Since the Republican-led Congress removed the requirement that polluters pay for cleanups, the Superfund has been bankrupted. Superfund-led cleanup actions are now financed by annual appropriations from general taxpayer revenues. This shift from polluter to taxpayer financing of environmental cleanups has increased the burden on taxpayers by 400 percent, shifting an increased $900 million in costs to working Americans. Hinchey's measure that is in the developmental stages would reimpose several taxes and fees on polluting industries that would increase the overall Superfund pot by 50 percent.
"GE has found one excuse after another to stall the cleanup of the Hudson River for three decades, and they are continuing to come up with new excuses," Hinchey said. "The time has come for the company to live up to its responsibility for removing PCBs from the Hudson. We are going to be even more relentless in our efforts to hold GE accountable, prevent any further delays in the cleanup timeline, and ensure that the people know all the facts."
Hinchey said his bill would provide an estimated $2.4 billion annually to fund critical toxic cleanups at some of the nation's worst and largest Superfund sites, and will save taxpayers money by remaining true to the program's original promise that polluters be held responsible for the damage they've done.
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