PA HEALTH DEPARTMENT

CHOSE TO IGNORE CLEAR AND COMPELLING EVIDENCE OF ENVIRONMENTAL HARM

“INDICATIONS”
OF ENVIRONMENTAL LINKS BETWEEN ELEVATED CANCERS AROUND POTTSTOWN LANDFILL AND CARCINOGENS IN POTTSTOWN LANDFILL GAS
ARE HARD TO MISS

FACT: The PA Health Department found elevated cancers around Pottstown Landfill, compared to the state average, especially in children.

FACT: Three other cancer studies also confirm elevated cancers around Pottstown Landfill, far higher than the nation, state, and tri county averages, especially in children.

FACT: Many of the same cancers elevated around Pottstown Landfill are elevated around other landfills.

FACT: ACE mapping shows alarming patterns of cancer and other illnesses, in the area around Pottstown Landfill, and in the predominant wind direction from the landfill.

FACT: Research shows childhood cancers elevated around Pottstown Landfill have been linked with the same kinds of Combustion Chemicals produced from 5 Pottstown Landfill Combustion Sources, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Billions of cubic feet of gas are burned every year. (None of the 3 Flares or 2 Turbines are filtered to remove harmful chemicals, metals, or radiation)

FACT: Hundreds of toxic chemicals and metals, and their even more toxic synergistic combinations are emitted from the Pottstown Landfill, from 8 total sources, 24 hours a day. Research shows low dose exposures over time can be just as harmful as one high level dose. Hazardous substances emitted from Pottstown Landfill can cause cancer and many other serious health problems.

FACT: A World Health Organization study estimated air pollution would cause about 8 million deaths worldwide by 2020. This study pointed to combustion chemicals, such as those continuously emitted from the Pottstown Landfill.

FACT: The American Cancer Society and Harvard Medical School offer hard science that the kinds of chemicals which the WHO is pointing to as killers, NOx, SOx, CO, and VOCs, are documented to be emitted in major amounts by the Pottstown Landfill.

FACT: According to health based standards of the Clean Air Act, the Greater Pottstown Area is in a severe non-attainment area for NOx and VOCs (OZONE causing chemicals). Pottstown Landfill is a major source of both with violations of its VOC limits..

FACT: DEP’s Pottstown Air Monitoring study just reported that we have the highest lifetime cancer risk for VOCs than any other air monitored. Pottstown Landfill’s equipment has been documented to have failed to achieve VOC combustion requirements.

FACT: Area residents breathe the top 10% of the most carcinogenic and unhealthy air in the nation, even without reporting Pottstown Landfill’s most potent carcinogens. THE PA HEALTH DEPARTMENT MADE IRRESPONSIBLE AND MISLEADING CONCLUSIONS, IN BOTH DEP’S “POTTSTOWN AIR TOXICS STUDY” AND IN PA HEALTH DEPARTMENT’S “POTTSTOWN LANDFILL CANCER STUDY.”

PA Health Department unsubstantiated, unscientific, irresponsible conclusions have already been used by WMI to deny the obvious and attempt to avoid full disclosure concerning Pottstown Landfill’s air pollution and water contamination during the closure process.

PA Health Department conclusions have already been used January, 2004, in DEP permits to allow increase Pottstown Landfill air pollution.

Instead of using elevated cancer statistics around Pottstown Landfill to call for reducing cancer risks, the PA Health Department “asserted” conclusions which ignore and deny obvious environmental health risks.

PA Health Department conclusions will be used over and over by WMI to deny the obvious in order to attempt to make matters worse and avoid responsible action.

Joel Hersh, PA Health Department director, admitted the PA Health Department has no expertise in multiple chemical exposure risks in toxic damaged communities, yet chose to ignore a body of evidence of harm, “asserting” conclusions which ignore environmental links to elevated cancers and claimed no indication of environmental risks.

November 12, 2003, in Pottstown, Joel Hersh, PA Health Department director stated that the PA Health Department only has had experience in epidemics over the past 100 years, not in assessing cancer and other health problems in toxic damaged communities. By the PA Health Department director, Joel Hersh’s own admission, PA Health Department doesn’t have expertise to determine synergistic impacts from the total of all toxic chemicals and metals we are exposed to from Pottstown Landfill gas and leachte.

Yet in both recent reports on Pottstown area air toxics and cancers, the PA Health Department made misleading and irresponsible conclusions, concerning our toxic air pollution exposure risks for cancer and for TCE.

Joel Hersh admitted the Health Department is just now getting a grant to study toxics issues and that synergistic, cumulative, and additive chemical exposure risks are unknown.

How can you say you don’t “believe” a community is at environmental risk, and at the same time admit you know nothing about environmental risks?

The PA Health Department director and his agency have lost credibility in this community. The PA Health Department’s inaccurate and unscientific “assertions” or “beliefs” are unacceptable, irresponsible, and lead to increased risks.

The Health Department ignored documented evidence in DEP’s own “Pottstown Air Toxics Study” which shows Pottstown residents are at significantly higher risk from inhalation of VOCs than any other community monitored by DEP.

DEP’s study showed that the Pottstown area had the HIGHEST LIFETIME CANCER RISK COMPARED TO ALL OTHER DEP MONITORING STATIONS, INCLUDING SOME OTHER VERY POLLUTED PLACES.

37 VOCs were found in Pottstown’s air, many of which cause serious health problems in tiny amounts, and 16 of which DEP admitted cause cancer.

7 metals were found in Pottstown’s air, many of which cause a broad range of serious illnesses. 5 of the metals found in our air cause cancer.

Still, the PA Health Department FOCUSED ON ONLY ONE CHEMICAL, TCE, then claimed “they do not BELIEVE that TCE levels found in Pottstown air will pose an unacceptable risk to the community.”

1. This “BELIEF” is an ASSUMPTION which is not based in science.

2. A broad range of air pollution was documented in DEP’s “Pottstown Air Toxics Study,” which cause many kinds of serious illnesses, yet the PA Health Department ignored both the other documented Pottstown air pollution and the documented elevated illnesses in the Greater Pottstown area.

3. Even when just considering TCE alone:
   • TCE air exposures risks are higher here than any other DEP air monitoring station and are additive to the rest of our exposures.
   • Some people in our community are exposed to TCE in their air and water, more than one route of TCE exposure. The risks are additive.
   • Research shows TCE can cause many kinds of health problems and that low levels over time are just as dangerous as one high level dose.
   • Each person is biologically different and can be at risk from various amounts of a toxic chemical.
   • Joel Hersh can not scientifically prove that levels used to determine TCE risk in this study are adequate for our children or other sensitive populations.

June 7, 2004, the PA Health Department released its Supplementary Analysis of its November, 2003 cancer statistics around the Pottstown Landfill, for which ACE plans to provide a detailed analysis. Anyone interested please contact ACE (610) 326-6433

November 12, 2003, in Pottstown Joel Hersh, PA Health Department director publicly admitted he would not live near any landfill, yet his PA Health Department cancer report titled, “Pottstown Landfill Cancer Incidence Study,” concluded “there isn’t an indication that the environment (around the Pottstown Landfill) contributes to cancer rates.”

in Hersh’s June, 2004, supplementary analysis, he again chose to ignore this researched evidence of environmental links between the broad range of toxic substances associated with Pottstown Landfill gas emissions and the documented elevated illnesses around the landfill, including cancer, especially in children.

Hersh irresponsibly stated, “There is no environmental data demonstrating that there are human exposures to carcinogens in the area that could increase the risk.”

This time Hersh even ignored DEP’s air testing 1.9 miles from the landfill that proves there is a higher lifetime cancer risk around the Pottstown Landfill than any other DEP air monitoring station, including other highly polluted places like Chester.

Joel Hersh’s conclusion also ignores a body of research and evidence from ACE’s 4” Environmental Health binder, presented to him in December, 2003, by Eric Conrad, Deputy Secretary of DEP, showing links between Pottstown Landfill cancer causing air pollution and the documented elevated cancers around the Pottstown Landfill, especially in children. Frankly, it is hard to miss all the indications that the cancer causing environmental air pollution from the Pottstown Landfill is linked to the elevated cancers around it.

With this documented body of research and evidence presented to Mr. Hersh in December by Mr. Conrad, ACE requested that Mr. Hersh’s irresponsible conclusion be retracted, which stated that there was no indication the environment contributes to cancer. Instead, with the same conclusion in the June, 2004 “Pottstown Landfill Cancer Study” we know now Mr. Hersh has purposefully ignored researched facts, as well as that which is quite obvious to anyone seeking the truth.

If a major air polluting facility, such as the Pottstown Landfill, continuously emits a broad range of the most potent cancer causing chemicals, in synergistic, additive, and cumulative combinations, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, we would have to turn off our common sense not to see the link between significantly elevated cancers around that facility. So we need to ask why Joel Hersh sees no indication.

Joel Hersh’s PA Health Department statements are inaccurate and irresponsible and do not reflect available scientific research. They clearly reflects incompetence or a political agenda, not environmental science. For example:

1. Research has linked certain kinds of childhood cancers, which are highly elevated around the Pottstown Landfill with combustion chemicals continuously emitted from 5 sources at the Pottstown Landfill, including dioxins.

2. Joseph Mangano’s cancer report, as well as the PA Health Department’s own recent report show an ALARMING UPWARD TREND IN CHILDHOOD CANCERS around the Pottstown Landfill SINCE THE LATE 1980’s, which appears to have been increasing along with Pottstown Landfill’s combustion.

3. Joseph Mangano showed a 92.5% HIGHER CHILDHOOD CANCER RATE around the Pottstown Landfill compared to the nation, 1995 to 1999.

4. The PA Health Department never disputed any of Joseph Mangano’s statistics and once again, in its June report REFUSED to comment.

5. Even after manipulating results by eliminating 2 communities and diluting data, the PA Health Department still had to report 35% HIGHER CHILDHOOD CANCER RATES compared to the state (1985 to 2002) in their “Pottstown Landfill Cancer Study.”

6. Once again, instead of helping our community prevent further environmental cancer threats to our children from Pottstown Landfill air pollution, the PA Health Department chose to deny those obvious environmental cancer risks.

ACE Questions the Ethical and Moral Compass of the PA Health Department

1. While finding elevated cancers, Hersh continues to whitewash and deny the facts and that which is obvious.

2. All 4 Pottstown Landfill Cancer Studies reported significantly elevated cancers, especially in children.

3. 8 of 11 of the most common cancers in the U.S. are higher around the Pottstown Landfill than the national average. Many are also elevated around other landfills and are linked with environmental exposures such as those continuously emitted from the Pottstown Landfill.

4. Joseph Mangano reported 40 children with cancer around the Pottstown Landfill from 1990 to 1999, a number higher than even Tom’s River, New Jersey. The fact is, on average, more children have cancer around the Pottstown Landfill than elsewhere across the nation, state, or tri county.

5. More children around the Pottstown Landfill have cancer than anywhere else. PA DOH still calls the numbers statistically insignificant in order to hide reality. This leads to the inability to reduce cancer risks from excessive cancer causing air pollution. The PA Health Department must be held accountable for irresponsible, unscientific assertions used by WMI to deny the obvious.