ANNISTON, AL -- Under pressure for a PCBs cleanup in Anniston on a scale of the $500 million Hudson River project, a federal environmental official says the task is "extremely complicated," but lives and property will be protected.
U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., received a letter from a top Environmental Protection Agency official outlining the difficulties of the Anniston cleanup and the steps being taken.
The EPA's deputy regional administrator, Stanley Meiburg, said the agency is now attempting a judicial settlement with Monsanto Co. (MON) spinoff Solutia Inc. (SOI), which will require the chemical company to "undertake a major study and evaluation of the PCB contamination."
The Anniston Star reported on Meiburg's seven-page letter Friday.
Both Shelby and U.S. Rep. Bob Riley, R-Ala., sent letters to the EPA and congressional authorities in January, stating their concerns about the PCB pollution as trial began in nearby Gadsden against Solutia and Monsanto , the former manufacturer of the chemical.
The trial went into a recess Thursday, with testimony resuming Monday.
Riley said in his letter to EPA that he is concerned about a potential "double standard" in EPA's enforcement program, which has demanded a $500 million cleanup by General Electric Co. (GE) in New York's Hudson River.
The EPA cited GE for dumping 1.3 million pounds of PCBs into the river from its plants before the federal government banned the substance in 1977. The agency classifies PCBs as a probable carcinogen.
Monsanto , before spinning off Solutia, produced PCBs at its Anniston plant for about 40 years before the ban.
"The final long-term cleanup of Anniston presents extremely complicated, technical and legal issues because the contamination involves a large, diverse geographic area," the EPA letter to Shelby said.
The contaminated area includes Snow and Choccolocco creeks and their floodplains as well as hundreds of residential properties.
The EPA has developed a basic strategy to clean up the most highly contaminated areas first and to follow up with a detailed study to determine the best final cleanup solution to protect the public health and welfare of the residents, the letter said.
The letter also said the EPA has not ruled out the possibility that PCB contamination is an ongoing problem. In the final paragraph, Meiburg notes that EPA has conducted an independent review of the old Monsanto landfills in western Anniston, which contain millions of pounds of PCB waste.
The EPA review essentially supports the Alabama Department of Environmental Management's activities on the contaminated property, the letter says, but also indicates "several areas where additional study and work need to be done to ensure that there are not ongoing releases from the facility."
Meiburg assured Shelby in the letter that "EPA is fully committed to protecting human health and the environment in Anniston."
Shelby and Riley have requested congressional hearings and Riley sent a letter to EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman requesting that she give "greater attention to the matter."
So far, no congressional hearings have been scheduled regarding the EPA's handling of the PCBs in Anniston.
GADSDEN, AL --The former Monsanto Co.'s environmental affairs chief testified in court that the company acted correctly after concerns were raised about PCB contamination from the company's Anniston plant.
Robert Kaley said Thursday during the civil trial in Etowah County Circuit Court that as soon as the company became aware of environmental concerns, Monsanto (MON) began to work with researchers and government officials on environmental levels and potential harm to humans.
Approximately 3,500 current and former residents of Anniston are suing Monsanto and Solutia Inc. (SOI), a spin-off company that now owns the Anniston plant, for contaminating their properties and blood with polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, a group of chemicals the EPA lists as suspected carcinogens.
The 16 plaintiffs in this phase of the trial, which began Jan. 7, don't allege they are sick due to PCBs.
Donald Stewart, lead attorney for the residents, questioned whether Monsanto truly strived to work with the federal government and academic scientists seeking information about PCBs at the plant.
Stewart produced one 1967 memo that referred to "evil publicity" about PCBs and how Monsanto could prevent its products from being affected by it.
"Do you think that is working with the government?" Stewart asked.
"Yes, I think everyone was trying to work together," Kaley responded.
Stewart said a University of California at Berkeley researcher who found PCBs in the bodies of animals in the 1960s later asked Monsanto for data so he could relate the amount of chemical produced to environmental contamination levels.
The company replied in a 1970 letter that it couldn't divulge PCB usage numbers to the public because of competitive concerns. Kaley responded that the letter indicated the figures would be given to the government.
Stewart asked if Monsanto made an effort to remove PCBs from Snow Creek after contamination was discovered there.
"I'm not aware we did it," Kaley said. Kaley said the company tried to control PCBs discharges into the creek after becoming aware they were potentially harmful. He said the company submitted the information to Alabama regulators.
Jurors last week heard testimony from Anniston residents who described sleepless nights, neighborhood changes and property impacts from PCBs pollution.
GADSDEN, AL --Jurors in the PCBs pollution trial in Gadsden have heard four hours of video testimony from a former Monsanto Co. plant manager, who claims state officials asked that the chemical contamination threat be kept confidential.
The witness, William B. Papageorge, defended Monsanto's decision not to notify residents about the release of chemical PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, into the area environment.
Plaintiffs' attorneys showed jurors their 1998 video interview with the now-retired Monsanto chemist who managed the firm's Anniston plant during the early 1970s. Monsanto spin-off Solutia Inc now owns the plant.
Papageorge, who was unable to attend the trial in Gadsden, said the state of Alabama had requested in 1970 that the PCB matter be handled confidentially.
After the federal Food and Drug Administration collected PCB-contaminated fish from Choccolocco Creek as part of a national survey, Papageorge said Monsanto officials met with FDA officials in Atlanta.
Around the same time, the former state health officer Dr. Ira Myers requested toxicity information on PCBs. When asked if Monsanto's former medical doctor, Jack Garrett, conveyed that information to Myers, Papageorge confirmed that he had done so.
Testimony continues this week.
The suit was brought by attorneys for 3,500 Anniston residents seeking financial awards from the jury for the alleged health threat from the pollution.
GADSDEN, AL-- An old chemical plant in Anniston is still contaminating the air with hazardous PCBs three decades after production stopped, an expert told jurors in the trial over pollution from the factory.
Mark Hermanson, a laboratory manager at the University of Pennsylvania, testified Wednesday on behalf of residents who are suing Monsanto Co. (MON) and Solutia Inc. (SOI), a corporate spinoff, over claims the plant poisoned their community.
PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, were made for decades at the plant for use as an electrical insulator. Production ceased in the early 1970s as questions surfaced about the possible health effects of the chemical.
Hermanson testified that air samples he took near the plant in 1997 and 1998 showed the average PCB level to be nine times the amount recommended by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Other tests conducted by Monsanto and EPA in 1999 and 2000 showed similarly high levels of the chemical, according to documents he showed the jury.
Under cross examination, Hermanson rejected suggestions that sources of contamination other than the old plant site, which includes a landfill, could be causing the PCB pollution.
The companies contend PCBs were once so common they are everywhere in the environment, and they deny any link between the chemical and health worries reported by many residents.
The trial, involving claims by 16 people and one business, is being held to determine whether the companies are liable for contaminating the property of people who lived near the plant site. Depending on the outcome, more trials will be held.
The outcome of as many as 3,500 cases could be determined through the process. At least 13,000 more claims are pending.
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