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For Immediate Release
 
October 2, 2007
San Jacinto River Waste Pits placed on cleanup priority list
 
But officials may have to explore alternate funding methods
 
Houston, TX - The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has placed the San Jacinto River Waste Pits on a shortlist of potential Superfund sites.

 

The waste pits, located near the I-10 bridge over the San Jacinto River, are contaminated with polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins, commonly called dioxins, and polychlorinated dibenzofurans, commonly called furans. Wildlife in the area, including fish, has become contaminated with the pollutants, which can cause cancer and other health problems in humans. Despite posted warnings, some area residents continue to use contaminated parts of the river as a food source.

 

“This is a major step toward really getting the river cleaned up,” Rep. Gene Green (D-Texas) said. “I’ve been working with the EPA and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to get to this point when the source of the dioxin was discovered.”

 

The pollution emanates from paper mill waste pits used in the 1960s and1970s and now abandoned. Scientists knew for many years that pollution levels in the San Jacinto River were high, but they didn’t know why until recently when they discovered the pits.

 

In March 2007, Green and Rep. Ted Poe (R-Texas) asked the EPA to designate the waste pits a Superfund site, and in July the State of Texas added its name to the request.

 

“The San Jacinto River has been a part life for folks in that area long before the Texas Revolution,” Poe said. “Cleaning it up for future generations must take a top priority.  I am very pleased that the EPA has recognized the need to do so and I will continue to work closely with Congressman Green to see that we do everything possible to get the federal assistance needed to clean it up.” 

 

The Superfund designation would normally provide federal money to help clean up pollutants if the responsible parties aren’t found or are insolvent. However, because appropriations for Superfund projects have dwindled in recent years, Green may have to make a special request in order to fund a cleanup of the site.

 

For more information, see the San Jacinto River Waste Pits entry on the EPA’s web site: http://www.epa.gov/superfund/sites/npl/nar1773.htm.

 

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