Alberton
Community Coalition for Environmental Health
P.O. Box 8733, Missoula, MT, 59807 phone/fax 406-728-7572
chlorina@montana.com http://www.angelfire.com/zine/acceh/
June 21, 2002
To the Senate Environment and
Public Works Committee,
Re: Letter of Support for S.B.
606 EPA Ombudsman Reauthorization.
The Alberton Community Coalition for Environmental Health is a non-profit chemical injury advocacy group dedicated to improving the quality of life for victims of the April 11th, 1996, Montana Rail Link train derailment and chemical spill: the largest mixed chemical spill in railroad history. Members of ACCEH have worked with the Ombudsman since 1998 and the Alberton, MT, site is one of many open investigations that has been left pending. It is our highest hope that you will stand behind both the man and the office and vote in favor of Senate Bill 606.
The
following testimony is offered to illustrate the effects of living in a
contaminated community and the reason why this nation needs an Independent EPA
National Ombudsman who performs the job with both courage and integrity.
April 11th, 1996, the
numbers:
-- 133 tons -- 71 tons of spent
oil refinery waste spilled and combined with 62 tons of chlorine creating a
toxic plume that closed I-90 for 17 days.
-- An initial “hot zone” of 72
square miles resulted in over 1,200 people evacuating from their homes, 352
people were treated at local hospitals, and one man died from exposure to toxic
fumes.
-- 25,000 hazardous waste filled railcars
annually pass through Montana -The Last
Best Place - with an average of
5.3 accidents each month. In 1995 &
1996, Montana Rail Link was ranked by the FRA as having the 2nd highest
accident record for its class of railroad.
-- Recent soil sampling revealed
dioxins remain in the soil on the derailment site.
The story behind the numbers:
Despite
all assurances from the EPA that the “hot zone” was safe for returning
evacuees' many residents and workers experienced a wide range of debilitating health
problems upon entering the former "hot zone". Reported acute symptoms
ranged from shortness of breath, headaches, migraines, blurred and double
vision, nausea, dizziness, loss of concentration, muscle twitching, fatigue,
skin rashes, joint pain to chronic conditions that developed over time such as
seizures, balance disorders, lupus, asthma, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue,
cancer, and toxic encephalopathy. Thus began what is still an unresolved and
tragic controversy that revolves around this simple question -- Is it really
safe to live in Alberton, MT?
By
1998, after YEARS of phone calls, letters, costly trips to EPA Region 8
Headquarters in Denver, Colorado, Washington D.C., the production of a
documentary film, “A Toxic Train Ran Through It,” and several well researched masters thesis's delving into the
consequences of exposure to 133 tons of toxic waste --were ignored by EPA
officials -- ACCEH petitioned the office of the National Ombudsman of the EPA
to intervene. Shortly thereafter Robert Martin visited the community, met with
individuals, reviewed public documents, and determined an investigation was
warranted.
In
November of 2000 more than five years after the derailment the first public and
only hearing was held by EPA National Ombudsman, Robert Martin, in Missoula,
MT. newspaper editor, Ken Picard,
reported at the time, "For 10 grueling hours they brought forth medical
records, news articles, videotapes, and photographs of defoliated
trees and chemically injured
animals. Some displayed large plastic
bags and tackle boxes full of the prescription drugs they now rely on to
survive. Mothers spoke of previously healthy children who can no longer play
sports and whose medical bills total in the tens of thousands of dollars.
Others asked why schools and playgrounds were never remediated, what became of the toxic soil hauled through Missoula, and why residents weren't put
through the same rigorous
decontamination measures as
rescuers. Grown men who recounted
their experiences were reduced to tears and could not continue with
their testimony. Their hopes are pinned on Robert Martin, national ombudsman
for the environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) who was asked to hold these
hearings by Sen. Max Baucus
(D-Mont.)."
The ombudsman promised to conduct a second
hearing and provide Senator Baucus with
a full assessment of the Alberton community and the derailment site. Mr. Martin concluded the hearing with these
words; "You're very brave. And for the record, you're not alone." Unfortunately, we are once again alone.
Ombudsman Robert Martin, has not been able to keep his promise to the people of
Alberton, MT due to direct and purposeful interference from the agency he is
mandated to police. Only weeks after the hearing in Missoula, MT, ACCEH received this memo from Ombudsman
Martin, “In view of reported recent
personnel transfers and pending
implementation of EPA Ombudsman Guidelines . all schedules for all National Ombudsman cases have been put on hold and/or
delayed until further notice.”
What
we have learned in over seven years of working with the EPA is that there is no
such thing for an average American citizen as a "working"
relationship with the EPA. There is no legitimate process for citizen
complaints within the hierchy of the agency. Without reauthorization of the
Ombudsman legislation this investigation and many others will never be
completed. Years of work by local volunteers will be lost forever, and one more
contaminated community will be left in an untenable position. A position that
is well defined by Professor Michael R. Edelstein in his book, Contaminated
Communities, “Most toxic victims suffer from citizen's bind. In seeking
publicity, they enhance their community's stigma. In actively seeking answers,
they enhance their level of stress. In depending on government for assistance,
they are likely to be disappointed. And facing a mitagory gap, wherein an
extended period of time elapses between the definition of the exposure and the
execution of the steps to correct it, victims may find themselves trapped in a
situation where they are damned no matter what they do.”
What
has prevailed in Alberton, MT, are corporate politics, bad science, poor site
management, and no accountability for millions of superfund dollars. The
real-life human consequences of this malfeasance have been documented and
witnessed everyday over the past seven years in our little town by chronic
illness, blighted housing, boarded up business's, and dislocated families with
the tab mostly being picked-up by the American tax payer every time someone's
mother, father, or child, requires assistance from social services, disability,
or full time care-taking. The true social and economic costs to our town and
this nation for the broken lives of the chemically injured are staggering.
In
closing, we thank you for holding this hearing and we respectfully request that
Robert Martin be reinstated as the EPA's National Ombudsman and be allowed to
finish the investigations he began and continue on under this legislation as a
truly independent EPA National Ombudsman that the entire nation can be proud
of.
Sincerely,
Lucinda Hodges
Director ACCEH
P.
O. Box 8733
Missoula,
MT 59807
406-728-7572
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