Getting PCBs out of schools, Stopping Nukes, and Corpus Christi (PR)

Warning: PCBs Leaking From Old School Lights

A tragic toxic hazard has been found in schools that were built before 1979.  Officials in New York City found high levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in old light ballasts which are leaking from old cracked lamps or volatilizing into the air.   

The Environmental Protection Agency says, “If a lighting ballast is leaking PCBs at above a regulatory level of 50 parts per million…[it] requires the immediate removal...”  All of the schools that EPA has inspected had leaking light fixtures exceeding this level.  At PS 45 in Bushwick, it was more than 10,000 times higher than the cutoff level.  The larger concern is that this trend could be found in all schools older than 1979 throughout the country.  

CHEJ is working with groups in New York City to convince the city to institute a two year timeframe for removing and replacing all light ballasts containing PCBs.  Children are much more sensitive to toxic exposures. PCBs are highly toxic compounds that were banned by Congress in 1978 to protect human health.  The good news is that it is economically feasible to remove PCBs because schools can have contractors remove the lighting ballasts and replace them with energy-saving ballasts with no upfront costs.  

Nuclear Power Threatens Us All

The events in Japan have revealed with heart-stopping clarity just how badly things can go wrong with nuclear power plants. Groups are now strategically employing the important lessons of the Japanese disaster to bring a halt to reactors in this country. 

In New York, groups called for a shutdown of the Indian Point plant, located only 35 miles from Manhattan and Governor Cuomo agreed, asking for a safety review. CHEJ is also working with groups to oppose proposed reactors in Oswego, NY, Shell Bluff, GA and Hollywood, AL. Over 50 groups sent letters to Governors and launched a media blitz of radio and TV ads after CHEJ trainings.  

The cost of reactors is so high that Wall Street investors refuse to invest.  The nuclear industry cannot survive without taxpayer subsidies.  

High Rates of Birth Defects in Corpus Christi

Citizens for Environmental Justice and residents of the Dona Park and Hillcrest neighborhoods of Corpus Christi, Texas are calling for a comprehensive study following the release of a new study that found high rates of birth defects in the area that is home to numerous oil refineries and chemical plants.  The study conducted by the state health department found that birth defects were 74 percent higher in the three-county region that includes Corpus Christi compared to the rest of the state. The study also found a 75% higher rate of cardiovascular birth defects, and found that severe birth defects or cases in which the baby died or required surgery were 39% higher. This is not the first time that high rates of birth defects have been found in the area. CHEJ Board Member and Executive Director of Citizens for Environmental Justice, Suzie Canales, said in response, "This should be a wake-up call for all of us.” Click here to learn more about the study and the work of Citizens for Environmental Justice.

This is a newsletter from www.chej.org | Issue #50 | May 18, 2011