Document 71dMgL92dzRBxr81newd0Mgae

AMERICAN MINING CONGRESS 1100 RING BUILDING WASHINGTON, D. C. 20036 TELEPHONE 202/331-8900 TWX 710-822-0126 ESTABLISHED 1897 J. ALLEN OVERTON, JR,, President February 17, 1976 MEMORANDUM TO: Nonferrous Smelter Subcommittee Information Copy to Environmental Matters Committee FROM: James R, Walpole, Assistant Legislative Counsel RE: Government Study of the Effects of Smelter Emissions on Children As you know the Environmental Protection Agency and the Center for Disease Control initiated a study last year on the effects of smelter emissions on children. The federal agencies, working with state and local health agencies, spent considerable time taking blood, urine and hair samples of children through out the country living near smelters, A report will soon be prepared by the government on the results of the study, ` Dr, Carl G. Fla yes is the chief EPA representative working on the project. He recently notified me that the results of the sampling program are now being received by EPA and CDC from the laboratory which had been hired to do the work. It is expected that all the results will be in shortly. When all the results are in, EPA will forward them to the American Mining Congress and they will in turn be distributed to the members of the Nonferrous Smelter Subcommittee. Chairman Ken Nelson has expressed a desire, once the results are received, to review and analyze the data immediately. Since the sampling results will also be distributed to the various states where smelters are located, the industry representatives in those states should be aware of the results and be able to answer any questions which may arise as a result of the study. Further, once EPA and CDC receive all the sampling results they will begin preparing their report on the matter. They have decided to prepare the report first in draft form. Pursuant to our request, the draft report will be available, briefly, to the industry before the final report is prepared. EPA and CDC will accept industry comments on the draft report if they are submitted in a timely fashion. We had previously requested that the industry be allowed at least 30 days within which to submit comments but this request was never formally answered. Continued Confidential Pursuant to Protective Order DR230-008580 Government Study . . . February 17, 1976 Page two 1 If your company has a technical expert who you feel should review this data when it becomes available, you may wish to alert him to the fact that this information will be available soon. Industry representatives may be called upon, with short notice, to meet and discuss the data among themselves or possibly with EPA and CDC representatives. Also, industry comments on the government's draft report will have to be prepared upon short notice. Companies may wish to notify now their public information offices at the various smelter locations that the results of the study will he released soon. Confidential Pursuant to Protective Order DR230-008581