Document O1gzLz4wvGDeJjLymVZbb4b4X

PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT Johns-Manville Sales Corporation Ken-Caryl Ranch Denver, Colorado 80217 (303)979-1000 September 24, 1981 John Welch A/C Pipe Producers Association 1600 Wilson Blvd. Suite 1008 Arlington, VA 22209 Re: Blairsville, PA Hot Spot for the Month mRECEIVED OCT 2 Dear John: Our latest candidate for the asbestos and health hot spot for the month is Blairsville, PA. The "Blairsville Committee for Safe Drinking Water" met with the Blairsville Water Authority board on September 9, 1981. The meeting was covered by W.T.A.E., a Pittsburgh, PA T.V. station, and reporters from the Tribune Review and Evening Gazette. We have a tape of the 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. W.T.A.E. news broadcasts. A Myron Kok is the spokesman for the protest group. Attach ment #1 is a letter from Mr. Kok to Gordon Robeck of the E.P.A. in which Mr. Kok "summarizes the basic problem". In checking the references made in Mr. Kok's letter it is obvious that data comes from industrial exposure, but they do state G.I. cancer incidence is related to asbestos in gestion. It is fortunate Mr. Kok wrote to Gordon Robeck. At least Gordon's reply will not be as prejudiced as we have observed in Jim Millette's and Lee McCabe's letters, speeches, and quotes in newspapers. By copy of this letter to Tom Scally I'm asking if he can secure a copy of Gordon Robeck's reply. Tom Scally, our territorial manager, attended the board meet ing and showed the AACPP Audio Visual on "A/C Pipe and Health". The town engineer, a George Roman of EAOS Engrg. Co. spoke at the meeting, but was not very helpful in putting the citizens minds at ease. His contribution to the meeting was that he was told by the Farmers Horae Administra tion who helped fund the project that A/C pipe must be in cluded in the specs as an alternate, and that the board was !. I *1 CAPCO JEN 003304-3 Mr. John Welch September 24, 1981 Page 2 required by F.H.A. to accept the low bid on A/C pipe. In other words his position was, "It ain't my fault." Prior to the board meeting Tom Scally suggested to the board that they might consider establishing a panel to investigate A/C pipe and report back to the board and the citizens, i.e. similar to the action taken by the Lakewood, CA city council when they were presented with a similar situation. I had advised Tom about Lakewood's successful handling of their situation. The board has apparently asked George Roman to act as their "panel" to investigate asbestos in water supply, and George Roman has called me regarding information on how Lakewood, CA handled the situation. I will contact Legion Kramer at Lakewood to determine if he will discuss with Mr. Roman the actions his investigative panel took before they met with the council and the protesting citizens. For the informa tion of carbon copy holders, I will summarize what the Lakewood panel did. 1. Prepared a detailed report, (see attachment #2) for an outline of their report. 2. Had samples of old and corroded cast iron pipe and old but not affected A/C pipe available for display at the meeting so that the. reason for using A/C pipe was apparent. It also showed A/C pipe did not contribute significant quantities of asbestos to the water supply. 3. Had a panel of recognized authorities available to answer citizen's questions. The panel included: a. The California State Sanitary Engineer from the California Department of Public Health. b. Robert Bryant, Chief Engineer for the Los Angeles Dept, of Water & Power, and who is also the chairman of the AWWA- A/C Pipe Commi ttee. c. Dr. K. Kilborn from the Univ. of So. Calif., a leading authority on disease caused by asbestos. d. Dr. H. M. Conrad, Ecological Systems Corp., a water quality consultant. By carefully preparing for the citizen's meeting the city officials on the investigative panel were able to dispel the concern that had been generated,- and the city council voted to bury the issue of A/C pipe being hazardous to public health. *n CAPCO JEN 0033049 IMr. vJohn Welch September 24, 1981 Page 3 From my conversation with George Roman and the position he took at the first meeting, I seriously doubt he will be as prepared as the Lakewood panel was to respond to the citizens. At the Sept. 9 meeting the Blairsville Committee for Safe Drinking Water presented some demands on the water board (see attachment #3). I have drafted a potential response from J-M (see attachment #4) that would primarily address the demand for J-M to furnish a guarantee that no health pro blems would result from use of our TRANSITE pipe. By copy of this letter to Wyatt McCallie I am asking for him to review and advise if he sees any adverse legal problems from our responding in this manner. If we do give such a response I believe it should be given to the press. By copy of this letter to Curt Linke I am asking for his comments on this course of action. Environmental & Engineering Development HLChbja attachments cc: Jack Cran Wyatt McCallie/Jim Reis - Legal Curt Linke/Mary Tomenco - Corp. Rel. John Turbeville/R.on Bradford - L.A. Pete Mascola - HERO Tom Scally - NERO Joel Youkers - Zelienople fiie/chrono CAPCO JEN 0033050 ATTACHMENT #1 CAPCO JEN 0033051 Myron kok CONSULTING M NING ENGINFER 14 MILL* R DRIVE BLAIBSVILLE PA 15717 412 4BW-7074 vp`.filer 14, 1981 Hr. Gordon G. Robeck, Division Director U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Drinking Water Research Division 2G West Saint Clair Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45268 RE: Blairsville, PA Water System Dear Mr. Robeck: On Tuesday, September 8, 1981, I called Mr. Michael Schock and acquainted him with the Blairsville, PA Boro water system and some of the inherent problems. May I summarize the basic problem. The Boro of Mairsville, PA is located south of Indiana, PA and approximately 45 miles east of Pittsburgh, PA on U.S. Route 22. The Blairsville F.oro receives its present water supply from a manmade reservoir located approximately four miles from, the boro. The water is gravity fed through a 12 inch cast iron transmission line. The water is chlorinated at the reservoir. This water system was installed in 1925-26 and has been in continuous service. Numerous water leaks had developed, the capacity of the pipe lines had been reduced by the incrustation of solid depositions on the inside of the pipe lines, necessitating the replacement of the water system. A Water Authority was organized and set up to install a new water system. During the early discussions of the Water Authority, ductile iron pipe had been considered as the main transmission line. After several Water Authority meetings, it was decided to use 16 inch diameter asbestos-cement pipe as the main transmission line. Branch lines using 12, 10, eight, six and four inch asbestos-cement Tines were also installed. The asbestos-cement pipe lines were installed without the general populace of Blairsville being notified. This entire water system is ready to be turned on. However, some of the concerned citizens became aware of the use of the asbestoscement pipe, and organized a committee to meet with the Water Authority on Wednesday, September 9, 1981 to air the problems. These are described in the attached Xerox copies of the news media stories. it t ij CAPCO JEN 0033052 Mr. Gordon G. Robeck Page 2 September 14, 1981 The main concern of the citizens was the leaching out of the calcium carbonate in the pipe and releasing ttif asbesto- fibres into the drinking water. Another factor that was determined was chat the Blairsville water was an aggressive water and the engineers in charge failed to recognize this as a very important problem. The citizens are clamoring for action and want these asbestos pipes removed and replaced with a safe product because of the evidence that ingested asbestos fibres cause gastro-intestinal cancer. We have two government pamphlets that state categorically ingested asbestos fibres do cause cancers of the esophagus, stomach, colon and rectum. These are: "Health Hazards of Asbestos", Cancer Alert Series, U.S. Dept, of Labor, 1978, OSHA 3040, Pages 3,4 and 6; and ."Workplace Exposure to Asbestos, Review and Recommendations", DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 81-103, NIOSH-OSHA, April, 1980, Pages 24 and 25. Also, we have a letter from Dr. Thomas Mancuso, M.D., research professor of Graduate School of Public Health, who also confirms the cause-effect * relationship of ingested asbestos fibres and gastro-intestinal cancers and advises us not to use asbestos-cement pipe (see attached letter). This new water project has cost the Blairsville residents over two million dollars. When I talked with Mr. Michael Schock, he suggested I write you. As spokesman for Concerned Citizens Group, 1 was analyzing the possibility of monitoring the water system with the help of the EPA. Since the water has not been turned on, it is now possible to evaluate the entire water system, install such pre-treatment as is necessary to prevent the internal erosion of the asbestos pipe and monitor the system so that the people of Blairsville are satisfied that there is little or no asbestos fibre in .their drinking water. We solicit your help and cooperation in the Blairsville water problem. If you have any communications, please direct them to: Mr. John Joseph, President Blairsville Boro Water Authority Boro Building Blairsville, PA 15717 '' i MYRON KOK - MINING ENGINEER I *> 'rTM ` " .-..Cl CAPCO JEN 0033053 Mr. Gordon G. Robeck Page 3 September 14, 1931 For me to keep abreast of these matters and keep my committee informed, I would appreciate your sending me <opies of any and all communications with Mr. Joseph. May I ask you to please take time and assist us with a very touchy problem. I am sure the Water Authority and the citizens will be most grateful for your help. Very truly yours Myron Kok C~6E55i.l Chairman MK:klh CC: A1 Kovacik, President Blairsville Boro Council Mr. John Joseph, President*''' Blairsville Water Authority Mr. Michael Schock, EPA MYRON KOK-MINING ENGINEER CAPCO JEN 0033054 ATTACHMENT #3 1 I - `1 CAPCO JEN 0033055 09/08/81 The BLAIRSVILLE COMMITTEE ON SAFE BRINKING WATER takes the following positions 1. That the Blairsville Water Authority withhold the turning on of the water through the new main sixteen inch diameter 21,177 feet of asbestos-cement pipe and any other asbestos, cement branch line circuits until a complete investigation is made of the health risks involved using the asbestoscement pipe. 2. The above action may present some legal and financial problems that the Water Authority may have to resolve with the lending agencies and any other involved agencies. 3. Consult your legal counsel and other counsel to determine iiKns^ai^i>lrl^l&-^itbisrepresenvtati6n-'6f- the.health risks--', involved'with the use of this asbestos pipe. Legal counsel to determine the risk involved with a suit against Johns-Manville. The suit to cover complete reimbursement for all asbestos-cement pipe installed and replacement of-all asbestos-cement pipe with suitable ,-have them-'ragree-:-in':vr-rting- - tha-t Johns-Kanville will "absolve the- B1ai r'svill e Water Authority .from any suits " involving cancer that is traceable to asbestos-cement pipe installed in the Blairsville water.system. If Johns-Manville is so sure that there are no health risks involved, let them accept the above responsibilities. 5. The Water Authority approved the installation of the asbestos-cement pipelines at their August 6, 1980 meeting. At the time of this meeting, there had been a motion approved and passed at the April 24, 1980 meeting to use ductile iron pipe. This motion was never rescinded. At the Wednesday, May 14, 1980 meeting, under Item 10, Ii CAPCO JEN 0033056 Page 2 Hr. Joseph stated that ductile iron will be specified in the specification forms. At the July 3, 1930 meeting. Mr.' Roman of EAOS stated that the ductile iron would be better, for our project. At this same meeting under Item 21, Hr. Roman was to give recommendations on asbestos-cement and ductile iron pipe.at the next Water Authority Meeting. Ironically, at the same July 3, 1980 meeting, the bids for the 31airsville project were opened and the low bidders identified. 6. .The Blairsville Water Authority and its engineers, EAOS, did not recognize and failed to act to determine the -fefte Blairsville water. This index is part of ^a^-recpan-ized- standard- as recommended, by .the:? American Water Works Association and defihecT*ih""their Standards. To our knowledge, these tests on the Blairsville water have not been determined. We tried to locate information on all tests run on the Blairsville water. We refer you to=^g^rjsah:..!Hat.e.g-~Works-.Association-- Research _ -Bulletin titled "the Behavior of Asbestos-Cement Pipe under Various Water Quality Conditions: A Progress Report dated February, 1980 by authors Ralph W. Buelow, James R. Millette, Earl F. McFarren and James H. Symons." This report covers an evaluation of ten different water systems,, including water characteristics, calculated aggressiveness index (AI) and collection of samples for asbestos fibre count. We also submit a letter from Doctors Tackett and Park of Indiana University of Pennsylvania on recent tests on asbestos pipe. They also have evaluated literature furnished to them and their comments are included in their letter. BCSDW 09/03/81 i- r CAPCO JEN 0033057 Page 3 The. tests outlined in.this report categorically relate the significance of erosion in cement-asbestos pipes under varying conditions. 7. It is a recognized fact that asbestosis fibres are carcinogous. This committee takes the position that any asbestos fibres when induced into a human body by respiration or ingestion, there is a dangerous health risk. There is no safe carcinogen according to Dr. Mancuso of the University of Pittsburgh. See Dr. Kancuso's attached letter. 8. The Water Authority when polled as individual members, their individual belief was that the asbestos pipe was safe. This committee does not know how the Water Authority,'either individually or collectively, arrived at the conclusion that asbestos-cement pipe was safe. 9. This committee recognizes that the asbestos-cement water pipe lines have been installed and at present some of the Blairsville citizens are already subjected to asbestos .hazards. The committee is not sure that the asbestos pipe installation has been done in accordance with good safety practices to prevent asbestos fibre contamination. Where asbestos pipe installations have been connected fordomestic water use, water samples should be taken and an an asbestos fibre count made. The United States Environmental Protection Agency_ (EPA), Drinking Water Research Division (DWRD), Cincinnati, Ohio should be contacted immediately and their advice, help and input be recognized in the Blairsville Water System analysis and tests to be run. 1 I- BCSDW 09/08/81 *1 CAPCO JEN 0033058 Page 4 10. This committee is not out to seek vengeance on any of the members of the Water Authority. It only seeks to remind the Authority that the residents of Blairsville are adequately advised of the health risks involved that may not surface twenty-five to thirty years in the future.' The young children of Blairsville residents are the ones to face the health risks outlined. We, the concerned citizens, do not want to be a part of the group who support the use of asbestos-cement pipes. MK:klh BCSDW 09/08/81 :t l1 CAPCO JEN 0033059 Johns-Manville Internal Correspondence To: Tom Scally - MAD Date October 8, 1981 From: H. L. Olson 3-01, Ext. 3422 RECEIVEQOCT 1 6 1981 Copies: Subject: J, Cran 3-01, W. McCallie 2-20, Jim Reis 1-03, J. L. Fischer, C. Linke 1-04, M. Tomenko 1-04, B. Collier 1-07, P. Mascola - MAD, -J. Welch AACPP, file/chrono BLAIRSVILLE, PA Attached is a copy of a letter sent to the Blairsville Water Authority Board. Some thought had been given to releasing this letter to the press, but it was decided to refrain from such action on our part and let the Water Board handle it as they felt best for them. If they would' care to do so, and would require assistance from the association's public relations firm, please let me know. HLO:bj a attachment CAPCO JEN 0033061 ittcorpo^0" October 7, 1981 Blairsville Water Authority Blairsville, PA 15717 Gentlemen: We are in receipt of a copy of the statements and requests presented to you by the "Blairsville Committee on Safe Drinking Water". In response to this document we would . like to make the following comments and offer. . 1. There has been no pipe that has been subjected to so many tests and studies in an attempt to prove a health hazard exists with its use .as asbestoscement pipe. These studies have covered a period of over eight years, and millions of dollars have been spent by the U. S. E.P.A. on these studies. All of these studies have failed to establish a causal relationship between asbestos ingested in potable water supply and any health hazard, including cancer. After a careful review. Dr. Kotin, our Sr. Vice President for Health Safety & Environment has stated, "On the basis of all the data now available there is no demonstrated risk associated with the ingestion of asbestos in potable water supplies." Dr. Kotin's statement reflects.an opinion shared by qualified doctors who have investigated the many studies that have been directed at trying to esta blish a link between asbestos ingested in water supplies and any health hazard. 2. The Blairsville Committee on Safe Drinking Water states, "If Johns-Hanvilie is so sure of thesafety of their pipe and that no cancer is involved, have them agree in writing that Johns-Manville will absolve the Blairsville Water Authority from any suits involving cancer that is traceable to asbestoscement pipe installed in the Blairsville Water Sys tem". This statement presumes that asbestos cement pipe is potentially dangerous to the citizens of Blairsville and that there are other "no risk" pipes that should have been used. It is the ii CAPCO JEN 0033062 Blairsville Water Authority October 7, 1981 Page 2 opinion of Johns-Manville that our asbestos-cement pipe is no moire of a health hazard to the public who drink water flowing through it than any other commonly used water main materials. We stand ready, willing and even eager to offer any guarantee regarding health .implications from the use of our A-C pipe that would be offered by any. other pipe manufacturer. We specifically request that the "Blairsville Committee on Safe Drinking Water" obtain a "healthguarantee" from any major manufacturer of water main pipes and a similar "guarantee" will then be offered by Johns-Manville covering the use of our TRANSITE Asbestos-Cement Water Pipe. H. L. Olson, Manager Environmental & Engineering Development HLO:bja attachment:' U.S. Environmental Protection Agencv-- Region IV letter to the City of Lakeland, FL I- - CAPCO JEN 0033063