Document OErwaEv0mkkv15x5jnN7YE0BX

03/13/2003 10:06 LJU DEP LEGAL SERVICES * 915133810205 3 3 /1 2 /2 0 0 3 1 5 :4 0 GOVERNOR'S PRESS OFFICE * 9 5 5 0 6 5 7 6 $3/12/03 WED 10:20 F41 20*8*22862 EWC NO.129 505 NO. 372 C?0i I - T O i f 002 SNVIRONMCnTAk WOBKINO OEROU March 12; 2003 The Honorable Bob Wise 1900 Kanawha 8oulevard, E Charleston, WV. 25305 Dear Governor Wise: U s 'J S(re*C NW. Suite i m Wfcihirvan. OC ^uM-j USA s: SQi.My^9Pi 1 oa.:3J.li9 ,-i>iews.ors % We are writing to Bring to your attention a commitment made last year by the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (DP). In response to a report prepared by the Environmental Working Group, former 0EP Secretary Michael Callahan agreed ta address a number of outstanding scientific questions relating to the amount of the toxic Teflon production catalyst, Ca, that should be allowed in local drinking water supplies. We appreciate th at the DEP agreed to address the issues we raised but wa are deeply concerned about what appear to be clear conflicts of interest With top officials in the-Department, and within the panel charged with the review of all Teflon''related pollution matters. Given the seriousness of this matter to the health of West Virginians, we urge you to take steps to eliminate even th suggestion of any conflict of interest in this process. We respectfully request that you convene an independent panel that reports directly to you to review the science issues we have raisad, and that this panel excludes any DuPont employees, advisors, lawyers or consultants, past or present. We further ask that this new panel have at least three members who are independent and unaffiliated with the chemical industry, and who possess expertise in neonatal and pediatric toxicity and environmental health. As things stand today, the tap two officials in your Department of Environmental Protection who are charged with protecting the public and environment from Teflon-related pollution, Acting 0P Chief Stephanie Timmerrneyer. and 3oseph ffiwTeyT DP Gefral- Counsel, both worked for the law firm Spilman Thomas & fiattle and represented OuPontin negotiations with the QEP that established the process far setting safe limits of C8 in tap water. ALlyn Turner, director of the D6P division of Water Resources, was with the Spilman Prm until 1958. We understand chat both Timmerrneyer and Oawley have agreed not to participate in discussions or actions relevant to 8 and other Telfon-related pollution matters. While appropriate, this move will not likely be sufficient, oecause there are equally serious conflicts of, interest apparent an the C8 Assessment of Toxicity Team (ATT) charged with establishing the drinking water guidance level. As yob may be aware, half of the 10 voting members of the CATT are either employed by DuPont (2J or the chemical industry consulting firm TERA (3). A sixth voting member, the chair of the committee, tlr. Dee Ann Staats. made a career as an expert witness testifying against the concerns of communities fighting chemical and oil company pollution prior to coming ca work fqr the State of West Virginia. There are nc AS- (9 00/200 100 ON N1V1NOO . 4)00307 TMfPDVE'ROf INFOHAATIO* uuu.Cva.ao6 0 3 / 1 3 /0 3 THU 10:04 [TX/RI NO 60141 IXVNNIDNIO H^Sl 20Z0T8CCT2T CC=TT CO/CT/CO s eBed :ESS# : o n d TXTh v uosugor J9iUT<- :wvt-e =11. e o /e r/e : p e n ie o e y 0 3 /1 3 /2 0 0 3 1 0 :0 6 UiU DEP LEGAL SERUICES -> 9 1 5 1 3 3 0 1 0 2 0 5 & 3/2/2003 1 5 :4 0 GOUUEERRNNOORR''S PRESS OFFICE -> S55865V6 * 3 /1 8 /0 # WEP 1 :1 FAX 8022S 28S03 SVG NG.129 NO.3 7 2 0)003 The nanorOle BobXfls* More* 12. 7003 Paga 2 independent scientists on th ATT, no experts from public interest organisations, and no one with,specific expertise in fetal, neonatal or pediatric environmental health. U was not surprising then, that the GATT panel produced a C8 drinking water guideline based on an extreme and highly selective review of the science. In die process, safety margins traditionally used to protect the public frons-drinking water contaminants were.not applied, .the extreme persistence of C8 was ignored, and the public and independent scientists had no'input into the process. If the same GATT panel uses the same process to address the issues we. have raised, why should we expect the answers tD be different than they were the first time around? Recent reports of DuPont's behavior in Ohio illustrate precisely why industry scientists and consultants cannot be trusted with the health of the citizens, of West Virginia-. As reported in The Marietta Times and The Columbus Post Dispatch, internal. - DuPont documents show th at OuPonx secretly tested tap water in Little Hacking. Ohio six times between 1984 and 1989. and found the Teflon catalyst Cft in m at u p waiei. The Company neglected to inform the water utility and the community of this contamination far i s years even as The company .had repeated indications that the contaminant presented serious health risks. Consumers of Little Hocking water only found out about the contamination when town officials petitioned the state of West Virginia to test for it. And. even then . DuPont did not divulge that it had found the Teflon-related pollution in Little Hocking tap water as early as 1984. This type of behavior simply does not deserve the public trust. With these facts now available, we cannot help but wonder what else DuPopt knows about the hazards of C8 that it is currently hiding from the public. It would be unfair and even naive to let this company directly or indirectly influence the establishment of drinking water standards for C8 when they demonstrated such unscrupulous and arrogant behavior upon finding the chemical in tap.water in 1984.. Cfi, a vital component of Teflon production, contaminates the entire human .population. It is found in dolphins, fish, cormorants and scores of other animals in every corner of the globe. C8 is the most persistent chemical ever made, and according to most scientists it has infinite stability in the environment. This means that all of it ever made will keep cycling through the environment and through people - literally forever. Given th at CS causes cancer, damages reproductive organs, is toxic to the immune system end produces a host of other adverse health effects in people, and animals, it is no exaggeration to say that it is unprecedented in its combination of toxicity and persistence. CB and other Teflon-related perfluorinated compounds.may turn out to be the most problematic class of chemicals ever known to man. *West Virginia is the first governmental entity.to set a standard of any kind far a perfluorinated compound, and for that the state ia to.be commended. But the West Virginia standard will not be the last, and it would b regrettable if the state's work came to be seen over time as tainted by industry influence. 0 0 /9 0 0 .000308 0 3 / 1 3 / 0 3 THU 1 0 :0 4 [TX/RX NO S O N I IXVNNIONID H tfSl S020T8CCXSTO fC:iT 9 00E d EZS# : O l i d T T T H "8 U O S U D O T J e ^ U T M < - i n V K : L I E O / E l / 6 CO/CT/CO : P0AT9O9U 03/13X2003 '03/12/2003 10:06 15:00 UU DEP LEGAL SERVICES -> 91513301(4203 GQUERNOR'S PRESS OFFICE > 9SS86S7S 01/12/03 WED 10:21 FAX 2QJ2322S92 EW< N U .l* U()V HO. 372 JO*i @004 fh# rtanonbie BobvFm AarcS 12. 2003 90 3 We reiterate our, request that as governor, you`assemble an independent panel th a t reports directly to you- devoid of any OuPont employees, advisors, or consultants past or present to review, the1science issues we have raised, and th at this new panel* have at least three members with expertise in neonatal and pediatric toxicity and environmental health. We woutd.be pleased to provide for your review a list of independent scientists with expertise in these areas. Sincerely, Kenneth A. Cook * P resid en t Environmental Working Group 00/100 .000309 0 3 / 1 3 / 0 3 THU 1 0 :0 4 ITX/RX SO 60141 IXVNNIONID H9SI S020T8CCTST tC =TT CO/CT/CO i_ seed :ees# ; Olid TTTH V uosuqor J91UfM<- !WV9C:U BO/El/e :p0AT9D0y