Document RJMdVn9ML1grVXV2vae3OOVeX

ESSO RESEARCH AND ENGINEERING COMPANY_______ MEDICAL RESEARCH DIVISION P. O. BOX 45, LINDEN, N. J. 07036 June 6, 1966 Dr. Robert A. Kehoe University of Cincinnati Kettering Laboratory Eden and Bethesda Avenues Cincinnati, Ohio 45219 Dear Bob: Thank you so much for your letter of June 3, 1966. May I say paren thetically that I share your opinions of Harry Heiman and always have. Regardless of that however I am considerably disturbed by your comments because, as you know, I am now working part time for the American Petroleum Institute trying to direct the programs of research which they will undertake in the area of lead and other potentially toxic factors in the environment from the petroleum industry. In this capacity naturally I am assuming responsibility for the programs ultimately developed, and I am concerned that you seem to feel that these programs are going in the wrong direction and that some wasted effort may be in the making on the part of the Environmental Health Committee. Since you did not get specific in any area in your letter I do hope that we shall have an opportunity to sit down and discuss specifically the programs that the API is planning to undertake and what your objections to any of these may be. Certainly we honor and respect your opinions in this area and would welcome any comments which you care to make concerning any of these programs. Incidentally, the Environmental Health Committee is holding its next meeting in San Francisco on Friday afternoon, June 24, immediately following the APCA meeting. If you are going to be in San Francisco perhaps you would wish to come before the Committee and give a progress report if any is warranted on the work which the API is sponsoring under your direction. Further, if there are any additional comments that you would wish to make to this Committee as a whole, I am sure that they would welcome any comments. If you are to be in San Francisco for the APCA meeting perhaps we could get together for breakfast on the 24th so that I might review with you in advance of the Committee meeting what projects we have already contracted for and receive from you the benefits of any comments or criti cisms that you might have of them. . Please rest assured that it is my intent to try to see that the API spends its money wisely insofar as I can possibly do so, and also that it continues to operate cooperatively with others in the field of environmental lead in order that we might all benefit from our exchanges of views. Just incidentally, the API has nominated you as an expert for an overall steering committee on lead studies which was proposed by Vernon Mackenzie at the time that Don Fowler and I talked with him about some continuation of the Tri-City Studies. Most people seem to feel that some continuation of a surveillance of the atmosphere and people,in regard to environmental lead exposures, would be worthwhile, and so Don and I had a preliminary discussion with Vernon Mackenzie on this subject. He did not at that time seem particularly enthusiastic about any such continued surveillance but did propose that perhaps we ought to establish an 2 overall steering committee for any lead studies that are undertaken. This committee would contain a representative of the API, a representative of the Lead Industries Association, and a representative of the U.S. Public Health Service. In addition, several "experts" outside of either of those organizations would also be nominated to the committee. I was nominated as the API's representative on this committee, and in turn was authorized to nominate you, Dr. Cholak, and Dr. Christian as other potential experts to be added to the overall steering committee. Just what the status of this whole situation is at the present time I am not aware, but this is another thing that I would like to discuss with you sometime at length in private. Naturally I will respect the confidentiality of your letter, and con versely I would anticipate that you would do the same with mine. I do hope that we can get together in San Francisco, but if that fails then I would like to see if I can make some arrangements to come to Cincinnati sometime and sit down with you and discuss this whole thing through. I am most desirous of seeing that the API does a good job, and I have never ever forgotten the good advice I have continually gotten from you throughout the years. Best personal regards. Sincerely yours, REErbsn OC- R. E. ECKARDT, M.D. Director