Document vyBBpyz6kyBk0w84r5DnQxQ5m

vuu ri ilu r n iiy iNews 126, No. 233 20 Pages Tuesday, January 31,1984, Midland, Michigan 25c Per Copy ERAJ C X )0 \A J soil test shows no dioxin threat e ByBJyUJLUILEIEMMORORRIRSIOSNON .. i ., fJMp1111111 " " .nw m m * i \ ,mn n i , i i i i ii.il . j i i i w i j j i i j j i n i n ih i i n -- n i' M M i i i n f . ii . i ii i i i i n . i w i ' .ji i i i n i i nantiaotnioanl arlepreuptauttiaotnioansaasdaiodxioinxihnohtboetbde, d, Daily News staff writer I 1 but officials breathed another sigh ofre- Testing completed in Midland to date ! Meeting's `guest list' draws objection'indicates dioxin levels in area soils are lief when they reviewed dioxin studies from other areas ofthe country. not a human health threat, four officials EPA released a list of 16 sites which c*fthe Environmental Protection Agen cy said Monday. % Environmenital Pr v m*i ectton AA gen^ rangwront, h onever and. w lat,e Fri*- ti . It smg to m yon have m e re- have received some dioxin testing. Based on the information provided by In a meeting with local officials, the EPA said it believes tests completed by the Dow Chemical Co. are reliable and show dioxin in soils to be well below the concern level issued by the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta. But at the same time, the EPA said it will continue its testing of dioxins in Midland's soil, a ir and w ater for comparison and "scientific reasons." The EPA announcem ent was a change in position from what the agen cy previously said about Midland, a Dow spokeswoman said. EPA officials Michael Cook, Gary Ajnendola, David Stringham and Barry Korb were in Midland for a follow-up to a November meeting in Washington. officials were in Midland Monday to day Albosta scheduled a public ques- discuss dioxin contamination in the tion and answer session Monday city, but their visit also sparked con- after the first meeting. about the guest list for the y> Mrs. Hebert objected to the last- mm ': is;. Donald Albosta, D-^St Char- ` a session between the and local offidatsas a follow-up a November meeting in Wash- minute scheduling of i t though, be cause she said it did not give the pub lic tjite to be. Albosta of representing only part of bts Constituency a charge which . Because ofwhatofficials said drew heated response from the con- a lengthy agenda and limited gressman. seating space, the session was not ; "We went out of our way to set up opened to the general public. another meeting so you could par- ite ra te and take advantage of the .,, director of the En EPA being in town," Albosta said. v iro n m e n ta l C ongress of Mid- "You're being unfair to me. If the an, objected to th a t ar- meeting was scheduled on short no- sponsibility to get on the plume and >p*about It** m -JM tried to Be fhaeirbW^^apllJ added ECOMM has con- ducted the past and de nied other parties access, "They had a meeting in June and strangely the press and others were j denied access,*' he said. "Five mem- bers of the EPA flew into town and met with ECOMM and left without even contacting local officials. Then ECOMM held a press conference after it was over." Dow, it indicates several cities have higher levels ofdioxin contamination. "The information so far seems to indi cate Midland is a whole lot lower than other levels,"Amendola said. "If you are concerned about whether othey sites have dioxin, we've shown you there are lots of sites that have di oxin,"Cook added. Amendola and Cook said the EPA plans to continue its analysis of soil samples taken at Dow and in Midland last summer and fall for prim arily scientific reasons. Although results were expected by March, Amendola said analysis of the samples probably won't be completed until mid-June. The local officials were concerned the . ............................ The delay is due to the EPA's current EPA was singling out Midland in its efforts to determine which analyatical study of dioxin contamination and had asked for several provisions they said method to use in testing the soils, Am In the time since EPA and local offi The Centers for Disease Control has months and did others periodically be endola said. veould allow the city to be equally com cials met in Washington, Cook said, the not set specific limits for dioxin levels in fore th a t EPA's findings will be compared to pared to other areas ofthe country. Rep Centers for Disease Control announced commercial, industrial or agricultural "All our community samplings were those of Dow, Amendola said, but the Donald Albosta, D-St. Charles, also at that dioxin in residential area soil is not areas, Cook said, but added that they well below one part per billion," she agency's prime purpose now is to fine tended the session. believed to be a concern to public health are higher than the residential level. ' said. tune its analytical methods and try to What started out as a continuation of unless it is at a level ofat least 1part per th e Washington conversation turned billion. Dow studies put the level at 7 Local officials and Dow heralded determine dioxin discharge limits for "I wasn't as much surprised (about nationwide use. Albosta approved of tnno a surprise announcement for the parts per trillion, considerably lower EPA's announcement as good news for local officials, though. than the CDC advisory. Cook said. Midland residents. "What you are telling us for the first The Centers for Disease Control is "The last official word from the EPA the announcement) as I was relieved," that strategy. Albosta said after the meeting. "That's "The EPA tests could be beneficial to the best kind ofnews Midland can get." Dow," he said. "They have to establish tim e, if the Dow information is sub part of the federal Health and Human stantiated. is Midland doesn't have a di Services Department. oxin problem,''Philip Van Dam, former Although the EPA has taken soil was that Midland was the number one concern," Dow spokeswoman Sarah Rowley said. `So this meeting clarified " T h a t's a m ajor d ev elo p m en t," levels and keep them nationwide and if Chamber of Commerce director Wil Dow is already at those levels, other liam Welch said. "And I think it's the companies that are above them will president ofthe Chamber ofCommerce, samples inside the Dow plant and in the the perspective in which the concern result ofour pressing (for meetings with have to do a little more changing (ofsys said. "The data, at least from Dow, indicate the level is not high enough to be a con cern to public health," Cook said. city for analysis, Amendola, project manager for the Michigan dioxin study, said he "has no reason to believe at all" that Dow's results are inaccurate. should be treated." Rowley said Dow' did six soil samples in residential areas in the past six the EPA). We wouldn't have gotten this information ifwe hadn't kept pressing." EPA's announcement eased some concern th at Midland wmid a air o tems) than Dow. This could be the feed stock company of the future. If I was go ing to buy stock, I think out of any rh o m ip o l ------------1 1 1 ^ **