Document zdVdKk3vO7gy8pj83Q0JXe0zR
ft.
Th* News Times, Sunday, July
1978-
Pittsfield G.E..
discusses PC -
By Michele DenU
. ' larger and larger flail. Tbeaa flak
News-Times staff
exhibit the same tendency as humane In
.
. accumulating PCB for storage in fatty
PITTSFIELD, Mill. - An Ursuer. lanoeoous-leoking iibituci hu The substance could be dredged out af
poisoned Uw fish of a nationally the Housetonic, except that it baa
' renowned river on4 Uw reputation of t spread tram Cornwall to Soethbury and
. major American corporation,
the river current may make any digging
i Haro at Ganoral Eloetrlo, officials even more damaging.
i: an toying to mnodjr both.
GE and Connecticut agree that no .
[. . At atako la the fotora of tko realistic solution seems In sight. They
Haasatonic Rlvor system, which may be split over who should finance
. cooiapa pact thla 300-acra aloctrieal the research needed to find aa answer.
l equipment plant, taking on Its trip
|. downstream varying amoanta of a ` Connecticut's environmental
canoer-causing chemical called PCB. commissioner, Stanley Pae, wan ! i POB, or polychlorinated biphenyi.ls a federal funds for PCB reeesreh this
: data of chomical cornpoonda once naad year but has.tatl open tha possibility eg
; In aomatooa baoaaliold and Industrial a lawsuit against CE.
-
products, many of wfldcb wanpiodocad Pae wouldn't be the Drat la sue.
: jmro,- General Electric, thla town'i Two Westport lawyers Iliad a M
' major employer, prodocca power million elass action suit la slate end -
- tranaformen, military aqulpmant and federal courts last year, charging
, .cnemical-plasucs.
..>-
Gme*al Electric with ruining a prime
i I because at Ita fire-retardant trout llshory. Tha federal case was
[ -qualities, PCB waa an integral part af dismissed this week because federal
! the manafactartog pneea biro for Jurisdiction la only applicable when
` more than to yean,
direct personal injury is Involved. The
c Ita health haaarda wore not known stele case still is pending. A New
t until.the lMti. Before then. Oeneral Milford tackle shop owner who claims
t Electric had no water pollotlan control CE ruined his business also baa a salt
I iqulpmsol and no el) spill recovery pending.
I system. PCB waa rootlaeiy dlaehargad Public opinion and court action have
; .Into the rlvor sari damped la landfllta. put Ganoral Electric on the defensive,
Thabo decades of damping an being and the company feels its counter
'paid far nan by the Hoesatanlc and ita arguments often tall on deaf MIS.
; -throe |akoa,Caadlewoad,UUIaonahaad In the hopes of wlnnlag public
sympathy, the company invited 1-.!. Last year, fallowing labttantlal reporters from Connecticut's major
^.evidence that PCB entered the newspapers on a plant tour this week.
llaaailieln River teod chain and made , The tour, copied with aa boar-long
meat* Bah tea daagoraaa to rat. the briefing from Richard Reinhart,
: 'Connecticut Health Department manager of relations and utilities
-declared the river and all bat operation, produced the following
> Caadlawood Laha unsafe. Caadlenaod Information and claims:
' ihonk only light contamination became --"We don't damp anything In the
1 ,Its waters an pwmped op tram the rivet river. We never have. That would bo
; only ' oecaalonally and PCB-lafeatad like dumping the best wine yon could'
aadimant tends to drop back.
down the drain. PCB is worth too much
Fingers af blame painted at General for that," Reinhart said, adding:
Electric'a Pittsfield plant before the "We would be the first to admit that
fish consumption ban hot never aa over the years, we did lose some
. baldly. A cry started up. similar to that through spills, runoff and Ike norma!
- on Sew York's PCB-Mestud Madsen manufacturing process, however."
. River, to make CE pay far the damage. Jack Batty, Gti communications
I Damage ie eateaatve because PCB la manager, later said In an interview that
-Virtually IndeatiwetlMe and doean't Ms company does not know bow muck
1 appear to dilate with Unto. It aiaka hue PCB was allowed to run law streams t sediment to be picked op by bettem- feeding the river, nor how mack 1
faraeine ftah. who are in tarn eatgp by ..Men OX. DISCUSSES. Page M , -
HONS 00319h
4--*
' re -t-V: J .t^fta.V.;.: .: -.'
r' . iT.Wwr.i* lr4>; -- -ye" r"
Defusing the PCB time bomb
l| cost S12 million, but Gontral Klectrlc found a way to stop the spread
q the deadly chemical PCB from Its
alttsfleld plant. Pumps recapture, from underground, oil which contains tjie substance, filter It as shown by
environmental manager Jim Thayer, then destroy everything In a special hlgh-femperature Incinerator Thayer designed. All that's left Is the clear water shown entering the east'branch of the Housatonlc at rights
E. discusses PCB problenl
Cbattoaad bam Pan a-]
tape t area lasdllUa dnrinf tot yean Man G tad pollution etrel epolpmoat -1Junta Thearr, lh compzcy't aelroatleoul protection moaefer and anae af a PCB Fotmd recnaory Iratam and the aatioa'a tint thannal hMtoay lor daaunylad too otamleal, aid Maiaaanqr eyatem lakaa "aoeonl deed (allaaa a week" arhlck
of tka Hoaaalonfe Ulnar. Tka company A major oatprlt atoaetoa ftjaoalooir
la only ponuMtad an anorofa flea-part" to tkt Danbury landM, ktaoM on dm
par'billion rat* aad Reinhart laid GE'a sun Rlvar. Iko Still Is a --'Tnii'
|oal la "rare."
- Irlhounr wMch Howe sank fete Like,
--General Electric bon invastodaboot ...... ` Hl|k PCB eonecntrrSxi
SIS mllltan lor PCS cnntrala phia II have beta lai
million annual opantlanal akpanaat. At Danbury could aat be r
leant Dae mara yaen of doaaap art Ika aorthaen Ceaaaetlcat Huuantanic'n'
antldpalad.
probiama heranee the Hnieiliale (towel
TMa tovaatmant waa ant tatally sooth. No other loacnltooUof dm rtaorl
aalantary, Reinhart aald In an Mtaratew. Federal tow required at leant.
haao born IdertUUd tc Heomreeli PCB
_____ --. , 1
I aad lata dm Hear.
IMS. about 1.4
.
baoa aoad and a
. i at UUa wart
Sa anotronmant
! Only a traction at tta ana tofmnoon
ilkaa boon doelroyod and naarty
-- , a art lamawbat a la
Iba eatfon'e air. wateraad aatl. The raai
it aUH balnf oaad la aairytkiaf (ram
port of Ihia. bat Reinhart aald hej couldn't aay taw mack. Contrail
odotpenont waa hutalled and operaUn|> waU baloea loderally repaired, ha aald.'
la oampnetaon. General Elcctrtc'n tatal aaaaal tales an "loaaral hundred
million dotlam,'' Ralahart aald. Ha
waaid act ho mara rpeclflc. Tka
campany repartad aa ammal payroll of
le mdlton ton yoar.
.
prtalor'e Ink aad Mwapnpnr* * --PCB rtcoetry at PHtaHoM to <
malar, bat aot too only, action oaeded
-Tko anly known woy to destroy PCB to Map tot deadly chemical trait k la a dueanI aotdtaar, Ute Bat iafostlay walarwaya, toad aad air kaiallad at GB*a nmfleld plaat la Manta and imadclpal taadfin owaan ISTS. Tka aaldlaar la a asocial man Had a any to atop the spnad 01 lactaaratar akltk aaaa tliaa,,
temperature as la l.aaa dafraaa
PkkraataH and larkaltnea la aaparita.
Ika moiectlll attlda PCB aad aipMi
thorn. Tka aad mail, accaidlaf la GCa
Tkayar. H "carbon dtaddo. aiatar and
Ubte mil."
'.
-GC Itoastd PCB aaa mara tkaa a-
year ana, tat amatt aiaaonu af tka.
ahamlcal Mill an aaeaskat recapture. :
adata 1 maalmam M parts PCB par HIlianasrta.af water la tka east branch
HONS 003195