Tuesday, October 26, 2010

IBM's toxic plume and the devastation of Endicott, NY.

Imagine  a community that you have driven past time and time again, that you have never really thought about, but have always known existed. A community close to home. Now imagine that this community has been a site of below-ground toxic wastes for decades, and you never knew it. This is the case of Endicott, New York, a Binghamton-area community. Although I've passed through Binghamton hundreds of times, maybe more, I've only just learned that Endicott is the site of a 350-acre toxic below-ground "plume" of chemicals, that may or may not be (most likely is) affecting the health of local residents.

How tragic! The plume is the result of negligence on the part of IBM in the early parts of the 1900s (regulations regarding the disposal of chemicals were put in place in '79). It was not until 2002, however, that the plume was discovered. Are high instances of cancer in Endicott directly related to the results of the chemicals found in the plume?

Read a very powerful article here, and also watch the video. It's very important.

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Broome natural gas meeting set for Thursday


October 13, 2010, 10:35 pm
  • Binghamton The Forum in Binghamton will host a four-hour meeting Thursday related to the natural gas drilling debate.
The topic will be whether Broome County should lead a state-mandated environmental review if the county decides to sign a mineral rights lease deal, which it is currently considering.
Signing a lease for county land is subject to the State Environmental Quality Review Act, which is meant to determine whether a specific action would have a large impact on the environment. The county legislature is considering a resolution that would declare itself the lead agency for the SEQRA review.
If the review finds that signing a mineral rights lease deal would have an effect on the environment, the county would have to prepare a full impact statement. While the county resolution deals with the actual signing of the lease, the state is preparing a Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement that would cover the drilling process.

The meeting will consist of two sessions: 2 to 4 p.m. and 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. About 40 people pre-registered to speak at each session, and all will be limited to three minutes each. Unregistered speakers will be allowed their turn at the microphone if time permits, and preference will be given to those living in Broome County.
View the Press Connects article.

Yet additional causes for concern (Fracking Related)

I have come across yet another example of water contamination, likely caused by fracking. This article describes the contamination of ground water at the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming. Contaminants found in the water include benzene, metals, naphthalene, phenols, methane, and others. (Of course, it is hard to be sure that these contaminants are indeed the result of fracking, since nobody seems to know which chemicals are associated with the process...) 
Read the article here


Researchers with the Academy of Natural Sciences have conducted a recent study in Pennsylvania. They claim that water sources nearby to drilling sites may be at risk of contamination, even if the drilling runs smoothly and without incident. Although more research needs to be conducted, I think that people should take this new finding seriously. If true, water sources could be being polluted without acknowledgement at this very moment, all across the nation. Read it.

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Friday, October 1, 2010

Floods and health, what are the concerns?

It has been raining all day here in Cortland. I spoke with my mother earlier today, who says there is some minor flooding occurring back home in Hancock. I instantly flashed back to June of 2006, when Hancock experience horrible flooding. Some damage is still visible to this day.

Random flood picture (Not Hancock). Image source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mgk/3684518180/#


With my new concern for all things environmental health related, I began to wonder what effects flooding could have on the health of a population...

Water contamination can lead to wound infections, dermatitis, conjunctivitis, E. coli, (the list of possible diseases goes on and on), gastrointestinal illnesses, ear, nose and throat infections, and possible "serious waterborne diseases"(from www.freedrinkingwater.com).