The Acreage Cancer Study

Hi Everyone,

It is finally Friday. This has been an incredibly eventful week. Next week will hold much of the same. We hope you will be able to attend the meeting on Tuesday with the DOH. Our hope is that residents show up with their list of questions so that each question can be answered. We know that isn't realistic, but we have to try.

Below are various news articles - both local and national -  that may be of interestto you. We hope you enjoy them.

Don't forget to check the Forums for up to date discussions on the cancer cluster.

Have a great weekend!

Crist vows to devote 'every ounce of energy' to finding Acreage cancer cause

By Dara Kam and Michael C. Bender

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Updated: 7:03 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 4, 2010

TALLAHASSEE — Florida health officialswill "accelerate" their investigation of the cancer cluster in centralPalm Beach County by appealing to the federal government for help, Gov.Charlie Crist said today — just one day after the state had said it didnot plan to hunt for an environmental cause.

"This is of grave concern to me," Crist said in an interview. "The people deserve every ounce of energy that can be put into this situation to reveal how thishappened, what the cause might be and what can be done to help these residents."

Federal help is needed to determine the next step forresidents in The Acreage because state health officials had exhaustedtheir research options, Florida Surgeon General Ana Viamonte Ros saidtoday.

"We've reached that point where we need federal guidanceto review what we've done and better clarify what the next steps shouldbe," Viamonte Ros said in an interview.

A letter to U.S. Sen.Bill Nelson was being drafted and the state health department'senvironmental health director had placed calls to the U.S. Centers forDisease Control and Prevention, a health department spokesman said. Thestate was also reaching out to the National Institutes of Health.

Outrageerupted Wednesday among residents of The Acreage after state healthofficials said they would not search for an environmental cause of whyresidents are experiencing higher rates of brain tumors and cancer thannormal.

Viamonte Ros said she did not sign-off on that decisionfrom the Palm Beach County Health Department director, Dr. AlinaAlonso, but Viamonte Ros agreed that the state had exhausted itsoptions.

To view the full article, Click Here.

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Midland County Residents With Contamination Problems Get City Water Lines

2/3/10

Shelley Childers

CBS 7 News

February 3, 2010

The TexasCommission on Environmental Quality announced Wednesday that residentsin Midland County, affected by chromium contamination in their wellwater, will have access to waterlines from the city.

The TCEQ wasvery happy to make the announcement, calling the expedited process forthese water lines the fastest they've seen.

They expect to begininstallation of the water lines within the next few months and hopethey will be fully connected for residents within a year after that.

Robert Patton, Manager of the TCEQ Superfund Program says, “That's thefirst question we always get when we talk to them is ‘When's the waterline coming? When's the water line coming?’ And compared to other sitesthat we've had that are similar to this, to have this occur within ayear is due to a lot of people's effort."

To view the full article, Click Here.

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State Engineer close to enacting new well rules

MEAD GRUVER, Associated Press Writer

Published: 07:01 a.m., Wednesday, January 27, 2010

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Wyoming is close to having its first new standards for water wells in 36 years.

The rules would impose tougher standards to keep pollution and bacteria from contaminating groundwater. They would apply to all new residential, industrial and municipal water wells in Wyoming and are expected to take effect in spring or summer following approval by the state engineer and governor.

The existing rules date to January 1974. Developing new rules in one way or another has taken the better part of 15 years, said George Moser, a groundwater management specialist in the State Engineer's Office.

"It's quite long overdue, really," Moser said Tuesday.

New regulations for water wells encountered resistance at times amongwell drillers and pump installers. Opposition seems to have died down, Moser said, with only a few people participating in a six-week comment period that ended Friday.

To view the full article, Click Here.

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Remedy sought for exposure to Lejeune contamination

House bill would require VA to care for Marines, families sickened by tainted water.

By Barbara Barrett

Washington correspondentPosted: Wednesday, Feb. 03, 2010

WASHINGTON - It was 12 years after watching hisyoung daughter slip away that former Master Sgt. Jerry Ensminger caught a clue that the Marines might have been at fault for her death.

He has spent more than 12 years since trying to find justice.

Ensminger doesn't think he's there yet, but legislation introduced in the House of Representatives this week aims to bring him closer.

The legislation, introduced by U.S. Rep. Brad Miller, a Raleigh Democrat,  requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to care for Marines and their family members who might have suffered ailments stemming from their exposure.

From about 1957 to 1987, Marines and their families living at Camp Lejeune drank and bathed in well watercontaminated with trichloroethylene (TCE), tetrachloroethylene (PCE), benzene and vinyl chloride. Some estimates are that as many as 1million people might have been exposed.

To view the full article, Click Here.

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Should contamination be listed on a home's deed?

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

BY LESLIE SCOTT

Should homeowners be required to explain environmental concerns on the deeds to their homes when they put their properties on the market? Some residents say yes, but others say no.

Borough Attorney Joe Ragnore searched this issue after resident Lisa Riggiola suggested that the borough adopt an ordinance requiring all potential buyers to be notified that the home they are considering is located in the Plume, which is the area in the borough contaminated by DuPont.

During the Jan. 27 Borough Council meeting, Ragno outlined several reasons why such an ordinance would not be a good idea.

"Thereare some safeguards in place from the state that are already there forbuyers that buy properties in the Plume," said Ragno.

The attorney explained that describing the contamination on the deed would attach this stigma to the home long after the property was cleaned.

"It would potentially be infinite in nature. When this happens, those deeds will still be out there, potentially damaging the people who own those properties," Ragno said.

Laws already in place require the realestate commission and Realtors to disclose this information. In addition, buyers are also protected by the state Consumer Fraud Act, which requires disclosure and punishes sellers who fail to disclose this information.

Ragno said no laws in the state require this information to be placed on the deed, though there are no lawsprohibiting it. Yet he suspects that if the borough did adopt such ano rdinance, it would be challenged.

Borough residents Ann Tacinelli and Michelle Belfiore, who are both real estate agents, had differing opinions.

To view the full article, Click Here.