Anne Gorsuch, the mother of Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch, was my worst nightmare. In 1982, when I first confronted her about toxic contamination in Times Beach, Missouri, she led the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under Ronald Reagan.
Anne stepped down a few months later after she refused to hand over documents that would have revealed the EPA’s mishandling of the $1.6 billion Superfund for toxic cleanups. She said she would rather go to jail than release these documents. In doing so, she broke the law, and became the first U.S. agency director in history to be cited for contempt of Congress.
When his mother resigned, Neil was a 15-year-old sophomore and star debater at Washington, D.C.’s elite, Jesuit-run Georgetown Prep.
Neil was upset with his mother, she later wrote, saying, “You should never have resigned. You didn’t do anything wrong. You only did what the President ordered. Why are you quitting? You raised me not to be a quitter. Why are you a quitter?”
As a mother of four children, I know how much my actions influence my children’s behavior, values and principles. I can only wonder what impact Anne Gorsuch’s actions had on her son.
Even at age fifteen, Neil Gorsuch should have understood the difference between right and wrong. Why wasn’t his reaction, “Gee mom, at least the people living around landfills will now receive some attention?”
Or “If the President was making you do wrong, you should have stood your ground, and said no to him, and that you’d go to jail before hurting American families?”
Did Neil truly think his mother was above the law, because her boss told her to do something that was wrong? Or that she was right to withhold the truth from the American people?
A deep understanding of right and wrong is fundamental to ruling on cases in any level of court. Anne Gorsuch’s 22-month tenure at the EPA was one of the most scandalous of the early Reagan administration. She was a firm believer that EPA was too big, too wasteful and too restrictive of business, and cut the agency’s budget by 22 percent. She boasted that she reduced the volume of clean-water regulations from six inches to a half-inch.
I was the leader at Love Canal in Niagara Falls, NY, where a toxic waste dump leaked 20,000 tons of chemicals into our neighborhood. As a result, 56 percent of our children were born with birth defects. In 1980, all eight hundred families from Love Canal were evacuated, and the federal Superfund program was established to provide funds to clean up other similar hazardous wastes sites. A polluter’s pay provision was the funding mechanism.
At the EPA, Anne Gorsuch supervised her assistant, Rita Lavelle in administration of the Superfund. Lavelle was later indicted on federal perjury charges after an investigation demonstrated she was involved in the misuse of these funds and in irregularities at the Stringfellow Acid Pits, a major hazardous waste site in Riverside, California. Lavelle was later convicted of lying to Congress and served three months in prison.
As EPA administrator, Anne Gorsuch tried to ignore some of the worst toxic waste disasters in American history including Woburn, Massachusetts, the site of water contamination that caused a childhood leukemia cluster that became the subject of the book and movie A Civil Action. The Stringfellow Acid Pits were a site created by Gorsuch’s former employer, Aerojet-General Corp., which turned out to be even more toxic than Love Canal. Times Beach was contaminated with dioxin, the most toxic chemical known to man. Fortunately for victims, Congress forced Gorsuch to act.
I can’t help but wonder what was going through the mind of Neil, the young debater, as he observed all of this.
Did he think poisoning innocent people was fine? Did he truly believe that his mother didn’t have a legal and moral obligation to act to protect children, women or men from serious and irreversible harm, disease and death?
Was he comfortable when his mother ordered the evacuation of Times Beach from inside a local school with the media and elected representatives, but not a single impacted family? All of the local residents were locked out of the building because she didn’t want to face them and their tears and to see the effects of the toxic poisons eating way at their skin.
Almost daily at that time, national newspapers carried front-page stories about American families that were sick, terrified, and in need of action to reduce pollution in their communities. How did his mother’s role in these events shape Neil Gorsuch’s values as a young man?
For Neil Gorsuch to condone her behavior, saying she did nothing wrong, reveals a real flaw in his character. Would Justice Gorsuch advocate the same in a Supreme Court decision? If someone orders another person to do harm, will Justice Gorsuch somehow justify it because they were just following orders? Would Justice Gorsuch believe that someone’s loyalty to a President places his or her actions above the law?
I was devastated when I first arrived in Washington, 36 years ago, to work with communities faced with toxic pollution that couldn’t use this new Superfund program. My family and neighborhood’s suffering was the impetus for the program. Superfund had so much potential. I planned on using every piece of the program to assist communities to obtain clean water, air and land. Neil Gorsuch’s mother crippled the program, so much so that it has never fully recovered.
It’s clear to me that most children by 15 years of age know right from wrong. Neil Gorsuch watched as his mother allowed the poisoning of innocent American families, and allowed corporate polluters to escape responsibility. Then he condoned, and justified, her actions.
These are not attitudes that we want, or can accept, in a Supreme Court Justice.
Category: Backyard Talk
CHEJ Blog
President Donald Trump’s deep cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency terrify me. They will gut the agency, removing protections for American families and our children. As I travel from one polluted community to the next, women weep as they hold their children, and explain how chemicals in their air, water or land have made their families sick. Local leaders describe how their city or town won’t help them, because it’s a company town, and no one will hold the polluter responsible. They go on to say their state agency isn’t much better. Their only recourse is the federal EPA.
The EPA was designed to provide a safety net for these communities. But it has been hard enough for EPA to answer demand for their services across the nation, and to stretch their existing budgets. Clearly, Trump’s administration intends to take away this safety net, and a means for checks and balances. I can tell you from first-hand experience that living in a toxic environment, with little hope of getting out, is a family’s worst nightmare. In 1978, I lived with my two small children at Love Canal in Niagara Falls, NY, where 20,000 tons of toxic chemical wastes were buried.
My daughter had a rare blood disease, and my son suffered from many medical problems including with his liver, asthma and epilepsy. Our house was worthless, and our American dream taken away through no fault of our own. Fifty-six percent of our neighborhood children were born with birth defects.
Niagara Falls was a city with 47 different chemical facilities. The city didn’t want to upset the industry, nor did the county. Moreover, the state was concerned about setting a precedent, estimating there were thousands of similar sites in the region just like Love Canal. The federal EPA came in to investigate the site, after pleas from the community that the city and state were not acting. Eight hundred families were later relocated, and the Superfund Program was established to address threats to human health by the most dangerous chemical waste sites.
Superfund provides the opportunity for the EPA to come in to a town or city and clean up contamination to protect families from exposure. The program also identifies the corporations that created the site, and holds them responsible for the costs. If there is no responsible corporation, the EPA has the authority and funds to clean up the site.
There is no gentle way to state the obvious. Trump prioritizes corporations over people, children and the planet. These cuts will gut the agency, removing protections for American families. I am old enough to remember the black smoke of the steel mills, the rivers catching fire and sickness and death in communities that surround the factories. The magnitude of the cuts proposed by this administration will take America back decades.
Cuts in the EPA budget mean no one will be watching the polluters. No one will be there to ensure industrial facilities don’t dump wastes into the sewer, air or rivers. No one would hold polluters accountable to pay for cleaning up toxics or for the costs of sick children with asthma, cancer, with birth defects and so much more.
Superfund was designed to provide technical, financial and legal assistance to states and local governments by creating a pool of funds to be used in the most toxic waste sites in the country.
States nominate sites for the Superfund program because they want help; they can’t afford to clean up abandoned sites on their own. As was the case in Niagara Falls, many states and local governments have neither the resources to investigate, nor the backbone to take on corporate polluters. Instead, they look the other way.
Trump’s cuts mean there will be no one to police the environment, and no enforcement. Think about that. What if there were no police in your neighborhood? People would speed down neighborhood streets where children walk to and from school. Someone could just walk into a bank and demand money, or someone could assault you or your loved ones with no fear of consequences.
What polluters take from us is more than any bank robber can ever take, and much more devastating. The air you breathe, the water you drink and land you play on could be toxic poison. Regulations mean little when there are no police, no investigators or consequences for doing harm.
The entire planet is at risk if the Trump Administration cuts the EPA’s budget by 30 percent. Everyone but the very wealthy will suffer the consequences. Families of low income and of color will suffer the most, as they often live closest to industry.
Rather than weakening the EPA and environmental protections, we should work to strengthen rules to protect communities from the impacts of waste dumps, factory farms, fossil fuels, and other pollution sources. We should work to ensure all people have access to clean water, safe food, and a livable climate.
Everyone will be harmed by these cuts, and everyone must speak out. Our very existence, public health and America’s future depend on it, as does our ability to control industrial pollution and hold corporations accountable. Please sign my petition: Don’t let Trump’s budget destroy the Superfund Program or the EPA. Reprinted from: People’s Action Progressive Breakfast 3-20-17
Indigenous people from around the world gathered to promote sovereignty, resistance, respect, justice and love at the Native Nations Rise March 10th. I was honored to walk along side of Indigenous women, children and men. The weather was freezing with rain, sleet and snow. The wind howled as if joining the marches with a powerful message of protecting the earth and halting the harms.
The march began at the United States Army Corps of Engineers building and then moved past the Trump International Hotel. In front of the Trump Hotel a short demonstration was held to let guests and Trump hear the voices of the people. Now completely frozen, I continued to march to the White House. Throughout the march there was a unified message aimed at President Donald Trump and his administration: Mni Wiconi, “Water is Life!” The chant has become a shorthand for tribes’ struggle to reassert tribal sovereignty and self-determination over their physical and spiritual spheres. The phrase was joined by many other expressions aimed at attracting the attention of the federal government: “We stand with Standing Rock!” – “Keep the oil in the soil, you can’t drink oil!” – “Hey, hey! Ho, ho! Donald Trump has got to go!” – And, “Shame, shame, shame!”
A rally with extraordinary speakers joined at the end of the March at a park, in front of the White House. Powerful words were voiced by Native leaders. It was a march that I will always hold close to my heart. Although I was frozen to the bone – I felt fire in the belly and ready to take on the fight for justice.
Read more here.
Categories
An Open Letter to New EPA Chief Scott Pruitt: You’re Not in Oklahoma Anymore
02/17/2017 06:02 pm ET
Ken Cook Environmental Working Group
Dear Mr. Pruitt:
On Friday, in a near-partisan vote, the Senate confirmed you as the next administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. It’s sad to say, but this is the darkest moment in the history of an agency that for 46 years has worked to ensure that Americans drink clean water, breathe healthy air and are protected from dangerous toxic chemicals.
As Oklahoma attorney general, you filed or supported more than two dozen lawsuits against the very agency you now must lead. Most notoriously, you sought to block the EPA’s efforts to combat climate change. But you also opposed initiatives to protect children from mercury poisoning, and reduce air pollution that causes asthma and thousands of premature deaths, among other measures to protect public health. In your home state, you did little or nothing to curb water pollution from toxic manure discharged by big chicken and pig farms.
In your confirmation hearing you could not name a single EPA regulation you thought was a good idea – not even removing lead from gasoline.
The day before your confirmation, an Oklahoma judge ordered the release of 3,000 emails between your office and the fossil fuel industry next week. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell decided Americans did not have the right to know what was in those emails before the confirmation vote. For now, we can only speculate about their contents, but your record shows you have collaborated with polluters with the same coziness Gen. Michael Flynn displayed as he communicated with Russia’s ambassador about election tampering.
There has never been a nominee for EPA administrator opposed so strongly by environmental and public health advocates, scientists, and hundreds of current and former EPA officials. We are determined to fight back against what we expect will be an unprecedented assault on public health and the environment. But we also have a word for you:
You’re not in Oklahoma anymore.
It is shameful that someone with your anti-environment record and philosophy has been handed the most important environmental job in the world. But you will not get a free pass to trash America’s air and water as you did in Oklahoma, when you claimed that the interests of polluters were synonymous with the interests of the people of your state.
You will not get a free pass to ignore science or muzzle scientists. You will not slash the EPA budget as you slashed environmental enforcement in Oklahoma – not without a fight.
You will not degrade or subvert the rule of environmental law that represents one of America’s distinctive contributions to the welfare of our planet just to please your polluter cronies, their friends in Congress or their cheerleader in the White House.
Why? Because the American people will rise up and fight you every step of the way.
Our nation’s leadership in environmental protection is a prime example of what has made America great again and again and again – for decades. We have no intention of standing by while you dismantle that hard-won legacy at the behest of fossil fuels or elected fools.
We aren’t going anywhere, Mr. Pruitt. And you are not in Oklahoma anymore.
Between 2013–2016, Public Herald conducted 50 file reviews at DEP‘s offices and tracked down 6,819 complaint cases files. On December 30, 2016, DEP gave Public Herald an updated spreadsheet showing that 9,442 complaints have been filed between 2004–2016 and thousands of these center around water contamination complaints. Steve Horn reported in DESMOG. Read more.
Real democracy in action. Both situations did not have the law on their side, regulations or much of anything. Yet both of those fights had real victories. There are real lessons that can be learned from these two high profile situations. Lessons that are important as we as a country enter the Trump era. Although there was science and legal work in both situations that was done to build a case to stop the madness that was not the magic answer. It was people. Hundreds of people and at time thousands of people who stood up, took risks, spoke out in a united voice to say, “NO” that made the difference.
It was also using the media and a narrative that the average American person could understand. It was value-based and widely supported. One of the differences was at Love Canal the residents had the mainstream media on their side. In Standing Rock it was the alternative media, Amy Goodman from Democracy Now, who refused to let the story go. It wasn’t until she was charged by police for breaking the law, that the story caught on with the mainstream media. There was also the difference of Love Canal families who were largely working class white people and at Standing Rock were Indigenous Peoples at the center of the struggle. That’s part of America’s racism that is real and again demonstrated at Standing Rock.
This is a story, a comparison which needs more analysis and lessons learned. Yes, a longer article needs to be written. Unfortunately I can’t do that now, but will likely in the future. My reason for raising this comparison at all, is for all of those who say under Trump we have no chance. Yes you do–yes we do– but only if we organize people, unite voices and build the political power that is needed to not only save what we’ve got, but win more. We can do it– but it takes stepping out of your place of comfort, take some risks like signing a petition that your friends might not agree with or giving something– a dollar, an hour, food, make a phone call, go to a meeting and so much more. Today is the day for you to make a change so we — all of us — can live in a free, safe, healthy and inclusive world.
Fortunately CHEJ was able to help community after community with questions and concerns about their water. Moms, dads and individuals panicked ask for help – what can we do to protect our children – ourselves?
CHEJ scientists were there to answer questions about toxicity, safe levels and health impacts from exposure. We were there to help because you were there — providing the resources through contributions large and small. Thank you for making sure we were able to respond to the many people who needed advice from a trusted person.
Here’s a few of their introductory sentences.
“There is dioxin in our drinking water.” Houston, Texas
“There’s a licorice smell when I turn on the tap water.” Charleston, West Virginia
“We have lead in the nurse’s station faucet at our elementary school.” Ithaca, New York
“EPA said don’t drink the water it has a toxic chemical in it.” Flint, Michigan
“We need protection from coal ash in our drinking water.” Uniontown, Alabama
“The water in our childcare center has flame retardant chemicals.” Portsmouth, NH
“State says don’t drink, bath or use the water at all – it contains a solvent that’s dangerous.” Corpus Christi, Texas
“The water stinks but we’re told it is fine to drink. Where can I test my water?” Portland, Oregon
Unfortunately, the issue around safe drinking water are not going away any day soon. In fact some believe the trend toward unsafe water is more likely to continue. Why? Not because there is more pollution that will contaminated the water, although there might likely be more. It’s because people are now demanding that schools, day care facilities and water suppliers provide a yearly test that includes lead, copper and other contaminates. Parents and teachers are asking that all child related facilities test yearly and share the results of the water samples with parents, staff and school boards immediately.
This testing is not routine and when it is done the results are rarely shared with the public. Therefore, places where children have been exposed for years, will surface and concerned people will be looking for trusted advice.
Thanks to your continued support CHEJ will be there to pick up the phone and provide the assistance needed. Please join us again this year so we can be there for people in crisis and provide honest answers to their questions.
Categories
Low Doses Matter
A new video is available that addresses the cumulative impact of exposure to low level mixtures of toxic chemicals on the developing brain. Dr Bruce Lanphear and colleagues from Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, British Columbia have produced an excellent 7 minute video that is sure to educate and provoke discussion.
This remarkable video, Little Things Matter, explains in easy-to-understand language why exposures to small amounts of toxic chemicals matter, how widespread exposure to brain-damaging toxins, such as lead and mercury, PCBs and flame-retardants, can have severe impacts on the developing brain of children. “There is strong evidence that learning disabilities and lower IQ scores can be attributed to extremely low levels of exposure to toxic metals like lead and mercury, persistent toxins such as polychlorinated biphenyl (PCBs), and other toxins including organophosphate (OP) pesticides and compounds used as flame-retardants. These toxins are common in our daily environments,” says Lanphear.
Lanphear who narrates the video states that “We’ve been studying the impact of toxins on children for the past 30 years and reached the inescapable conclusion: little things matter.” He goes on to say that exposure to toxic chemicals can have a life-long impact on children and that extremely low levels of toxins can impact brain development.
The video illustrates how vulnerable children are to exposures to toxic chemicals. It points out that a 5 point decrease in average IQ among U.S. children would result in an additional 3.4 million children who are considered intellectually disabled or mentally retarded. There is a corresponding decrease the number of children who are considered to be intellectually gifted.
Lanphear and his colleagues offer advice on what steps people can take to reduce their exposures to toxic chemicals including eating fresh or frozen food, avoiding pesticide use in your home and checking for lead hazards. He also suggests contacting your federal representatives and urging them to support legislation that reverses the burden of proof to require companies to prove that a chemical is not toxic before it enters the market, as is the case in the European Union. Lanphear goes to say that the ultimate solution is to reverse how we regulate chemicals. He could not be more right. We can no longer rely on the notion that only exposure to chemicals at high doses matter. This video makes it clear that small doses do matter. Be sure to check out this new video.
Categories
Remember to Get Out & Vote!
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gh some people have already completed their absentee ballots, the 2016 presidential election takes place on Tuesday, November 8th. That means we have exactly ONE WEEK to fully educate ourselves and make a decision on which candidate to vote for. (Make sure to take a look at the first link listed at the bottom of the page.)
Where do you stand when it comes to environmental issues and climate change, foreign policy, abortion, healthcare…? The list can go on, but don’t let others decide for you! If you have an opinion and don’t voice it, then you’re letting others decide which issues matter, and ultimately, who’s going to win the election.
Remember, every vote makes a difference! For decades, laws have been passed and people have continued to fight to make sure others have this opportunity. Our first African American president just served two consecutive terms in office, and this could not have been done without voters sending off their ballots.
[timeline src=”https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1XbWHnkb2s8wZvvVys8kBwq6c8sn0_Zf8s1Dwm4NV_-k/pubhtml” width=”100%” height=”650″ font=”Default” lang=”en” version=”timeline3″ ]
The actions of many have helped shape history. If you want to see change happen, the best way to see improvement is to take part in the process. Get out and vote in this election- make sure you leave your mark!
BallotPedia.org is a great resource! Use it for information on:
- each candidate & their respective platforms. https://ballotpedia.org/Presidential_candidates,_2016
- opening and closing times for polling places by state & links to search for the nearest place to cast your vote. https://ballotpedia.org/State_Poll_Opening_and_Closing_Times_(2016)
- candidate ratings. https://ballotpedia.org/2016_presidential_candidate_ratings_and_scorecards
- the general debates
- first debate – Sept. 26 https://ballotpedia.org/Presidential_debate_at_Hofstra_University_(September_26,_2016)
- second debate – October 9 https://ballotpedia.org/Presidential_debate_at_Washington_University_(October_9,_2016)
- third debate – October 19 https://ballotpedia.org/Presidential_debates_(2015-2016)#Archived_debates
You can also stream the debates on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=855Am6ovK7s&list=PL0tDb4jw6kPzQqgYz6Ylh7CO9mnCfcQ_x[/fusion_text][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]
Categories
Halloween Nightmare
By Teresa Mills
I dreamed that just as I entered a Halloween haunted house the first monster I ran into was Frackenstine. Just like the book Frankenstein written by Mary Shelley about a creature produced by an unorthodox scientific experiment, I noticed that the Frackenstine that stood before me was also made up by combining many parts. Frackenstines legs turned out to be the Ohio legislature that gave the monster his legs to make his way around Ohio, his torso was made of the Ohio oil and gas industry, his arms were the different state agencies that gave the monster the strength to strong-arm Ohio communities by not allowing citizens or local government to have any say into whether or not they wanted this massive industrial process to destroy their community. The Frackenstine monster was so big I was having a hard time seeing who or what made up the head but as I moved farther away from the monster I could see that the monsters head was Ohio’s own governor, Governor John Kasich who has become the mouthpiece and cheerleader for the industry.
Down a long dark hallway, I came to a closed door, as I opened the door I saw a room full of bubbling cauldrons. As I looked around the room, I saw thousands of Material Safety Data Sheets with all of the toxic chemicals blacked out. There was also a flashing sign that warned of radiation. While trying to read all of the Material Safety Data Sheets suddenly, I was approached by someone dressing in a hazardous materials moon suit telling me that the bubbling brew was safe and not to worry. Even though he was dressed in protective garb, he informed me that I was not allowed to know what was in the bubbling toxic brew and the door was quickly closed in my face. As the door closed, I could hear the sinister laugh of a crazy person who had spent too much time inhaling the toxic vapors from the bubbling cauldrons full of fracking fluid.
As I continued down the dark hallway, I turned a corner and was face to face with a Vampire with blood dripping from his fangs. NO, wait, it wasn’t blood dripping, I realized his fangs are drilling rigs that were dripping oil, and he is hungry for more and more. He can’t get enough; he is sinking his rigs into hundreds of thousands of acres of Mother Earth just to see if he can find more oil or gas to feed his needs. I thought if I can just hold out until dawn the sun will destroy this vampire, but I was so wrong.
As I was about to exit the haunted house I heard the screams of the banshee foretelling the death of life as we know it. No longer will we have local communities where we can cross the street without worrying about being hit by one of the thousands of trucks or being harassed by out of state workers that have no sense of pride for the community. We face industrial facilities in places where they have no business being.
But wait, I suddenly realized I was not asleep; I was not having a nightmare. What I had thought was a horrible dream was indeed a reality for many communities in Ohio and across the nation that are faced with the nightmare known as fracking.
After leaving the haunted house I went home and tried to sleep, but sleep would not come. Every time I closed my eye I could see the blacked out Material Safety Data Sheets and the flashing sign warning of radiation. Just as I was about to drop off to sleep, I would hear the screaming banshee and would be wide awake once again.
The following day I decided that I just had to go back to the haunted house to make sure I saw what I thought I had seen. As I went in, I saw the same hideous things I had seen the day before. The same bubbling cauldrons, the same flashing signs, the same vampire with oil dripping from its rigs. But wait more rooms have been added to the house. The first room I entered housed hundreds and hundreds of brain dead zombies who in real life were the poor folks who had been promised many riches, riches that never came. But now these people have lost control of their land.
The next room is full of pipes running every which way. So many pipes, where could they all go. This does not make sense to me. Why did they put all these pipes so close to each other? I hear the pipes begin to shake and rattle, I must get out of here, I run, but I can still hear what I take to be one or more pipes exploding. I get out of the room just in time. I pray other escaped as well, but I fear not.
On the door of the last room I enter, it says enter at your own risk. As soon as I entered, I understood why this haunted house is so scary. It is a room with desks but no chairs for someone to sit and look at all the documents on the tables. I see that the documents are something called regulations, but wait all of these documents are incomplete. It appears that someone has taken a dagger and cut holes in all the so call rules. On many of the pages, you can see the oily fingerprints of the industry, and as I look around the room, I become dizzy because the names of all the legislators that have abandoned the citizens of their communities’ swirl around the room. I must leave this room before I lose control.
As I exit the haunted house, I realize that it will not be easy to stop this madness, but I must try, I must do it for the future of humanity.