Here's the MSDS for the "freedom" that's killing Charleston, WV right now

[jmowreader]

http://www.cpchem.com/msds/100000014163_SDS_US_EN.PDF

The "signal word" is Danger (there are three, Danger, Warning and Caution. Danger is the most severe.)

Hazard statements:
H225: Highly flammable liquid and vapor
H303: May be harmful if swallowed
H304: May be fatal if swallowed and enters airways
H315: Causes skin irritation
H320: Causes eye irritation
H336: May cause drowsiness or dizziness
H361: Suspected of damaging fertility or the unborn child (the exact words in the MSDS, don't blame me)
H411: Toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects

And they dumped five thousand gallons of it into a stream.

[malaise]

1. This

And they dumped five thousand gallons of it into a stream
That must be a crime - maybe they thought freedom meant freedom to destroy anything in sight.

[Champion Jack]

2. It's not just Charleston, it's nine counties

[TheBlackAdder]

3. Faux News will have their experts to refute this. It's only 5K Gallons. Water should catch fire! nt

[jmowreader]

4. They'll probably use the "dilution" angle

"Oh, don't worry: the river it was dumped into has MILLIONS of gallons of water in it and this was only 5000 gallons. What is anyone worried about?"

Well...maybe the part about it killing ALL the fish in the river for decades to come, or the (and here's your New Word Of The Day) teratogenicity of this product...most people don't want children with three nostrils, two penises and no testicles...or the fact that the Elk drains into a larger river...

Another economic problem: there are a LOT of companies in that area that can't operate because of the polluted water. The restaurants in the area are closed, as are the hairdressers, laundromats, probably the fresh produce sellers...exactly how long is the bank going to accept these guys being closed over this spill before they come in and demand all their money back right fucking now? And if they can't operate their employees aren't drawing paychecks, and banks tend to call mortgages and auto loans when no payments are made for a couple months. West Virginia's always been poor as hell; it's about to get worse than anyone can imagine.

[TheBlackAdder]

6. You know someone will probably say it. nt

[zbdent]

5. Next time someone claims it's not harmful ...

ask them to drink from a mixture of one cup per gallon of water ...

[TheBlackAdder]

7. No One Will Drink The Contaminated Tap Water From A Fracking Site.

But, it's OK for the residents to drink the yellow sludge.

[Niceguy1]

8. wasnt it an accident?

I heard a tank failed... possibly due the cold ?

[onethatcares]

9. yes, it was an "accident"

kinda like the Exxon/Valdez and the BP gulf oil spill, or the Mayflower Arkansas pipe blowout. In most cases if it was you or me that caused an "accident", we would be sued heavily, our lives ruined and we'd never get out of debt to the person we hurt due to our "accident".

With "accidents" like this, the company shells out a bit of money, says they have done all that is possible to rectify the situation, and leaves the folks injured hanging. Kind of like Exxon did in Alaska, they litigated out until 99.9% of the people personally injured died.
No plaintiffs, no damages. Kind of like what BP is doing now to the Gulf Coast, saying sorry, we're done, the rest of these claims are false so bye=bye, sayanora. Kind of like what Exxon is doing in Mayflower Arkansas, said they have cleaned up as much as possible and the people can move back to an oil soaked lawn and subdivision. No more money for motels or other living arrangements, no buy out of damaged homes or mortgages that are on lots that can and will sicken you.

Now, imagine that happening with the Keystone Pipeline over the aquifer it traverses. (sorry I can't remember the spelling of that one)

[jmowreader]

17. "Ogalalla"

[JaneyVee]

10. Who will stop the wildlife from drinking it? Expect plenty of dead animals.

[Auntie Bush]

11. That's such a horrible thought!

Bet no one will cound them and report on their deaths. they'll just be swept under the rug/dirt!

[theHandpuppet]

12. Don't believe that 5,000 gallons figure

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/chemical-spill-into-wva-river-spurs-closures-run-on-bottled-water/2014/01/10/a6ec518a-7a0e-11e3-b1c5-739e63e9c9a7_story.html

A state Department of Environmental Protection spokesman estimated early Friday that less than 5,000 gallons of the chemical had escaped, but W. Kent Carper, president of the Kanawha County Commission , said he had “not heard any number that I have confidence in.”

“They’re clueless, or they don’t know,” a clearly irritated Carper said of the chemical company in an interview..." MORE

I've heard figures of several times that amount.

[jmowreader]

15. I've also heard 7500 gallons...right now, no one really knows how much got out

[Drew Richards]

13. Those are 50k gallon chemical tanks and youre gonna tell me only 5k leaked? Right...

[jmowreader]

16. We know it's somewhere between 5000 and 50,000 gallons

[a kennedy]

14. WHEN WILL THIS ALL END......

[Champion Jack]

18. I've heard they don't really know how to test for it,

[WhiteTara]

19. H411: Toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects

Well there goes life in that river and all its tributaries.

[jmowreader]

20. Oh, it gets better

The Elk drains into the Kanawha River just a few miles south of the chemical plant. (You can do a Google Maps search for "Freedom Industries Charleston WV" and see it.) Then follow the Kanawha south and you'll see tons of little towns...all of whom are looking at coal soap in their drinking water for the foreseeable future. Figure everyone within 40 miles downstream of Charleston to be drinking bottled water.

[theHandpuppet]

21. The Kanawha actually flows northwest...

... and into the Ohio River.

[jmowreader]

24. That explains why it gets wider the further it goes north

What you're saying is, the ecosystem is even more fucked than I thought it was, and I figured it was fucked but good.

[theHandpuppet]

25. Yep, pretty much.

The spill now has an unlimited path to eco-destruction. From the Kanawha to the Ohio to the Mississippi. The effects will lessen, of course, as the spill enters larger waterways but still, it will be poisoning flora and fauna as it goes its merry way. And unlike oil spills, no one really knows how to contain or clean this stuff up.

[WhiteTara]

22. But we love free enterprise. No regulations

and they get all the profits...we might have to fight like banshees for the taxes to be paid so we can clean up his mess.

[WhiteTara]

23. This is terrible.

This is beyond suing them and I hear OSHA never visited them. I wonder what kind of tanks they used; most likely the cheapest ones they could find.

This is a disaster beyond imagination. How are these people going to survive? It's one thing not to take a bath, another not to be able to launder clothes, but to have nothing to drink is horrifying. Disease is going to spread like wildfire because no one will be able to wash their hands.

[Kermitt Gribble]

26. Now at 7500 gallons

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024318126