Manchin Pushes EPA For Help On PCB/Cancer-Ridden Town Of Minden WV (Sure, They'll Get RIGHT On That)

[hatrack]

“Since 1984, Minden has been designated as a Superfund site by the EPA because it was contaminated with PCBs by an industrial facility," Manchin said Monday. "While the EPA continues to take action to assist the residents of Minden, I am gravely concerned about the reports stating that cancer rates are significantly higher in Minden than the rest of Fayette County.

"However, the EPA and the West Virginia Bureau of Public Health have not been able to establish that PCB exposure from the Superfund site is responsible for these high cancer rates or for a cancer cluster in this small, rural Appalachia town despite the extraordinary circumstances." Months after officials with the state Cancer Registry said statistics don't support a cancer cluster in Minden and after an official with the HHS Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) said that there is not enough evidence to support a link between most human cancers and PCB exposure, Manchin said additional research is necessary.

EDIT

Minden residents and former residents have said they suffer an extremely high number of cancers and other illnesses. The area hosted Shaffer's Equipment Co., where workers illegally disposed of PCB in the 1970s and 1980s. EPA and ATSDR have a lengthy history in Minden, including a failed cleanup effort. EPA is currently investigating whether Shaffer's should be added to the National Priorities List (NPL) of Superfund sites, making Minden residents eligible for relocation services. Many residents have requested relocation, saying they live in fear for their lives and health.

The late physician Dr. Hassan Amjad criticized EPA, ATSDR and state health officials for what he characterized as gross incompetence and negligence in investigating the impact of PCB exposure on the health of Minden residents. Amjad, who died in August, said PCB exposure had caused cancer in a number of residents. He had began a study to prove the link and told The Register-Herald that many of the Shaffer's workers he had located had died of cancer or been treated for it.

EDIT

http://www.register-herald.com/news/manchin-urges-hhs-epa-to-offer-resources/article_09fec6ea-6d98-5c0f-8209-7f48fdacdd21.html

[abbeyco]

1. Who does he think he is, hugh hewitt?

Manchin is barking up a dead tree.