Cancer patients’ urine suspected in Wissahickon iodine-131 levels
http://articles.philly.com/2011-07-21/news/29798099_1_drinking-water-radioactive-iodine-water-department
July 21, 2011|By Sandy Bauers, Inquirer Staff Writer
Three weeks after an earthquake and tsunami severely damaged Japan’s Fukushima nuclear power plant, Lisa Daniels opened an e-mail with test results of river water samples from Southeastern Pennsylvania.
It was just after lunch April 1. Nationwide, officials were testing rain, rivers, milk, and other substances to learn if radioactivity from the stricken plant was present.
They’d seen it after Chernobyl, and now it was showing up nationwide, including in rainwater from a deluge in central Pennsylvania.
Daniels, a water division chief at the state Department of Environmental Protection, wasn’t worried. Enough time had passed that the radiation would have decayed or been carried away.
But when she looked at the sample from the Wissahickon Creek near Green Lane, just upstream from a city drinking water intake, she froze.
None of the other river samples in the batch showed iodine-131. But this one did.
By 6 p.m. that day, that drinking water intake would be getting extra treatment, and officials would be embarking on a detective mission that has generated interest nationwide.
Since then, officials have found more iodine-131 in the Wissahickon, and at several sewage treatment plants along the creek.
They’ve also realized that worrisome levels of iodine-131 had been detected long before the Fukushima accident in several Philadelphia drinking water samples taken as part of an obscure monitoring program run by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Within that limited data set of 59 locations across the country, Philadelphia’s levels were the highest in the previous decade, the Water Department discovered.
So Fukushima couldn’t be the cause after all.
The source they now suspect was a surprise. Iodine-131 is used to treat thyroid cancer, and they suspect it’s coming from patients excreting excess radioactivity in their urine, which then winds up in rivers, and ultimately in Philadelphia’s drinking water intakes.
- Iodine-131 is not good for you. When radioactive iodine gets into the body, it concentrates in the thyroid gland. Low doses can impair the gland’s activity, according to the EPA. Long-term exposure to high amounts can cause cancer.
Officials from the Water Department, the EPA, and the DEP emphasize that the levels detected are tiny and don’t constitute a public health threat. Philadelphia’s drinking water meets standards for radioactivity and remains safe, they say. Read more
40 Tamaqua property owners given 60 days to connect to sewer system
http://www.tnonline.com/2011/jul/19/expensive-proposition
By ANDY LEIBENGUTH aleibenguth@tnonline.com
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Exposed PVC pipe lies behind the Tamaqua Public Library leading into the Wabash Creek.
Forty Tamaqua property owners are being given 60-day notices to stop discharging wastewater directly to the Wabash Creek culvert and to connect to Tamaqua’s municipal sewer system. The work is to be done at property owners’ expense.
The state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) issued an order to the borough last December to investigate and remove all illegal sewage discharges to the creek, which runs under downtown Tamaqua from South Lehigh Street to Rowe Street and then to South Railroad Street.
The deadline to comply with this order is Aug. 31.
The borough hired Alfred Benesch Company and A One Service, Shenandoah, to investigate both the Wabash Creek and Panther Creek, which runs through eastern portions of Tamaqua, for the sources of any possible illegal sewage discharge, aka wildcats. Inspections of the creeks were performed between March 1 and March 31. Initially, 56 connections were found to have active sanitary connections to the Wabash Creek culvert, with dry residue indicating recent sanitary connections.
Investigators used special equipment and cameras. The notice, given to affected property owners about a month ago, states, “In accordance with the DEP order and Borough Ordinance No. 304, you are hereby notified to stop discharging sewage to the Wabash Creek and connect your property to the municipal sewer system within 60 days of your receipt of this notice.”
Receiving the notice were homes and business owners on South Lehigh Street, West Broad Street, Spruce Street, Rowe Street and South Railroad Street. The notice also states that if a property owner fails to correct the illegal sewer discharge within 60 days of receiving the notice, the matter will be referred to the code enforcement officer and borough solicitor for legal action.
Some property owners are upset with the short notice and unexpected financial burden this has placed on them. Ann Brose, 249 West Broad St., said that it will cost approximately $7,000 to connect to the sewer system.
“I have to pay to dig into the second lane of SR209 to hook up to the sewer. I never knew my sewage wasn’t connected to the borough’s system,” adding, “I want to do what’s right, but not 30 years after I purchased my house.”
Brose, who pointed out that she doesn’t qualify for low interest loans, added, “I’ve paid the borough $9,200 over 30 years for sewer and now I have to pay to connect to a sewer system I thought I was already connected to.” Brose and other affected property owners are expected to attend tonight’s borough council meeting to bring up their concerns.
A summary of required steps was also given with the notice. The summary lists detailed instructions concerning steps required to connect to the borough’s sanitary sewer system, as well as a Building Sewer Permit Application. Current sewer customers do not have to pay the borough’s $2,000 first-time sewer connection charge.
Low and moderate income property owners may qualify for financial assistance for construction of their sewer connection. Kevin Steigerwalt, Tamaqua borough manager, stated that property owners can save on construction expenses by consolidating contract work with other affected property owners.
Assistance may be available through the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Schuylkill Community Action and the Tamaqua Borough’s Community Development Department. Affected residents are encouraged to contact Steigerwalt or Rob Jones, Tamaqua public works director, at (570) 668-3444 or (570) 668-0300 with any questions or concerns.
Polycythemia Vera and Social Security Disability
http://www.socialsecurity-disability.org/disabling-conditions/polycythemia-vera-and-social-security-disability
Polycythemia Vera (with erythrocytosis, splenomegaly, and leukocytosis or thrombocytosis) – Condition and Symptoms
Polycythemia vera is a type of blood disorder which causes the bone marrow to overproduce red blood cells. The condition sometimes also causes the body to produce too many platelets and white blood cells. These disorders cause the blood to thicken, which leads to a number of adverse conditions.
Most victims of polycythemia vera are sixty years old and older, though the condition can affect people at any age. Some connection to toxic chemicals is suspected but not adequately proven.
Many people with polycythemia vera fail to show any symptoms, and may never discover they have the condition unless it shows on blood testing. Many of the common symptoms are mild enough that they go unnoticed as well. Common symptoms include:
• Itchiness after being exposed to warm water.
• Gouty arthritis.
• Peptic ulcers.
• Sudden burning and pain in feet and hands.
• Bluish or reddish skin coloration.
• Headaches.
• Trouble concentrating.
• Fatigue.
Because polycythemia causes the blood to thicken, it can cause blood clots. Generally, these clots respond well to aspirin if they are noticed. Unfortunately, many people with polycythemia don’t notice any symptoms until they have a stroke, heart attack, or other serious condition caused by the blood clotting.
The blood thickening caused by polycythemia causes the blood flow to slow down. In some cases, the blood takes twice as long to circulate through the body than it would in a healthy body. People with polycythemia vera are at significant risk for such serious and debilitating health conditions as:
• Myelofibrosis
• Budd-Chiari syndrome
• Deep venous thrombosis
• Heart attack
• Stroke
• Pulmonary embolism
There is no cure known for polycythemia vera and it is a chronic (long term, continual) condition by definition. To date, all treatments for the condition are focused on treating the symptoms and lessening the complications caused by the thickening of the blood. Common treatments include:
• Aspirin therapy. Low dose aspirin has been shown to reduce complications.
• Bloodletting. Removing some of the body’s blood
• Chemotherapy.
• Interferon injections.
• Bone marrow transplant.
Other treatments are being tested, and some show some promise of better addressing the symptoms of polycythemia vera.
Filing for Social Security Disability with a Polycythemia Vera (with erythrocytosis, splenomegaly, and leukocytosis or thrombocytosis) Diagnosis
General information about filing for Social Security disability benefits with blood disorders can be found in Section 7.00 of the Social Security Administration’s Listing of Impairments Manual, more commonly called the Blue Book. Polycythemia Vera (with erythrocytosis, splenomegaly, and leukocytosis or thrombocytosis) is covered in Section 7.09.
Generally speaking, polycythemia vera cases are evaluated based on the body systems which are affected. This is commonly in the sections regarding heart disorders (Section 4.00), though adjudicators may take into account any of several other possible organs and body systems affected.
When applying for Social Security disability benefits, you will want to have as much corroborating medical documentation as possible. You will need the results of all lab tests which were used to confirm that you have polycythemia vera. You will also want to make sure that all blood transfusions are thoroughly documented and that you keep track of how many blood transfusions you have had. Any medical tests or documentation regarding the various organs which are affected by your disabling condition should also be included in your claim.
Your Polycythemia Vera (with erythrocytosis, splenomegaly, and leukocytosis or thrombocytosis) Disability Case
Because they are adjudicated on the standards pertaining to the body organs and systems which are affected by the thickening of your blood rather than on the blood itself, many claims take a number of disabling conditions into account. Often, even if you don’t meet any one listing for disability, the combination of effects on several body systems is enough for you to qualify for disability benefits.
Claiming Social Security disability benefits can be a confusing process. The SSA holds a very narrow definition of what counts as disability. In order to qualify for benefits, you need to show that the sum of your conditions is serious enough that you can’t perform any kind of meaningful work.
One thing many polycythemia vera claimants have going for them is their age. The older you are, the less the SSA expects you to be able to adjust to new and different types of employment opportunities. Older claimants still have to prove that they are incapable of performing work for which they could reasonably be trained, of course, but the SSA sets the bar lower in terms of how much re-training they expect claimants to be able to go through.
Most Social Security disability claimants benefit from the help of a Social Security disability lawyer. Your disability attorney can make all the difference between a denial and an approval. Best of all, it’s free to have an experienced Social Security lawyer evaluate your disability claim and discuss it with you.
Your Private Drinking Water and the Natural Gas Industry (Part Two)
http://www.northcentralpa.com/news/2011-07-17_your-private-drinking-water-and-natural-gas-industry-part-two
July 17, 2011
By Penn State Cooperative Extension in Gas Industry
Part two of an article on considerations for private drinking water wells and natural gas drilling
At Penn State Extension’s programs that focus on protection and testing of private water supplies near natural gas drilling, Bryan Swistock, water resource extension specialist provides valuable information and practical advice for people interested in protecting their private drinking water supplies. Knowing the quality of your home well or spring water before natural gas drilling is critical to knowing if that quality changes or is impacted by natural gas drilling (or any other factors, for that matter). Swistock says if you want to legally document your water quality prior to any drilling occurring, you need to use a third-party, state-certified test lab. Importantly, he says that many drilling companies conduct what is called “pre-drilling survey” water testing.
“This is a survey of drinking water supplies in the vicinity of the natural gas drill site. The survey is not actually performed by the drilling company, but by a third-party, accredited testing firm,” says Swistock. “If you are asked to participate in such a survey, it’s in your best interest to do so, since the drilling company will pay for the water test.”
Swistock says people always have the option of paying for their own water testing. He says there are several factors to consider.
As far as “what” to test for when testing your drinking water supply, Swistock recommends a tiered approach. “There’s no perfect answer, but I suggest setting some priorities – ask yourself what is most critical to test for and start there. Prioritize and determine what you can afford to test for. If you are financially able to do more, there are some additional parameters you could consider.”
Once you’ve decided to have your drinking water tested, and have determined what to test for, understanding the results can be complex. Swistock says the report you will receive from the certified testing lab is considered a legal document, and it can be difficult to understand what the numbers mean.
“Many Penn State Cooperative Extension offices have both the people resources and informational materials to help people better understand their water test results. In fact, there’s an on-line form to help people interpret test results. You can also ask the lab that conducted the test if they will explain the results to you,” says Swistock.
Swistock also provided a number of informational web sites. He said the eNotice web site atwww.dep.state.pa.us/enotice/ allows people to sign up to receive e-mail notices when drilling is going to occur in a specific municipality or county.
Swistock says there are a number of pro-active measures people can take to protect their drinking water. For people leasing land to drillers, he recommended several stipulations that should be included as part of the lease. He also urged people to report problems and concerns to the PA Department of Environmental Protection, which has regulatory oversight for the natural gas activities in the region.
In addition, Swistock says researchers at Penn State University, through the Center for Rural Pennsylvania, have begun natural gas-related research to monitor drinking water wells and gather data.
Swistock finishes his presentations by noting the vast amount of information that is available from the Extension Office. He encouraged people to visit their web site at http://extension.psu.edu/naturalgas
Excerpted from the Clinton County Natural Gas Task Force (www.clintoncountypa.com ) weekly columns.
Shale commission faces votes on future of drilling
http://citizensvoice.com/news/shale-commission-faces-votes-on-future-of-drilling-1.1173999#axzz1S4wWwA8r
By Robert Swift (Harrisburg Bureau Chief)
Published: July 12, 2011
HARRISBURG – The governor’s Marcellus Shale Advisory Commission starts its endgame Friday with members voting in public on what recommendations to put in a comprehensive report guiding the future of natural gas development in Pennsylvania.
This will be the last working meeting of the commission before the July 22 deadline to hand a report to Gov. Tom Corbett.
Heading the agenda will be a series of votes on proposals offered by four working groups established when the commission began its work in March.
The proposals that garner a majority vote from the members will be included in the report, said Chad Saylor, spokesman for Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley, the commission chairman. The bulk of the proposals deal with public health and safety and environmental protection issues, he added.
The commission members are reviewing the working group proposals, therefore allowing for last-minute discussions before the meeting agenda is set, Saylor said.
One of the most closely watched issues facing the commission is levying an impact fee on drillers to offset the cost of drilling operations for municipalities, and additionally address environmental issues related to drilling.
Saylor was unable to say whether an impact fee recommendation will be voted on Friday, but he said a lot of attention was focused on impact fees in the working group that dealt with local impact and emergency preparedness issues relating to drilling.
House and Senate Republican leaders put off plans to vote on impact fee legislation at the close of the spring legislative session after Corbett said he would veto any bill with those provisions that reached his desk in advance of the commission’s report. Corbett has suggested he wants to see what the commission recommends concerning an impact fee, but he doesn’t think impact fee revenue should go to the all-purpose state General Fund.
Cawley has repeatedly said the issue of a state severance tax on natural gas production is off the commission’s agenda given Corbett’s strong opposition to that idea.
Likely to be in the mix for consideration are recommendations offered by the Department of Environmental Protection and Health Department.
DEP has outlined a major overhaul of the state Oil and Gas Act with stronger buffer zones to keep natural gas drilling away from water sources, tougher penalties and bond requirements and a “cradle-to-grave” manifest system to track wastewater from hydraulic fracturing. For example, DEP recommends restricting well drilling within 1,000 feet of a public water supply and doubling the distance from 250 feet to 500 feet to separate a gas well from a private well.
The Health Department wants to create a registry to monitor and study data on the health conditions of individuals who live near drilling sites.
“In order to refute or verify claims that public health is being impacted by drilling in the Marcellus Shale, there must be a comprehensive and scientific approach to evaluating over time health conditions of individuals who live in close proximity to a drilling site or are occupationally exposed,” said Health Secretary Eli Avila in a presentation to the commission last month.
Zoning is another issue on the commission’s radar screen.
In a May presentation, the industry-oriented Marcellus Shale Coalition called attention to a “patchwork” of ordinances dealing with such subjects as road use and well site setbacks. The Coalition called for consistency in zoning powers and not singling out activities by the gas industry.
rswift@timesshamrock.com
As Focus On Fracking Sharpens, Fuel Worries Grow
http://www.npr.org/2011/07/13/137789869/as-focus-on-fracking-sharpens-fuel-worries-grow
by Jeff Brady
July 13, 2011
A controversial technique for producing oil and natural gas called hydraulic fracturing — or fracking — has led to drilling booms from Texas to Pennsylvania in recent years. But there are concerns that it may be polluting drinking water.
As policymakers in Washington discuss how to make fracking safer, there is concern that fracking itself has become a distraction.
In the U.S., pretty much all of the oil and gas that was easy to get to is gone. Fracking makes it possible to extract petroleum from hard-to-reach places — say, a mile underground in dense layers of shale.
Drillers pump truckloads of water mixed with sand and chemicals into the rock. Under intense pressure, that creates tiny fractures that allow oil and gas trapped there to escape.
“Hydraulic fracturing is truly the rocket science of what’s happening in energy,” says Tisha Conoly Schuller, president and CEO of the Colorado Oil and Gas Association.
Schuller has seen fracking bring new life to old oil and natural gas fields, boosting domestic production in the U.S. She says that’s a good thing — especially for natural gas, because it burns cleaner.
In Pennsylvania the number of natural gas wells drilled into the Marcellus Shale has increased from 34 in 2007 to 1,446 last year.
But drive around the region and you’ll see that not everyone shares the industry’s appreciation of fracking. There are lawn signs opposing gas drilling, and in Sullivan County, N.Y., a handmade sign reads, “Thou shalt not frack with our water. Amen.”
Many fracking opponents were inspired by the movie Gasland. In one compelling scene, Weld County, Colo., resident Mike Markham shows how he can light his tap water on fire.
Throughout the movie, filmmaker and activist Josh Fox gives fracking special attention — calling into question how safe it is and whether it’s adequately regulated.
Says Schuller: “I think hydraulic fracturing has become a synonym for oil and gas development or anything one doesn’t like about oil and gas development.”
The industry worries that the focus on fracking could prompt policymakers to restrict the practice and bring a halt to the gas booms under way. That’s already happening around the country in places such as Buffalo, N.Y., Pittsburgh and most recently Morgantown, W.Va. New York is deciding on new rules to govern fracking there.
It’s not just the industry concerned about the focus on fracking. Some environmentalists say it may be taking attention away from the other problems that go along with drilling, like air pollution and toxic spills.
“I’m hoping that it’s really just a starting point — a jumping-off point — to look at all these other issues,” says Amy Mall, senior policy analyst with the Natural Resources Defense Council.
And Mall hopes the focus on fracking will lead to more research about how oil and gas development affects people.
“There’s very little science about any of these impacts — not just the fracking, but the air quality, the waste-management issues,” Mall says. “But it does seem the immediate priority of the agencies is to focus on fracking.”
Certainly that’s what the Energy Department’s Natural Gas Subcommittee will discuss as it meets in Washington, D.C., this week. Eventually the group’s recommendations will be sent to the federal agencies that have a role in regulating fracking.
July 21 webinar to focus on natural gas pipelines
http://live.psu.edu/story/54077#nw69
Friday, July 8, 2011
The type of pipeline -- whether it’s a gathering line or a much larger interstate transmission line -- determines how much surface disturbance takes place.
University Park, Pa. — A Web-based seminar to be presented by Penn State Extension July 21 will explore pipeline development and regulation in regions of the state being intensely affected by drilling for natural gas in the Marcellus Shale formation.
Speaking in the webinar will be Wayne County extension educator Dave Messersmith, based in Honesdale, who is part of Penn State’s Marcellus Education Team and coordinates the university’s annual Marcellus Summit, and Paul Metro, chief of the Gas Safety Division of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission.
They will discuss pipeline construction, associated surface infrastructure (valves, compressor stations, etc.), pipeline impacts on the landscape and in communities, ways to reduce pipeline impacts, negotiating terms for a pipeline right-of-way and regulatory oversight of gas pipelines in Pennsylvania.
There have been more than 2,300 wells drilled into the deep Marcellus layer in Pennsylvania in the last few years, primarily in the southwest, northeast and northcentral regions. Many pipelines have been and are being built to get the large volume of gas they produce to consumers.
A pipeline right-of-way is a strip of land over and around natural gas pipelines where some of the property owner’s legal rights have been granted to a pipeline operator, Messersmith said. A right-of-way agreement between the pipeline company and the property owner is also called an easement, which is usually filed in the county Register and Recorders Office with property deeds.
“Many people are concerned about eminent domain as it relates to pipelines,” he said. “In reality the type of pipeline — whether it’s a gathering line or an interstate transmission line — will determine who provides regulatory oversight and whether eminent domain is possible.”
Penn State Extension offers a publication called “Negotiating Pipeline Rights-of-Way in Pennsylvania,” which Messersmith authored, for people interested in knowing more about pipeline issues. Part of the Marcellus Fact Sheet Series, single copies can be obtained free of charge by Pennsylvania residents through county Penn State Extension offices, or by contacting the College of Agricultural Sciences Publications Distribution Center at 814-865-6713 or AgPubsDist@psu.edu. The publication also is available in digital format at http://pubs.cas.psu.edu/FreePubs/PDFs/ua465.pdf online.
The July 21 webinar is part of a series of online workshops addressing opportunities and challenges related to the state’s Marcellus Shale gas boom. Information about how to register for the webinar is available on the webinar page of Penn State Extension’s natural-gas website at http://extension.psu.edu/naturalgas/webinars online.
Future webinars will focus on a research update on the effects of shale drilling on wildlife habitat and current legal issues in shale-gas development.
Previous webinars, publications and information on topics such as air pollution from gas development, the gas boom’s effect on landfills, water use and quality, zoning, gas-leasing considerations for landowners, and implications for local communities also are available on the Penn State Extension natural-gas website, at http://extension.psu.edu/naturalgas online.
For more information, contact John Turack, extension educator in Westmoreland County, at 724-837-1402 or jdt15@psu.edu.
New study demonstrates toxic impacts of hydrofracking fluid on forest life
http://coloradoindependent.com/93580/new-study-demonstrates-toxic-impacts-of-hydrofracking-fluid-on-forest-life
By David O. Williams
07.11.11
Hydraulic fracturing itself may not directly contaminate groundwater supplies, as the oil and gas industry has steadfastly maintained for years, but the wastewater associated with the controversial process can be very hazardous to forest life, at least according to a new study produced by a U.S. Forest Service researcher.
Conducted by researcher Mary Beth Adams and published in the Journal of Environmental Quality, the study is entitled “Land Application of Hydrofracturing Fluids Damages a Deciduous Forest Stand in West Virginia.”
Adams applied more than 75,000 gallons of fracking fluid to a quarter-acre plot of land in the Fernow Experimental Forest in West Virginia. All of the groundcover on the plot died almost right away, and within two years 56 percent of the approximately 150 trees in the area had died.
“The explosion of shale gas drilling in the East has the potential to turn large stretches of public lands into lifeless moonscapes,” said Jeff Ruch, executive director of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, which reported on Adams’ study last week.
Ruch noted that land disposal of fracking fluids is a common practice and that Adams’ study was conducted with a state permit. “This study suggests that these fluids should be treated as toxic waste,” Ruch added.
In Colorado, U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette for several years has been pushing different versions of the Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals (FRAC) Act, which in its latest incarnation would require the national disclosure of chemicals used in the process.
The oil and gas industry maintains it must keep its formulas secret for proprietary reasons, and the process is exempt from federal regulation by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under the Safe Drinking Water Act.
But state oil and gas regulators in Colorado, as well as state industry representatives, argue that chemical disclosure will not prevent spills from holding pits and pipelines and that those areas of concern should be the real focus of regulatory efforts.
Fracking typically injects water, sand and chemicals thousands of feet below the surface to crack open tight rock and sand formations in order to free up more natural gas. Those results occur far below drinking water wells and groundwater supplies. There is still debate, even among scientists, over whether fracturing itself can cause contamination of groundwater.
Doubt on cancer cluster legislation
http://www.mcall.com/news/nationworld/pennsylvania/mc-pa-cancer-cluster-legislation-20110710,0,6315339.story
By Andrew McGill, Of The Morning Call
9:57 p.m. EDT, July 10, 2011
Some fear measure, which would create ‘first-responder’ task force, may not be genuine effort to protect public health in Carbon, Schuylkill, Luzerne counties.
Merle Wertman has been kept waiting a long time.
Eight years ago, doctors diagnosed him with polycythemia vera, a rare cancer that thickens the blood to a sludge only bloodletting can relieve. His neighbors in Tamaqua had just started to speak up, to declare something was wrong in the coal region, something that made people sick.
Eight years, millions of dollars in grants and countless studies later, investigators still don’t know why Wertman fell ill or why so many of his neighbors in this rural region share the same disease.
So every time the 66-year-old sits at a public meeting, checks his hemoglobin count or makes the twice-monthly trip to Coaldale for treatment, he can’t help but wonder: Are we being ignored?
“This is going on for eight years, and we’re getting no headway with it,” he said. “There’s no answer.”
Concerned by reports of cancer clusters in his own district near Wilkes-Barre, state Sen. John Yudichak, D-Luzerne, proposed a bill last week for a statewide cancer cluster task force that would investigate cases like the coal region’s.
Pitched as a union between the Department of Health and the Department of Environmental Protection, the team would be the state’s first responders, evaluating the situation and calling in the feds if necessary.
His measure drew applause from residents in Pittston, who say runoff from a local mine has sickened dozens. But those who have been here before — namely weary members of the coal region’s Community Action Committee, the guardians of the area’s only federally-confirmed cancer cluster — have learned to be skeptical.
“My fear is that this is not a genuine effort to protect public health,” said Henry Cole, an environmental scientist from Upper Marlboro, Md. and the committee’s hired expert. “My fear is that it will be used to funnel public discontent into a system that can be controlled without any real protection.”
Yudichak’s bill would require the Department of Health to develop guidelines for investigating cancer clusters. It would bring together a team of experts in epidemiology, toxicology, pollution control and other specialties to look into complaints and write a report.
Anyone could submit a petition to call in the response team. The Department of Health would consider the site’s local pollution sources, significant health threats or the lack of good data.
“Any way that you can make the bureaucracy of state or federal government work more efficiently is a good thing,” Yudichak said. “Particularly when you’re talking about an emotional issue like this.”
The senator wrote the bill amid complaints from residents in Pittston, who said they had to go to local television stations before anyone would look into the high rate of cancer in some neighborhoods. The Environmental Protection Agency hasn’t found evidence of a cluster and said it won’t investigate further, residents say.
He’s lauded by his Luzerne County supporters, who say the bill would set into statute a clear path to addressing their concerns.
The subjects of the coal region’s cancer cluster study aren’t so sure. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been investigating the cluster, which spans Carbon, Schuylkill and Luzerne counties, for nearly five years, making those who live in the area all too aware of the government’s limitations.
Joe Murphy, president of the Community Action Committee remembers 2004, when representatives from the Department of Health told him a cancer problem “didn’t exist.” DEP is hardly more popular. At a meeting in Tamaqua in June, residents heaved a collective sigh of exasperation when a DEP spokesman said tests to determine a cause haven’t found anything conclusive.
Neither state agency has the experts necessary to effectively investigate cancer clusters, Murphy said. For example, he said, much of the groundwork in the Tamaqua investigation has been outsourced to universities and professional contractors.
It’s also unclear how Yudichak’s team would be financed. The current bill doesn’t appropriate funds, and the senator admits both departments may have to use existing equipment and personnel.
That’s what Cole, a veteran and skeptic of government investigations , calls a recipe for neglect. He’s doubtful Gov. Tom Corbett’s administration would push the envelope on environmental issues, particularly when industry could stand to lose.
“They function in accordance with the policy of the executive branch of government, which is to promote energy development — with environmental protection taking the back seat in the bus,” he said. “This bill would do little to change that.”
Despite his distrust, Wertman is willing to give Yudichak’s bill a chance. Anything is better than being ignored, the polycythemia vera patient said. And hope does spring eternal.
“The more people you get involved, the better,” he said. “I’m not in love with DEP, don’t get me wrong, but maybe there’d be someone that could turn things around.”
andrew.mcgill@mcall.com
610-820-6533
Water Holds Pleasures, and Menaces That Lurk
By JANE E. BRODY
Published: July 11, 2011
For me, swimming is also a meditation exercise; with nothing but the water to distract me, I get some of my best ideas while swimming laps. Dr. Oliver Sacks, the neurologist and best-selling author, wrote in an autobiographical essay called “Water Babies” that the mind-altering properties of swimming can inspire as nothing else can.
But whether you swim in a river, lake, ocean or pool, the last thing you want afterward is what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention calls a “recreational water illness,” an infection or irritation caused by germs or chemicals contaminating the water.
These unseen pollutants can cause ailments of the ears, eyes, skin, nervous system, gastrointestinal and respiratory tracts, and any cut or scratch you may have. Five years ago, the centers examined 78 waterborne disease outbreaks in 31 states associated with recreational sports, a “substantial increase” in the number of reports from previous years. The outbreaks involved 4,412 cases of illness, 116 hospitalizations and five deaths.
And while you might expect otherwise, fully 94 percent of the cases resulted from swimming in treated water — pools and the like that were supposed to be sanitized. The usual culprit was a bacterium called Cryptosporidium, which is resistant to chlorine.
Fortunately, there are measures every swimmer can take to keep water play safe.
The most common problem is diarrhea from swallowing water contaminated with germ-laden feces. Should one swimmer have diarrhea, the millions of germs in that person’s stool “can easily contaminate the water in a large pool or water park,” the C.D.C. reports.
Natural waters can become contaminated with fecal and other germs by sewage overflow, storm water runoff, boating wastes and septic systems that malfunction. It is a myth that seawater quickly kills pathogens; coastal waters in particular are rich in nutrients that enable bacteria to survive despite the salt.
Viruses can be even more of a problem, because they live longer than bacteria in saltwater. In one study of beaches in Texas, intestinal viruses were found in more than 40 percent of waters listed as safe for recreational swimming based on bacterial standards.
Protection starts by following usual health department rules to shower before entering a pool — not just a superficial rinse but a full-body soak with special attention to germ-laden body parts. Respect fellow swimmers by staying out of the water if you have a diarrheal illness. Keep ill babies away, too — swim diapers are no guarantee that they won’t sicken others.
Be sure pool water is tested regularly for proper chemical balance: twice a day in public facilities and two or more times a week in private ones. Concerned swimmers can invest in chlorine test strips (available at pool supply and home improvement stores) to check the level of disinfectant.
Inflatable and hard plastic kiddie pools are often breeding grounds for infectious organisms. Most are filled with tap water without added disinfectants. The C.D.C. recommends that children be given “a cleansing soap shower or bath” before they use a kiddie pool, which should be emptied and scrubbed clean after each use.
Finally, stay out of water that has been closed by pool or health officials, whose job it is to make sure that water is safe for swimming.
But even a well-maintained swim site can result in inflammation of the ears and eyes. So-called swimmer’s ear (acute otitis externa) results in pain, tenderness, redness and swelling of the external ear canal, usually caused by a bacterial infection in the outer ear canal.
Residual moisture is the primary culprit, and the best preventive is to keep the ear canals dry with earplugs or a tight-fitting cap. After swimming, tilt your ear first to one side then the other and shake out any water that got in. Then dry your ears thoroughly with a towel (or hair dryer set on low) and alcohol-based ear drops.
Eyes are even easier to protect. I use goggles wherever I swim, both to protect my eyes and help me see. Wear goggles that fit snugly and are your own. Borrowed goggles could be contaminated with germs that cause conjunctivitis (better known as pinkeye).
Without goggles, the chemicals used to disinfect pools can irritate your eyes, especially when combined with human urea or sunlight. If your eyes are immersed in pool water, one competitive swimmer suggests neutralizing the chlorine with a few drops of milk. The salt in ocean water can also be irritating.
In addition to polluting microbes, ocean waters sometimes have free-swimming organisms that cause swimmer’s itch, as well as the stinging cells of jellyfish.
Swimmer’s itch, or cercarial dermatitis, is a rash caused by an allergic reaction to microscopic parasites of birds and mammals that are released into both fresh water and saltwater by snails, their intermediate hosts.
Avoid swimming in areas where snails are common or where signs have been posted warning of this problem or the presence of jellyfish. To counter the effects of swimmer’s itch, use a corticosteroid or anti-itch cream, and bathe in Epsom salts or baking soda.
If stung by jellyfish, try dabbing the skin with vinegar to neutralize the toxin and relieve the pain. People with a bee sting allergy should be especially careful to stay out of waters containing jellyfish. If you are allergic to one, you may well be allergic to the other.