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06/29/09 EPA to restart negotiations with Dow

Negotiation Update #1: Negotiations Resume

EPA is resuming negotiations with Dow Chemical for a Superfund "administrative order on consent." On Friday, June 26, 2009, EPA notified Dow that the offer the company submitted to EPA on February 13, 2009, is sufficient to continue the negotiation process. EPA's fact sheet "Superfund Process and Negotiations at the Dow Site" provides more details about the topics that will be discussed.

EPA is tentatively scheduled to meet with MDEQ and Dow to begin discussions in mid-July. EPA will provide an update on the negotiations after this meeting. The negotiations will continue at least until August 25, 2009. EPA may extend this deadline if progress is being made during the negotiations.

* EPA's June 26, 2009, letter to Dow: http://tinyurl.com/dowletter
* EPA fact sheet "Superfund Process and Negotiations at the Dow Site": http://epa.gov/region5/sites/dowchemical/pdfs/down-negotiation-fs-200906.pdf 

Jeff Kelley Chief, Community Involvement Section Superfund Division
U.S. EPA Region 5
ph: 312-353-1159

EPA Dow Web site: www.epa.gov/region5/sites/dowchemical/

06/24/09 EPA Cleanup Status Report: West Michigan Park

About 17, 310 tons of contaminated soil has been removed from West Michigan Park and transported it to People's municipal Landfill in Birch Run Michigan for disposal. The removal was carried out by The Dow Co. with oversight by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. As of June 24, 2009, 100 percent of the park has been excavated and backfilled. As part of activities,the stream bank has been given a more gradual slope and the new bank has been stabilized using native plants. During resloping, two trees were removed at the riverbank and stone was placed at the toe of the slope to prevent erosion. Gravel access paths and pads have been placed to allow access to the riverbank for park users. Six trees were replanted throughout the park and the park has been reseeded. When vegetation is re-established the playground equipment will be re-installed and the park will be reopened to the public for use. The area in which the playground equipment will be replaced has been raised one foot from its original height. The gravel driveway and parking lot have been excavated and backfilled with certified clean fill. The parking lot driveway will be paved with asphalt. Implementation of the barrier control plans associated with the Elevated Contamination Areas 1-6 are continuing and are expected to be completed by July 1.

EPA Dow Chemical cleanup website

06/18/09 EPA to start actual Tittabawassee cleanup in 2011

In the 6/17/09 community meeting EPA officials reveal the new plan to address the Dioxin cleanup of the Tittabawasee River

Meeting Handouts:

Recap of meeting provided by the Michigan Messenger

EPA Dow Chemical cleanup website

06/07/09 Study finds possible link between dioxin and learning disability and ADH

In a study published June 6, 2009 in Environmental Health, Dioxins and related compounds are found suspect of causing neurological disruption. Epidemiological studies indicated that exposure to these compounds caused neurodevelopmental disturbances such as learning disability and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, which are thought to be closely related to dopaminergic dysfunction.

For other Dioxin related Health Issues, click here




06/07/09 EPA schedules next Dow Dioxin Meeting for June 17

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced an informational meeting on the Dow dioxin cleanup.

The meeting, scheduled for 6:30 p.m. June 17, will be held in Curtiss Hall at Saginaw Valley State University.

The EPA states they plans to take a leadership role in seeing that Dow conducts a comprehensive cleanup of harmful pollutants discharged in past years to the Saginaw Bay watershed.

The purpose of the meeting is to update residents and answer questions about new developments in the cleanup of the Tittabawassee and Saginaw rivers and Saginaw Bay.

At the meeting, the EPA also will present details of its plan, including milestones and schedules for achieving "a comprehensive and expeditious cleanup,"

More information is online at www.epa.gov/region5/sites/dowchemical

06/07/09 Richard Maltby publishes his last book in the Pollution Signature series

This volume, Implementation of the Framework Agreement, Part Two, is the latest in a series of books including the Pollution Signature, The Dioxin Story, and Revival of the Tittabawassee, The Aftermath, Restoration of a Failed Ecosystem,  The Aftermath, a supplemental report, and Implementation of the Framework Agreement

Copies are available in local libraries. 

Mr. Maltby  a retired professional urban and environmental resource planner  is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planers (AICP) and the American Planning Association.  He has 38 years of experience in Michigan, Illinois, and New York; the most recent as the Midland county planning director from 1983-1998. 

05/27/09 EPA announces new plan to deal with Dow's watershed contamination

Statement of the Lone Tree Council and the Ecology Center on today's announcement by EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson related to a plan to address the dioxin contaminated watershed in the Saginaw Bay.

Our groups are cautiously optimistic based on the commitments made in the letter released today by EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson. Our groups are particularly cheered to hear that transparency will be a pillar principle for the Agency moving forward. We are also heartened that the Administration has again committed to a timely completion of the dioxin reassessment and interim cleanup numbers for the site. We also believe the intention to create timelines and benchmarks will be critical to achieving a timely cleanup, and we look forward to participating in that process. The plan released today is an outline and we will continue to evaluate it as the details unfold. We look forward to the June 17 meeting in which more details will be made available. This will allow us to more fully evaluate the plan. While optimistic, we remain guarded given the history of this site.

We will hold the EPA's feet to the fire on the principles they articulated for the site. 1) expeditious with clear milestones and goals, 2) protective of health and the environment (for humans, wildlife and aquatic life), and 3) transparent in its process.

As we have previously communicated to EPA, we believe the following need to be the immediate priorities for the Agency. Some of these priorities have been addressed in the announcement, while others require more discussion.

The history of this site has been one of regulatory inaction, and aggressive tactics by Dow Chemical to deny and delay, seeding controversy and confusion. The company’s efforts in this regard rival the most controversial cleanups in the nation’s history. It has been eight years since the extent of the contamination has been known, and it has been more than thirty years since dioxin contamination in the watershed was documented. Although the site would outscore most sites on the National Priorities List (NPL), the site has thus far escaped NPL listing. Although the site contains some of the highest levels of dioxin ever measured, there have been only a few limited soil and sediment removals to date.

Contact:

Terry Miller
Lone Tree Council
989-686-6386
989-450-8097 cell

Michelle Hurd Riddick
Lone Tree Council
989-799-3313
989 327-0854 cell

Tracey Easthope
Ecology Center
734-761-3186

05/24/09 Dow's Perception Management Message: Dioxins ok in fish, women and children should eat.

In contrast to the common business practice of Public Relations, Dow is investing in a more insidious version termed Perception Management. The purpose of PM of is to get the other side to believe what one wishes it to believe, whatever the truth may be

Recently exposed lies in Dow's annual Securities and Exchange Commission filings illustrate their Dioxin PM project, similar to a past Dursban campaign, is in full swing.

The Michigan Messenger reports:

"Dow Chemical Co. (NYSE:DOW) — which is sponsoring a walleye tournament, “Celebrity Chowder Challenge” and fresh fish market at BayFest in Bay City over the Memorial Day weekend — says that it learned about the state’s walleye consumption advisory just last week when it was brought to its attention by Michigan Messenger.

Midland-based Dow has been party to conversations about regional environmental contamination and fish advisories since the 1970s, but a disconnect between the company and state public health officials was revealed this week when Michigan Messenger reported that the company included inaccurate — and misleading — information about the state’s fish advisory in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission."

A few comments from local citizens:

"Like many others I have attended numerous DEQ meetings where MDCH presented power points or discussed at length the fish advisories for the Tittabawassee-Saginaw Rivers and Bay. Dow had no less than 10 representatives  in attendance at these meetings including their contractors--which by the way challenged MDCH on those advisories. Perhaps, Dow is not talking with their contractors or sleeping through the meetings. "
---------
"It's not 'ignorance', it's arrogance and our well meaning public protectors are shying away from confrontation. What Dow is doing this weekend (and during the last Walleye fest) is destroying what the DEQ/EPA/MDCH have done over decades of hard work.

Dioxin is toxic to Dow's profits and our protectors scurry in the shadows as Dow's outrageous lies grow in scope and recklessness.

Is the EPA that afraid of Dow? Are the politicians that far in bed with Dow's money? Are we to be left that much worse off because no one will waste the effort to stand up to the bully? This whole thing has been such a tragedy and it only seems to be getting worse. Dow is succeeding in making everyone that can stop them look like simpletons and idiots; powerless and toothless. So much for hope for a change. So much for a change of direction. If the government had the balls to confront these outrageous lies then things would change."

Excerpts from the the 2008 Michigan Family Fish Consumption Guide:

05/18/09 Dioxin Update: May 6 DEQ Tri-Cities Community Meeting

To view past Lone Tree Council / TRW Dioxin Updates, click here

05/15/09 Saginaw River dredging contaminating Mid-Michigan's water supply?

A few snippets from the Michigan Messenger :

This satellite photo shows a plume of sediments entering the Saginaw Bay from the Saginaw River

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has started a project to remove contaminated sediments from the Saginaw River without safety measures requested by the state, a move that sparked worry because toxins such as dioxin could make their way into the water supplies for Saginaw and Bay City, which don’t test for the toxins.

Early Sunday morning, an Army Corps contractor began scooping up sediments from shallow areas in a lower Saginaw River navigational channel, sending them via pipeline to an unlined slurry pit that straddles rural Zilwaukee and Frankenlust townships. The dredging project, which will be expanded with $4 million in federal stimulus grants, is expected to remove 600,000 cubic yards of sediment from the river. Local officials say that over the next six weeks, work will focus on areas between the 6th Street turning basin in Saginaw and the mouth of the Saginaw River at Bay City.

...Although local, state and federal environmental officials agree that dredging will cause contamination to migrate downstream, DEQ officials have been unsuccessful in getting Dow Chemical to install sediment traps to limit the migration of toxins.

...“We want to minimize stirring up contamination in these sediments,” he said, but the agency has not been able to negotiate installation of containment measures.

...Dioxin and other toxins dumped into the Saginaw River watershed have been shown to end up in Lake Huron’s Saginaw Bay, where the cities of Bay City and Saginaw get their municipal drinking water.

...An EPA report from 1978 states that migration of dioxin from Dow’s Midland plant may pose a risk to anyone who gets their water downstream from the plant.

According to the report:

The evidence of [dioxin] contamination in widely dispersed fish notwithstanding, perhaps the finding of most concern is that the caged trout held six miles downstream from the Dow outfall were found to have detectable levels of [dioxin] (whole fish analysis) following a mere 30 days of exposure. This is most distressing for several reasons. Firstly, it demonstrates that [dioxin] is being transported downstream in flowing water. This point offers clear refutation of any argument that the instances of [dioxin]-contaminated fish resulted from movement of the fish downstream and not the movement of the [dioxin] itself. In addition, this raises concern of [dioxin] exposure for any persons taking their drinking water from the Tittabawassee or Saginaw Rivers or the Saginaw Bay.

...With the dredging underway, it appears that no agency has stepped forward with a plan to set up monitoring of area drinking water.

....Click this link to view the entire article.
 http://michiganmessenger.com/18976/saginaw-river-dredging-project-begins-without-safety-measures-sought-by-the-state
 

05/14/09 Dioxin Update: 30% Dow Share holders urge transparency

Midland, Michigan. Almost 30% of Dow's voting shareholders voted to urge the company to report on progress to clean up a massive contamination site at Dow's mid-Michigan global headquarters. This is the third year in a row that this resolution has received significant support from shareholders.

Shareholders were responding to a resolution forwarded by the Sisters of Mercy challenging the company's potential liabilities associated with the slow pace of cleanup. The vote follows on the heels of continued controversy on the company's progress in cleaning up the contamination downstream from their global headquarters. There has also been continued controversy surrounding the ousted EPA Regional Director and her removal from office allegedly for requiring the company to remove contaminated sediments.

The resolution, which required the company to "issue a report to shareholders...summarizing the pace and effectiveness of the environmental remediation process being undertaken by Dow in the vicinity of and downstream from its Midland headquarters," garnered unusually strong support with 28.5% of shares voted, according to the preliminary count of votes reported by the company at the meeting. Shareholder resolutions requiring reports of this nature typically garner 3-10% of voting shares. Last year's vote garnered 22% of the voting shares.

Shareholders may be concerned about potential ongoing liability from the company's handling of the more than 50-mile long contamination stretching from the company's headquarters to the Saginaw Bay of Lake Huron. Fish and wildgame in the region are contaminated and advisories were strengthened last year. Area residents have elevated levels of dioxin in their blood when compared with a control population. In a high profile move in the past two years, the company was required by the Environmental Protection Agency to remove highly contaminated "hot spots" from the river. Also in the last year, the highest level of dioxin ever measured in the country was found 25 miles from the Dow facility.

Dow's response has been to downplay the hazards of dioxin, the toxic compound which characterizes the contamination. Dow has also sought to negotiate behind closed doors, outside of public scrutiny.

"We believe this vote for the third year in a row signals an interest in a more forthright approach to protect shareholder value," said Valerie Heinonen of the Sisters of Mercy Detroit, who filed the resolution on Midland contamination. "As shareholders, we are concerned that the continued delays in Dow's remediation of dioxin exposures near their flagship Midland facilities could lead to increased long-term liabilities. Dow's reluctance to address such a publicly documented contamination problem, especially in its own backyard, raises red flags about how the company deals with environmental and human health concerns more broadly." She continued, "we are concerned that they are investing more in public relations than in efforts to provide real solutions."

"When nearly 30% of Dow's 939 million shares voted for more transparency and action on this issue, the company should take notice," said Sanford Lewis, attorney, who drafted the resolution. "The company has appeared in a series of high profile negative media stories related to the contamination. The reputational damage to the company is significant, and suggests a resolution to this issue is long overdue."

Sanford Lewis, Attorney is with the Strategic Counsel on Corporate Accountability Valerie Heinonen, O.S.U., is a consultant on corporate social responsibility for the Sisters of Mercy-Regional Community of Detroit and for the Mercy Investment Program
 

05/3/09 University of Michigan study flawed,

An article in today's Detroit News by AP Environmental writer John Flesher reveals that

This is not the first critical review of the University of Michigan study.  Back in October of 2006, ChemTelligence Inc. released an analysis of the U of M study with the following points:

The ATSDR and MDCH Health Consultation Pilot Exposure Investigation performed back in 2005 spent approximately $40,000 and used samples from 11 actual floodplain residents.  The Dow/Garabrant cost $15,000,000 study and uses 14?   Evidently the extra $14,960,000 Dow spent bought a study designed to obscure the facts.

05/3/09 Communities asks Obama to release the long delayed EPA Dioxin Reassessment

04/30/09 Dioxin Community Meeting scheduled

04/23/09 A new twist in the war on poverty

Dow sponsored walleye fest to donate contaminated fish to the poor

Comments from Science Blogs

"This Eartha Melzer story we have up at the Michigan Messenger this morning is absolutely unbelievable. Dow Chemical is located in the Saginaw/Midland area in Michigan and they have polluted the place like you wouldn't believe, especially with dioxin and PCBs. The state has warned people for years not to eat any fish caught in the rivers in the area because of the high dioxin levels, especially children and pre-menopausal women. They just shut down a major park near one of the rivers because even the dirt was so contaminated that it wasn't safe for people to be there.

So guess what they've decided to do there?

Next weekend they're going to host a walleye fishing festival in the Tittabawassee and Saginaw rivers. Because it's walleye breeding season and the fish are running.  In fact, they run right through a zone that is in the process of being listed as a Superfund site, a site where the EPA recorded the highest levels of dioxin ever measured in this country.

That's dumb enough, right? It gets worse.

The fishing festival is sponsored by Dow Chemical, the company that put the pollution there in the first place. Yes, that's even more ridiculous. But it actually gets worse. They're donating the fish from the festival to a local food bank to give to the poor. Apparently they ran out of pox-ridden blankets."

The current Tittabawassee Township stupidvisor was selling these hats a few years ago at the festival.

Excerpts from the Michigan Messenger article

"Despite advisories that warn people to avoid contact with river sediments and consuming locally caught fish, thousands are expected to participate this weekend in a Dow Chemical-sponsored walleye festival along the Tittabawassee and Saginaw rivers, where the watershed has been contaminated with harmful dioxin and other toxic substances.

And just as the Michigan Department of Community Health is warning that children and pre-menopausal women should mostly avoid eating river fish including walleye because of contamination from polychlorinated biphenyls and dioxin, organizers of the festival say they plan to donate walleye fillets to a local food bank. “Dow and MidMichigan Health [the local hospital system] have always been the biggest sponsors of the festival,” said Steve Doyle, spokesman for the Freeland Lions Club which has organized the festival for 24 years."

More information about Michigan fish advisories is available at the website for the Michigan Department of Community Health.

04/09/09 Midland Dioxin Cleanup?

In regards to the dioxin contamination in the Midland area, I thought you would be interested in the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality’s report, “Dioxin Contamination in the Midland Area” (July 2, 2004)? What health effects occur from exposure to dioxin in the city of Midland and adjacent areas?

 As reported by DEQ, higher exposures to dioxin in human populations have been linked with many adverse effects including chloracne, increased incidence of cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, birth defects, and blood disease (porphyria). Fetuses, infants, and children may be especially sensitive to dioxin exposure because of their rapid growth and development. Low-level exposures to dioxin in human populations have been linked to more subtle effects on developing fetuses including alterations in thyroid function, immune function, learning disabilities, behavior, and effects on tooth enamel.

Other effects of dioxins, including changes in liver enzymes, hormonal effects, and effects on the developing nervous system, appear to occur in many or most species, including humans. Based on available information, dioxins are believed to have the potential to cause a wide range of adverse effects in humans. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has characterized the mixture of group of dioxins to which people are usually exposed as “likely human carcinogens.” The EPA has also characterized 2,3,7,8-TCDD – the most toxic chemical in the dioxin group – as a known “human carcinogen.”

In conclusion, the Midland city residential and industrial areas and adjacent properties, school sites, Tittabawassee River sediments and floodplain soils, all exceed the 90 parts per trillion (ppt) cleanup standard, ranging from 90 ppt to 17,030 ppt.

So, why is the city of Midland withholding information on dioxin contamination? To protect property sales? Now is the time for the city officials to end its withholding of information on dioxin contamination and start cleaning up the mess.

Richard A. Maltby

Midland  

04/05/09 Obama's EPA Administrator Sussman a former Chemical Industry lobbyist

It appears President Obama's EPA Administration Policy Advisor, Robert Sussman, was recently a lobbyist for the chemical industry. Is this really the individual that should be making a recommendation as to whether Dow Chemical's dioxin contamination cleanup should be taken away from the state and "Alternative Superfunded"- A Bush era guidance that is not regulated?
 

“Sussman is "representing" Jackson on a wide range of issues within the agency. And an EPA source says Sussman has been "very active in the day-to-day business of" EPA…Despite his broad role, sources say he is unlikely to be elevated to a political role in part due to controversy over his past role as an industry lobbyist while serving at the law firm Latham & Watkins, where he represented chemical and energy industry clients.”
Inside EPA April 3, 2009   http://insideepa.com/

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