Senator Jon Tester questions EPA
More concerns over asbestos-contaminated mulch
by Duane Williams, KLCB-KTNY Radio
July 15, 2011
The third member of the Montana congressional delegation, U.S. Senator Jon Tester, has joined Max Baucus and Denny Rehberg with new questions for the Environmental Protection Agency following reports the EPA did not notify Libby residents sooner about concerns over asbestos-contaminated mulch.
In a letter to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, Tester demanded more answers from the agency to "ensure that the process in Libby is transparent and the community understands the science behind the decisions made about the clean up."
Tester included several questions for Jackson about what the EPA knew about the contamination and when, and challenged the EPA's claim that contaminated mulch did not present a risk to the community when tested for asbestos in 2007. What changed between the testing in 2007, when the agency determined the level of contamination did not present a risk to the community, and March 2011, when the EPA now cautioned on transporting or selling this material. "Why was this restriction not in place earlier?" Tester asked. "Now you are asking local businesses to restrict its sale and movement over new concerns from developing toxicity data and community concerns," Tester wrote. "This situation raises a number of questions about EPA's monitoring and health precautions in Libby."
"How many homes in Libby currently use this mulch?" Tester asked Jackson. Will these properties need to be re-cleaned, how many yards will you need to re-clean because of the use of this mulch, and what will be the increased cost of these additional re-cleanings," Tester wants to know.
________________________________________________
Story by Duane Williams, KLCB-KTNY Radio, www.todaysbestcountryonline.com e-mail:klcb@frontiernet.net.
|
