Originally published February 6 2006
EPA dramatically reduces its efforts to test for trade center dust
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
The Village Voice looks at the general disgust New Yorkers feel toward the Environmental Protection Agency, which has scaled down its testing for trade center dust and since taken criticism for providing false assurances of New Yorkers' safety.
Just four months ago, on the fourth anniversary of 9-11, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sent a message to New Yorkers: Trust us.
At the time, the agency was locked in a debate with dozens of people who live and work in Lower Manhattan over a proposal to test for toxic dust from the World Trade Center disaster.
It was struggling to live down the perception it had failed in its mission to protect New Yorkers (see "Dusted," September 6--13).
And so, back then, the official word was progress---how the EPA was listening to its critics, for example, and doing what it takes to make downtown safe.
On November 29, the EPA announced its final plan to test for and clean up lingering Trade Center dust---a $7 million effort limited to residences below Canal Street.
With this plan, the agency took a sudden turn, scaling back an earlier version, tossing advice from its expert panel, and nixing nearly every promise to the downtown community.
A first responder who had sifted through the rubble for days ticked off his 9-11--related illnesses and produced 12 prescription vials, pounding each on the table.
As far back as the winter of 2002, Congressman Jerrold Nadler, who represents Lower Manhattan, was documenting how the EPA had misled the public in a critical white paper.
EPA officials responded by saying they weren't responsible for indoor air quality; they later dismantled the watchdog's office.
Created under pressure from Senator Hillary Clinton, the panel has grown increasingly critical of the agency over the past 20 months.
Last week, not one panelist supported the final plan.
In June, he recounts, when officials released the comprehensive sampling plan, they warned they could only implement it by developing a so-called signature, or marker of Trade Center dust.
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