EPA Meeting Stirs Powerful Emotions

A community meeting was held by the Environmental Protection Agency to collect public comments about the proposed Grasse River Superfund Site cleanup. Members of the EPA were there, including medical personnel and legal counsel. The evening was opened by David Kluesner who was a veteran of the Passaic River Cleanup project. Kluesner explained the purpose of the evening and that the period for public comments on the cleanup proposal extending through the 29th of November. There was also a meeting on Wednesday held in Massena with the same purpose of gathering comments. In all, more than 30 people had the opportunity to speak, as evidenced by the numbered cards handed out.

Also present were representatives from Alcoa, SRMT, MCA, community groups, and community members. Leading the EPA delegation was Young Chang, EPA Remedial Project Manager for the Grasse River Superfund Site.

The evening was opened by Sub-Chief Eric Thompson delivering Ohenton Karihwatekwen.

First, Kluesner gave some background as to how the Superfund was created and an explanation into the process that had taken place already. The EPA reviews all comments, and provides a written response to all comments, which is why the meeting was being recorded and transcribed. The comments will help determine the course of action taken in cleaning up the river and removing, or remediating the PCB threat present in the river.

At this point Young Chang got up and explained the history, some details about the river, the threat, historical studies and approaches taken to remediation. The remediation alternatives are on a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being no further action needed, to 10 being complete and total cleanup. The method selected for the Grasse River uses capping of 5.1 miles of affected river channel in 12 inches of sand. The most heavily impacted area, closest to Alcoa west, would be capped with armour stone to protect against scouring from ice flows and jams which force the ice down, and the turbulence created by restricted river flow which actually scours away the river bottom. There is also an area near the shoreline that will be dredged.

Following Chang’s explanations and attempts to address why total cleanup was not feasible, she yielded to public comments.

This is where things turned, and very quickly.

It was immediately evident the community overwhelmingly was not in support of the partial cleanup plan suggested by Chang. One person after another either told of the enormous health problems they or a family member now suffered. Chief Ron LaFrance Jr. told those gathered about the tremendous difficulty his sisters had in conceiving, which was echoed by other people as well. Cancer was prominent also, with Neddie Thompson explaining her health issues.

The Akwesasne Women Singers performed two songs and expressed their support for option 10, which was complete cleanup of the affected areas.

Some of the most damning comments came from Dana leigh Thompson. Thompson opened by asking who Mary Ann Olsen was, confirming whether Olsen was an epidemiologist. Olsen explained that she was a Human Health Risk Assessor for 28 years. Thompson then asked the Alcoa personnel to identify themselves. There was a general murmur of surprise from the crowd, either because no one knew they were from Alcoa, or that they were generally held responsible for the damage done to the land and to the people of Akwesasne. Thompson then indicted the EPA for failing the people of Akwesasne, and she expressed she had no faith in the agency, “for allowing the corporation to destroy and pollute our water and our land, the mind of our children, the bodies of our women and our men, and our future, that’s what you’ve done.” She pointed out how Olsen, a Human Health Risk Assessor, had not come to Akwesasne to assess the risk we face. Thompson even dressed down Young Chang for giving hand signals to Kluesner to hurry up commenters. Thompson pointed out how the EPA was so quick to give themselves a pat on the back for a job well done, while not actually doing their jobs, as in Olsen’s case.

Lead Horse spoke about how noxious the air was around the contaminants, and how it burned his eyes and throat, which he was unused to, unlike the people of Akwesasne who lived with this their entire lives.

Other people spoke of how long it’s been since they were told not to eat the fish, and likely will not be able to eat the fish in their lifetime. Josh Sergeant mentioned that the pollutants found their way into the soil. Others recalled people selling fish on St. Regis Road and how there were lines of cars to buy them. All of these are memories of a past destroyed by Alcoa.

The comments went on and the anger was obvious. The EPA has clearly let the community of Akwesasne down by failing to commit to total cleanup, forcing the responsibility on principles such as Alcoa. What we as a community need to do, any and all of us if we are able, is to comment about how unacceptable the remediation plan backed by the EPA is; it only benefits those financially responsible, and does nothing for us. Environmental Justice is nothing short of complete remediation using all options available to return the river to its once pristine state.