Report On Contaminated Drinking Water At Camp Lejeune

[posey]

Report On Contaminated Drinking Water At Camp Lejeune

Main Category: Cancer / Oncology
Also Included In: Water - Air Quality / Agriculture; Veterans / Ex-Servicemen
Article Date: 10 Jun 2009 - 3:00 PDT

Two chemicals - trichloroethylene (TCE) and tetrachloroethylene (PCE) - found to have contaminated drinking water at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune from the 1950s to 1985 have been linked to certain diseases and disorders, including various cancers. A new report from the National Research Council, Contaminated Water Supplies at Camp Lejeune - Assessing Potential Health Effects, reviews scientific evidence about the potential adverse health effects that could occur after exposure to TCE, PCE, and other contaminants; recommends the usefulness of conducting additional studies on former residents of the base; and identifies scientific considerations that could help the U.S. Department of the Navy, under which the Marine Corps operates, set priorities on future actions. The report will be released at a 90-minute public briefing.

Details:
The briefing will run from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, June 13, at the USO of North Carolina, Jacksonville Center, 9 Tallman St., Jacksonville, N.C.

Members of the committee participating in the briefing are:
David Savitz, chair of the committee and Charles W. Bluhdorn professor, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York City

Caroline Baier-Anderson, health scientist, Environmental Defense, and assistant professor, University of Maryland, Baltimore

Prabhakar Clement, professor of environmental engineering, Auburn University, Auburn, Ala.
Source:
Jennifer Walsh
National Academy of Sciences

[Venetia]

Glad to read you are turning your attention to Water, Katrinka-

Posey,

Not just Camp Lejeune with the TCE/PCE pollution issues:

Lockheed: U.S. must pay for rocket-test cleanup noworldsystem.com

Lockheed: U.S. must pay for rocket-test cleanup
July 9, 2008, 12:54 pm
Filed under: California, GAO, Lockheed Martin, Military, Military Industrial Complex, NASA, Syria, UN, cancer, health and environment | Tags: golan heights, perchlorate, SEC, Security and Exchange Commission, trichloroethylene

Lockheed: U.S. must pay for rocket-test cleanup

Washington Times
July 7, 2008

Fair use


Excerpt:
One of the nation’s largest federal defense contractors says the U.S. government should pay the cleanup costs – likely in the tens of millions of dollars or more – from pollutants leaked during the production and testing of U.S. military and space rockets.

Federal policies at one former Lockheed Propulsion Co. rocket plant in California allowed for burning toxic chemical waste in open, unlined dirt pits during the 1970s, according to a lawsuit that Lockheed Martin Corp. filed against the U.S. government.

The practice has been linked to pollution in groundwater and soil.

Lockheed, whose propulsion company helped build rocket motors for the Apollo and Mercury space programs, has faced personal injury lawsuits over the past decade from residents upset about pollution near the now-closed Redlands, Calif., rocket facility, according to U.S. Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings.

The company wants the government to pay past cleanup costs and to be held liable for future expenses.

A Lockheed spokeswoman declined to comment on the company’s lawsuit, filed Tuesday in federal court in the District. The lawsuit doesn’t say how much money the company is seeking.

Lockheed is reporting more than $500 million in liabilities companywide from “environmental matters,” which include soil and groundwater contamination in Redlands and unrelated projects, according to SEC filings.

According to the lawsuit, Lockheed says two sorts of pollutants – ammonium perchlorate and trichloroethylene – “escaped into the environment in the course of operations at the Redlands facility,” and turned up in local soil and groundwater.

Trichloroethylene, or TCE, is an industrial solvent that can cause headaches, dizziness, nausea and cancer. Exposure to perchlorate can affect the thyroid gland, according to a report by the Government Accountability Office.

Read Full Article Here

**

Basically, you read the same thing over and over. The Corporations responsible for the pollution throw the ball back to the Government for clean up, read: Taxpayers.

Same issue with the MTBE production. Enron- one of the major producers of MTBE- just mysteriously dissolved. If you care to connect the dots, the
company assets were re-appropriated by the 'mother' company and the
liabilities- well that hit would be the shareholders and taxpapers once again. Of course that happened only when the taxpayers became aware that they were being poisoned (air/water/soil) by the use of the MTBE and
demanded a ban.

The same tricks are being played out time and again. We have to look at the details and then step back and see the big picture.

More later....

V

[Venetia]

LymeBusters - What's in YOUR water ?


PHD inc. - Pristine Hydroponic Development - Glen Caulkins

Death by Faucet
Free Printable PDF Book- (download this valuable resource)


Water: A Clear and Present Danger

Fair use

Excerpt:

MTBE: From gasoline spills, underground gas tank leakages. The potential health effects include cancer, developmental toxicity, gastrointestinal or liver toxicity, kidney toxicity, neurotoxicity, and skin sensitivity. Carbon block, standard 53 will remove it.
end excerpt


Excerpt:

MTBE

MTBE is a fuel additive, commonly used in the United States to reduce carbon monoxide and ozone levels caused by auto emissions. Due to its widespread use, reports of MTBE detections in the nation's ground and surface water supplies are increasing. The Office of Water and other EPA offices are working with a panel of leading experts to focus on issues posed by the continued use of MTBE and other oxygenates in gasoline. EPA is currently studying the implications of setting a drinking water standard for MTBE.

Potential health impacts associated with MTBE include cancer, developmental toxicity, gastrointestinal or liver toxicity, kidney toxicity, neurotoxicity, and skin sensitivity.

An Environmental Working Group analysis of MTBE tests reported by 16,866 public water suppliers in 30 states shows that between 1998 and 2003, 32.7 million people in 632 communities drank water contaminated with MTBE. MTBE remains unregulated in tap water, without a maximum legal limit. Water suppliers reporting tests for MTBE (1998-2003): 16,866 of 39,751.


As part of the Drinking Water and Health pages, this fact sheet is part of a larger U.S. EPA publication: EPA National Primary Drinking Water Regulations.

[Venetia]

Risk Factors for Acute Leukemia in Children: A Review

Fair use

Excerpt:
A recent study in California suggested that children living in areas with high levels of point source carcinogenic hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) are at an increased risk of developing leukemia (RR = 1.3; 95% CI, 1.13–1.6) (Reynolds et al. 2003). Selected carcinogenic HAPs included benzene, perchloroethylene, and trichloroethylene.

This study had several limitations; most notably the extrapolation of group exposure levels to individuals and exclusion of indoor HAP sources (e.g., tobacco smoke) as potential confounders of exposure estimates (Reynolds et al. 2003).

A recent, similar study in Great Britain reported associations between birthplace of children with leukemia and proximity to industrial sites that release volatile organic compounds, dioxins, 1,3-butadiene, and benzo[a]pyrene (Knox 2005).

Pesticides.Many studies have suggested a link between pesticide exposure and childhood leukemia. However, most of these studies are limited by the use of nonspecific pesticide exposure information, small numbers of exposed children, and potential recall bias. Some studies suggest that pesticide-exposed fetuses and children are at higher risks for cancer compared with adults. This suggests that newborns and children may be particularly sensitive to the carcinogenic effects of pesticides (National Research Council 1993; Zahm and Ward 199. Most children's exposure to pesticides is from home, lawn, and garden use (Grossman 1995). Other sources of exposure can include local agricultural applications, contaminated food, parental occupation, and pet products.

end excerpt


Note- air pollutants eventually become water pollutants.....

[Katinka]

Originally Posted by Venetia

Glad to read you are turning your attention to Water, Katrinka-

Hi V,
yes, I have always suspected Morgellons Disease is some how related to polluted water as my water tests have also confirmed my theory.

Katinka

[Venetia]

Just found your link on water, Katrinka. Good work! It takes a Village to get to the truth- the whole truth in a matter as complex as this condition, doesn't it?

My research has confirmed my theory as well, Katinka. I've been involved with MTBE and other VOC's for over a year- posting on LB- re: same. That and lots more. Will post more later.... connected a lot of dots. There is a lot more here that meets the eye- first blush.

Years ago- maybe 2001 or thereabouts- I was reading at NUSPA- and a poster stated that a local water company was advertising about their product which removed 'hairs' in your water. Imagine hair in water? Maybe it was fibers? More likely.

(also posted on Cure Zone)

History on Mrs. Cathy. She found the right place at Parasites Support Forum _ posted- 10-29-2003

Excerpt:
I noticed that a local company that sells in-home water systems, Sunnyside Soft Water Systems, said, in their advertisement, in “The Home Reporter” in big, bold letters, “GETS RID OF HAIRS IN YOUR WATER”.
end excerpt

The 'old board' where the search for this condition (id the pathogen) really began has looked at most everything. Even the new "Money/Fiber" topic was discussed as relates to this condition years ago (and since).

Many posters on that old board suspected that the pathogen was somehow related to water. Some were afraid to shower or bathe.

Then along came Dr Schwartz- somewhere around 2004- stating that the pathogen may have something to do with bottled water. He introduced S Maltophilia-
Turns out he may be have a part of the puzzle:

LymeBusters - Nematodes to S Maltophilia


Excerpt:

With the parasitic Nematodes we find S Maltophilia- which adheres to Plastic-

S Maltophilia is considered to be an Emerging Infectious Disease:

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/441361_print


Medscape: Free CME, Medical News, Full-text Journal Articles & More

From Emerging Infectious Diseases > Research
Characterization of Flagella Produced by Clinical Strains of Stenotrophomonas maltophilia

**

As it turns out, Xanthomonas maltophilia or S Maltophilia is a part of the remediation products used for VOC's such as MTBE (the most common water Pollutant in the US) as well as (per Schwartz) found adhered to plastic water bottles. The reason- S Maltophilia/Xanthomonas maltophilia- adheres to plastic.

More here:

Symbiotic bacteria of entomopathogenic nematodes


Bacterial Symbionts of Steinernema scapterisci

MARINEIDE M. AGUILLERA, NANCY C. HODGE, ROBERT E. STALL, AND GROVER C. SMART, JR.
Journal of Invertebrate Pathology 62:68-72 (1993)

Excerpt:
ABSTRACT: Bacteria from Steinernerna scapterisci were isolated and cultured in the laboratory either in vivo or in vitro and collected from two field locations. The bacteria were identified by gas-liquid chromatography of their fatty acid methyl esters using the MIDI Microbial Identification System. The bacteria clustered into three groups. All but one strain in one group were identified as Ochrobactrum anthropi, the odd strain was identified as Paracoccus denitrificans. A second group was identified as Xanthomonas maltophilia.
A third group, although identified by the MIDI system as different genera and species, were shown by dendrogram cluster analysis techniques to be in the same genus and perhaps divided into four species. We consider all members of the third group to be in the genus Xenorhabdus.
end excerpt

The Steinernerna scapterisci per above- is a nematode- if you read the info at the link below (and above) it will make more sense.

LymeBusters - Nematodes to S Maltophilia


Now here is the connection- IOW- the additional source of S Maltophilia- in the drinking water:

Activated sludge

Can J Microbiol, 1997 Jan, 43(1), 97 - 101

Excerpt:
Biodegradation of N-phosphonomethyliminodiacetic acid by microorganisms from industrial activated sludge; Carson DB et al.; A microbial population that biodegraded N-phosphonomethyliminodiacetic acid (PIA), a key component of glyphosate (N-phosphonomethylglycine) process waste, was established . The stoichiometric conversion of PIA to aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) was observed in a laboratory sequencing batch reactor (SBR) containing activated sludge from a glyphosate-manufacturing facility and PIA as sole source of carbon . PIA degradation was determined by high-performance liquid chromatography and confirmed by radiolabeled studies . Greater than 90% of the {carboxymethyl-2-14C}-label of PIA was released as 14CO2 in 7 days using samples of sludge from the SBR . The cycle time required to biodegrade up to 7.5 mM PIA in SBRs was reduced from 21 to < 3 days . PIA biodegradation was also established in an immobilized bacteria column inoculated with mixed liquor from a SBR; > 99% PIA removal was achieved at an influent concentration of 2.2 mM and a hydraulic retention time of < 10 h . A pure bacterial culture was isolated from a SBR by streaking samples of sludge on solid media with PIA as sole carbon source . The isolate was identified as Xanthomonas maltophilia . In liquid culture, X . maltophilia degraded up to 4.4 mM PIA within 10 days and produced stoichiometric amounts of AMPA . The results demonstrate the biodegradation of PIA and suggest the potential for its treatment in industrial biological treatment systems.
end excerpt

S Maltophilia/X Maltophilia- used to remediate MTBE and other VOC's- and more-which eventually becomes drinking water once again.

More later...

V

[Venetia]

Reading about the drinking water at Camp Lejuene, I wondered what else had happened in that area. I did recall a lawsuit about MTBE in North Carolina- turns out to be not that far from Camp Lejuene-

The Camp Lejuene contamination was in the time frame- 1942-1982 approximately and they are only now addressing the issue?

Source of that contamination:

ATSDR - Camp Lejeune, North Carolina


Camp Lejeune, North Carolina: Home

Map of Camp Lejeune water supply areas

Fair use

Camp Lejeune Background

Excerpt:
U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina was established in 1942. In 1982, the Marine Corps discovered specific volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the drinking water provided by two of the eight water treatment plants on base.

Water from the Tarawa Terrace Treatment Plant was contaminated by PCE (perchloroethylene or tetrachloroethylene). The source of the contamination was the waste disposal practices at ABC One-Hour Cleaners, an off-base dry cleaning firm. The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) modeled the contamination and determined that the Tarawa Terrace system had PCE levels that exceeded the current standard of 5 micrograms per liter (ìg/L) for 346 months between November 1957 and February 1987. (Note: 1 ìg/L of a drinking water contaminant is equivalent to 1 part per billion or ppb) The most contaminated wells were shut down in February 1985.

Water from the Hadnot Point Treatment Plant was contaminated primarily by TCE (trichloroethylene). Other contaminants in the drinking water included DCE (t-1,2-dichloroethylene), PCE and benzene. The system was contaminated by multiple sources: leaking underground storage tanks, industrial area spills, and waste disposal sites. ATSDR is currently modeling the Hadnot Point system.
end excerpts

(the leaking underground storage tanks made me think of MTBE- it eats through the seals in the underground pipes/tanks such as those at gas stations)


http://www.lcv.org/images/client/pdfs/burr_mtbe.pdf

Fair use

1997: LANDMARK MTBE CASE TOOK PLACE IN NORTH CAROLINA



1997: After Contaminating the Water Supply With MTBE Conoco Settled With Wrightsboro
Residents For $36 Million. Conoco settled with 179 Wrightsboro residents after their water had been
contaminated with MTBE for $36 million. The decision peeled away another layer of secrecy in a case
that has drawn national attention in part because it is one of the first cases to explore the health effects of
the gasoline additive MTBE, a suspected carcinogen that travels quickly through groundwater.

[Morning Star, 1/4/04]
• Five Week Federal Trial Found Conoco Was Negligent And Committed Fraud In Covering Up
Gas Spills Contaminating Water With MTBE. After a five-week federal trial in 1997, a jury sitting
in Wilmington found Conoco Inc. was negligent and committed fraud in covering up gasoline spills
that contaminated the water supplies of two trailer parks for about 10 years. Then Conoco settled out
of court for $ 36 million with the 178 residents who had sued. [Associated Press, 8/1/99]
BURR VOTED FOR ENERGY BILL, TOOK MONEY FROM MTBE INTERESTS

How did Pols vote re: MTBE?

Please note that there were 22 brave House Republicans who voted against DeLay on this bill yesterday. Yet 17 of our own made DeLay’s job easy.

But perhaps the most sickening part of this vote yesterday is a provision in the bill demanded by DeLay that shields the corporate makers of gasoline additive MTBE from liability lawsuits for damaging community groundwater supplies, thereby transferring the multi-billion dollar costs of these cleanups from the oil and chemical companies onto the backs of local communities and their taxpayers. MTBE has already been shown to cause defects in children and the unborn, and yet Tom DeLay and the House GOP leadership just granted a large piece of corporate welfare to the oil and gas companies while saddling local governments and their taxpayers with the tab.

And even worse yet, Democratic Representative Lois Capps of California was able to get an amendment considered that would have removed the MTBE corporate welfare giveaway removed from the bill. But the amendment lost by only six votes (213-219), and there were 14 Democrats who voted with DeLay against taxpayers and local communities. If these 14 Democrats had stuck with Nancy Pelosi on just this one amendment and had voted with local taxpayers and against oil and chemical companies, this horrendous amendment would have passed and the MTBE product liability shield would have been deleted.

The Left Coaster: House Democrats Help DeLay Pass Energy Bill And MTBE Corporate Welfare Yesterday

**

Then about 7 years ago:


Workers Want to Know If North Carolina Chromium Plant Will Still Run. | Article from Star-News (Wilmington, North Carolina) (viaKnight-Ridder/Tribune Business News) | HighBeam Research

Workers Want to Know If North Carolina Chromium Plant Will Still Run.

Article from:
Star-News (Wilmington, NC)
Article date:
October 15, 2002

Fair use

Byline: Bonnie Eksten


Excerpt:
Oct. 15--More than 130 Oxychem employees in Castle Hayne are waiting to hear from their new owner whether the plant will continue to operate once the purchase is completed later this year.

On Friday, Occidental Petroleum Corp., parent company of Oxychem, announced it had sold the chromium manufacturing facility to Elementis for $40 million in cash and up to an additional $6 million in future performance-based proceeds. Elementis, with headquarters in the United Kingdom, is an international specialty chemicals company.

The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approvals, is expected to close by year's end.

end

(Note- this plant is about 30 miles SW of the Camp Lejuene area)



Well- the good news for the workers is that the plant stayed open- most likely due to reports as to the safety, per below:

Chromium Speciation in Rainwater: Temporal Variability and Atmospheric Deposition - Environmental Science & Technology (ACS Publications)

Chromium Speciation in Rainwater: Temporal Variability and Atmospheric Deposition


Robert J. Kieber,* Joan D. Willey, and Suzanne D. Zvalaren
Department of Chemistry, University of North Carolina at Wilmington, Wilmington, North Carolina 28403-3297
Environ. Sci. Technol., 2002, 36 (24), pp 5321–5327
DOI: 10.1021/es020777n
Publication Date (Web): November 13, 2002
Copyright © 2002 American Chemical Society
*

Corresponding author e-mail: Kieberr@uncw.edu; telephone: (910)962-3865; fax: (910)962-3013.

Fair use

Excerpt:

The concentrations of the various chromium species were determined in 89 rainwater samples collected in Wilmington, NC, from October 1, 1999, to December 31, 2001. Volume-weighted annual average concentrations of Crtotal, particulate Cr, Cr(III)(aq), and Cr(VI)(aq) were 4.6, 2.2, 0.8, and 1.2 nM, respectively. There was distinct seasonal and diurnal variability in the concentrations of the various chromium species. Chromium emissions to the global atmosphere by both natural and anthropogenic sources are estimated to be 2.2 × 109 mol/yr. Using our rainwater concentration data along with other published rainwater Cr concentrations and an estimate for total global annual rain, the total global flux of chromium removed from the atmosphere via wet deposition is 2.1 × 109 mol/yr. This represents complete removal of Cr and indicates that essentially all chromium released into the global atmosphere is removed via rain. About half this chromium is dissolved with roughly equal concentrations of toxic Cr(VI) and relatively harmless Cr(III) species.

end excerpt

I read somewhere that Kammy was looking for Chromium- there you are!

More later,

V

[Kritters]

Yes, and soil pollutants....this is so disgusting. I'm amazed at how the people in charge of these operations are either ignorant (which I doubt) or unconcerned about the dangers to the population, It's no wonder cancer is so ubiquitous.

Of course, our taxes will be paying for the government lawsuits and clean ups. And those in charge will remain unscathed, and off to their trips to Tahiti.

We should return to the days of public flogging. Round up the decision makers and flog them at the town hall. They should be revealed and held accountable. It's so easy to hide behind the cloaks of big business and govt. Pass the buck. Well, there are lots of bucks and the bucks have to stop at the perpetrators.

By the time that comes about, we'll be all getting locked up for being anti-patriotic.

"“A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government.”
Edward Abbey

[Venetia]

Looks like a cover up to me, Kritters. The dry cleaner that was said to be contaminating the water - 1942- 1982 roughly has long since closed up shop.

If it is MTBE, then the Oil Barons with the deep pockets would be culpable. I think it could be a case of shifting the blame.

Just a thought. I wonder how long the TCE/PCE stays in the ground/water? That location has been closed for almost 25 years.

V

[Kritters]

V~

Of course they had a scapegoat, right? They always do. Just like the poor swine farmers and the peanut farmers and the spinach farmers and the almond farmers.....and on.

They have the ability to create through recombinant DNA, an antidote to the TCE/PCE or at least render them harmless. They have the ability to do so much more than most can wildly amagine (exception being researchers).....At least some kind of filter. So now it's in the water, fish, soil, vegetables, animals that we eat. There is no escape.

Lemonade cocktail anyone?

Kritts