…And comes out looking pretty good.

The Junior Senator from NY absolutely skewers the EPA for their negligence on the Newtown Creek oil disaster in a new letter to EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson — a George W. Bush political appointee who is better known for his controversial stances and use of the Presidential executive privilege than his attempts to go after polluters.

The Queens Chronicle reports:

“New Yorkers living in communities near Newtown Creek have suffered long enough,” [Senator Clinton] wrote. “We know that there are dangerous chemicals in the soil, water and air at sites around Newtown Creek. It’s time to put the resources of the Superfund program to work to conduct additional tests at known contamination hotspots to see whether a federal cleanup should go forward.”

More comments by Newtown Creek Alliance director, Katie Schmidt:

Having Clinton’s support is a huge step toward mitigating the creek’s pollution, said Katie Schmid, a spokesperson for the Newtown Creek Alliance. “Hillary is one of the more intelligent, active senators and is great on environmental issues,” she said. “She’s recognized also as being pragmatic. Hopefully she impresses upon the EPA … how serious the contamination issue is in Newtown Creek.”

The Queens Ledger also covers the letter by Senator Clinton — who chairs both the Senate Subcommittee on Environment as well as the Public Works Subcommittee on Superfund and Environmental Health.

“The factories responsible for much of the chemical contamination have long since closed and as the cleanup authority of last resort,” the letter continued, “I see the federal Superfund program as the most effective way to solve this longstanding problem once and for all.”

Please send Senator Clinton a Thank You email for bringing the Newtown Creek issue to the highest level of scrutiny (you can choose the topic of ‘Environmental Concerns’ from the drop-down).

Or give her NYC office a quick call of thanks.

New York City
Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton
780 Third Ave
Suite 2601
New York, NY 10017
Phone: (212) 688-6262
Fax: (212) 688-7444

Indeed, thanks to all who are involved in making sure this incredible 50+ year story receives the attention it deserves, finally.

Here is the full text of the letter sent by Sen. Clinton:

August 13, 2008

The Honorable Stephen L. Johnson
Administrator
United States Environmental Protection Agency
Ariel Rios Building - 1101A
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20460

Dear Administrator Johnson:

I am writing to request that the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), use its Superfund authority to conduct preliminary tests at four known hotspots along Newtown Creek, in New York City (Attachment A).

Newtown Creek, which borders Brooklyn and Queens, is well known as one of the most polluted industrial waterways in North America, where chemicals from factories along the bed of the Creek have seeped into the soil, sediment and water. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the New York State Office of the Attorney General have found evidence that certain hazardous substances regulated under CERCLA have been released at the Newtown Creek site (Attachment B). It is time the federal Superfund program conduct the testing that is necessary to determine whether Newtown Creek should be on placed on the NPL list. As the Chair of the Superfund and Environmental Health Subcommittee and a member of the Senate’s Environmental and Public Works Committee, it is of particular interest to me.

For years, the residents in the vicinity of Newtown Creek have been forced to live, work and play with toxic fumes in the air and contaminated water, soil and sediment on the ground. This exposure has led to community concern about potential pockets of serious illness. Superfund was established to address abandoned hazardous waste sites. The factories responsible for much of the chemical contamination have long since closed and as the cleanup authority of last resort, I see the federal Superfund program as the most effective way to solve this longstanding problem once and for all. The people of Newtown Creek have suffered long enough.

Attached please find a list with details about the four sites proposed for testing as well as a list of the chemicals found at the site.

I appreciate your prompt attention and response to this matter.

Sincerely,

Hillary Rodham Clinton

Stay tuned to this issue — or read past posts — by visiting the Newtown Creek category at GBK.

Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images, taken from How Hillary Clinton Works: Environment and Legal Voting Record of Hillary Clinton.

UPDATE:

I almost missed this great article in NYU’s Scienceline about Newtown Creek and The Harbor School, so this seems like a good time to pass it along!

What’s a CSO? Ask any of the researchers, and they will tell you because they learned it in class. These ninth graders from New York Harbor School in Brooklyn have eyes trained for finding CSOs, or combined sewer overflows, which are unmarked pipes emptying excess runoff and sewage into the creek.

Definitely read the full article, especially if you are interested in urban environmental education.

Tags: Combined Sewer Overflow, EPA, George W Bush, Hillary Clinton, Newtown Creek, Newtown Creek Alliance, NY Harbor School, Pollution, Queens Chronicle, Queens Ledger, Scienceline, Stephen Johnson, Superfund

Category: Environmental Justice, Newtown Creek, Politics, Urban Environment, Water

Views: 2,005 Views

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