Hoosick Falls Report Card: 1 Year of Crisis

 

Albany – This week marks the one-year anniversary since Hoosick Falls residents were first informed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that it was unsafe to drink their water due to Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) contamination.

Today, residents released a #1YrCheckup report card which grades Governor Cuomo and state government on four key response areas that affect residents’ lives:

·      PFOA Advisory Levels (FAIL)

·      Bio and Medical Monitoring (INCOMPLETE)

·      Identification of a New Water Source (INCOMPLETE)

·      Government Accountability & Transparency (FAIL)

Residents and advocates also released policy recommendations for Governor Cuomo and state legislators to act on in 2017 to ensure all New Yorkers are drinking safe and healthy water.

Michelle O’Leary, a Hoosick Falls mother, said “I could have never imagined that one year on, we’d still be fighting Governor Cuomo’s team for our right to drinking water that doesn’t make me or my family sick. The fears are as raw today as they were one year ago, and the state’s lumbering response continues to place the people I love in danger. New York has failed us, so our report card is our chance to draw attention to their actions and to fail them.”

Laura Peabody, a mother and longtime resident of Hoosick Falls, said “My daughter, Ashlynn, has been drinking water laced with a likely carcinogen her entire life. None of us knew. When Governor Cuomo says New York is doing everything it can for residents, it seems to me that the first order of business would be ensuring my daughter’s health, and monitoring her over the long-term, knowing it can take years for impacts of PFOA contamination to rear its head. Unfortunately, we’ve seen the opposite. The state stalled on blood test results, stalled on providing us with the information to understand the results when they arrived, and are now stalling on what we know is necessary – bio and medical monitoring for potentially affected residents like Ashlynn.”

Connie Plouffe, a resident of Petersburgh for 18 years, said “Chemical regulations stink. We get it. For years, companies like Honeywell and Saint-Gobain were allowed to do whatever they wanted, wherever they wanted, to whomever they wanted. But in 2016, our government and our elected officials should know better. When a crisis like this arises, you step up and do your best to keep it from happening to anyone else. Instead, more than 2.5 years after the state first learned about dangerous contamination levels, New York is behind other states like Vermont is lowering the safety limits. It’s not just frustrating for the residents here, it’s dangerous and dumb.”

Report Card Grades – Overall: FAIL

PFOA Advisory Levels:Currently the acceptable PFOA and PFOS levels, which were determined by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are 70 parts per trillion (ppt). Prior to that, the levels were 400 ppt. Governor Cuomo has indicated the EPA’s numbers are sufficient, however, residents feel strongly that the state can lead on this issue and further lower the acceptable advisory levels. Grade: F 

Click here to review the full report. 

Source: Environmental Advocates of New York