THE PERSISTENT AND PERNICIOUS Devon Villacampa Salome Escobar-Chaffee

Alaska Community Action on Toxics- ACAT The village of Savoonga-Sits on the North Shore of Alaska’s St. Lawrence Island; 150 miles South of the Arctic Circle Purpose- To discuss the phase in the clean-up of hundreds of thousands of gallons of toxic was and contamination at the at the formerly used defense site at North East Cape- a place generations of St. Lawrence Island natives use for hunting and fishing. Lead by Viola Waghiyi (Coordinator of the Environmental Health and Justice Program) she is now the Director of the Environmental Health and Justice Program.

What Was Left Behind?  PCB’s  Pesticides (among them mirex, used both as flame retardant and pesticide and considered a probable human carcinogen)  Metals- including arsenic, Chromium, and Lead  Brominated flame retardants, fuel oils; and various volatile organic compounds (solvents and degreasers)

White Alice - - Communications network part of the Distance Early Warning System. - One of the White Alice sites was at Northeast Cape in Alaska. The U.S Air Force and Defense Department maintained a “4,800 acre surveillance and communications installation.” When the military left, they left their pipelines and waste sites abandoned. - Huge amounts of diesel and other petroleum products were stored at the site. One spill sent 180,000 gallons of diesel and PCBs into the Suqitugheneq River - Pollution has caused river fish - such as salmon - to disappear. - As a result, in 1971, The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act was passed. However, the two St. Lawrence Island Villages, Savoonga and Gambell, opted out of the program in favor of owning their land. - Residents of this area now have PCBs in their blood higher than average

Dioxin vs. Dioxin-like substances Dioxin-A Highly toxic compound produced as a byproduct in some manufacturing processes, notably herbicide production and paper bleaching. It is a serious and persistent environmental pollutant. (Definition by google) There are two types of Dioxins: Natural and Synthetic The EPA describes dioxin and dioxin-like substances “Like human carcinogens” pg. 103 Many of these include PBDE’s, BFR’s, HBCD and Firemaster 500 The effects of this chemicals have endocrine-disruptive properties

PBDE’s, BFR’s and HBCD’s PBDE (Polybrominated diphenyl ethers) dioxin-like- synthetic halogenated hydrocarbons. These compounds are are used in products from textiles to electronics and have been recognized as environmentally mobile; they travel with air, water and dust. By 2005, documented evidence emerged of PBDE was found in people’s blood, breast milk or in household dust PBDE disrupts the normal workings of thyroid function, in animals it has been found that it disrupts genetic receptors interfering with reproductive development, neurological development and impact on sensory and cognitive fucntion. BFR (Brominated Flame Retardants) they have been a cost-effective way to meet fire- resistant standards, particularly used in furniture and electronics. They are dropped into plastic mixtures and used as plastic additives. HBCD (hexabromocyclododecane)- An additive flame retardant that increased the production of PBDE’s as it became restricted and withdrawn from market. HBCD is used as a replacement for PBDE Like PBDE it is fat soluble and has been detected in marine animals, breast milk and umbilical cord serum.

Questions? 1. If there is proof that these toxic molecular structures are harmful to both the environment and human health, why do we keep our priorities in the industry rather than the people? 2. Do you think that one or more of these compounds are part of our cellular structure,? Since some have now been found in umbilical cord serum, is it too late to remove this from the human generations to come? 3. Why do you think the European Union banned these dioxin chemicals yet the United States fails to do so?