>> Thompson: IN THE HISTORY OF
AMERICAN ENVIRONMENTAL CRISES,
SEVERAL NAMES STAND THE TEST OF
TIME: EXXON VALDEZ, DEEPWATER
HORIZON, THREE MILE ISLAND, AND
OF COURSE, LOVE CANAL.
IT WAS 40 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK
THAT PRESIDENT JIMMY CARTER
DECLARED A NATIONAL HEALTH
EMERGENCY IN THE SMALL COMMUNITY
IN NIAGARA FALLS, NEW YORK,
WHERE HUNDREDS OF RESIDENTS
LEARNED THEIR HOMES AND A SCHOOL
HAD BEEN BUILT NEAR A MASSIVE
TOXIC WASTE DUMP FILLED WITH
NEARLY 22,000 TONS OF CHEMICALS.
AUTHORITIES REMEDIATED THE SITE
AND DECLARED MUCH OF THE AREA
SAFE.
BUT TODAY, THERE ARE MANY NEW
CLAIMS OF HEALTH PROBLEMS NEAR
LOVE CANAL.
I RECENTLY TRAVELED THERE AND
SPOKE TO SOME RESIDENTS WHO SAY
HISTORY APPEARS TO BE REPEATING
ITSELF.
>> OH, THIS WAS A GREAT
NEIGHBORHOOD.
YOU KNOW, HOUSES ALL ALONG HERE.
>> Thompson: YOU WOULDN'T KNOW
IT NOW, BUT THESE ABANDONED
FIELDS WERE ONCE HOME TO A
THRIVING WORKING CLASS
NEIGHBORHOOD ON THE WESTERN EDGE
OF NIAGARA FALLS, NEW YORK.
LUELLA KENNY AND HER FAMILY
MOVED IN NEARBY IN 1969.
>> AND WE THOUGHT, OH, WHAT A
NICE IDEAL PLACE TO RAISE THESE
BOYS.
IT TURNED OUT TO BE QUITE A
DISASTER.
>> Thompson: A COMPANY CALLED
HOOKER CHEMICAL HAD DUMPED
22,000 TONS OF TOXIC WASTE IN AN
UNFINISHED CANAL NEARBY.
LOVE CANAL.
THOSE CHEMICALS WERE NOW SEEPING
INTO RESIDENTS' BASEMENTS AND
BACKYARDS, BUBBLING UP ON THE
SCHOOL'S PLAYGROUND.
>> MY CHILD, I SENT TO SCHOOL
EVERY SINGLE DAY, WAS SITTING ON
TOP OF A TOXIC DUMP.
THE CHEMICALS WERE OOZING TO THE
SURFACE AND MY SON WAS SICK.
>> Thompson: LOIS GIBBS, A
VIRGINIA-BASED ENVIRONMENTAL
ACTIVIST, WAS A MOTHER OF TWO
WHO LIVED A BLOCK FROM LOVE
CANAL.
SHE LED THE FIGHT FOR JUSTICE
THERE.
>> WE HAVE A PROBLEM, AND
EVACUATE THESE PEOPLE AND
DECLARE THE AREA A DISASTER
AREA.
>> Thompson: GIBBS' ACTIVISM LED
TO PRESIDENT JIMMY CARTER
ISSUING AN EMERGENCY DECLARATION
IN 1978.
HUNDREDS OF FAMILIES WERE
EVACUATED.
>> I MEAN, WE WERE A SMALL,
BLUE-COLLAR COMMUNITY YOU KNOW,
WE WEREN'T SCIENTISTS.
YET WE WERE ABLE TO DO IT,
BECAUSE WE STOOD TOGETHER.
>> Thompson: LOVE CANAL BECAME
KNOWN AS ONE OF THE NATION'S
WORST ENVIRONMENTAL DISASTERS.
IT LED TO THE CREATION OF THE
FEDERAL SUPERFUND PROGRAM THAT
OVERSEES THE REMEDIATION OF
DANGEROUS HAZARDOUS WASTE SITES.
THIS IS LOVE CANAL TODAY.
A BARE 70-ACRE LOT, SURROUNDED
BY A CHAIN-LINK FENCE.
A LONE MARKER A BLOCK AWAY IS
THE ONLY TESTAMENT TO WHAT
HAPPENED HERE.
IN 1988, AFTER THE FEDERAL
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
AND NEW YORK STATE CONDUCTED
THOUSANDS OF SOIL, AIR AND WATER
TESTS, THE STATE DETERMINED THE
AREAS DIRECTLY EAST OF LOVE
CANAL WERE NOT SAFE TO LIVE.
BUT THE AREAS DIRECTLY NORTH AND
WEST WERE.
>> WE'RE GOING TO GO DIRECTLY
INTO THE EMERGENCY DECLARATION
AREA NOW.
>> Thompson: MIKE BASILE IS A
SPOKESPERSON FOR THE E.P.A.,
WHICH HELPED OVERSEE THE
REHABILITATION OF MORE THAN 200
ABANDONED HOMES JUST NORTH OF
LOVE CANAL.
>> EACH ONE OF THE HOMES HAS NEW
SIDING, NEW ROOFS, NEW WINDOWS,
NEW FURNACES.
>> Thompson: TODAY THE
NEIGHBORHOOD HAS BEEN RENAMED
BLACK CREEK VILLAGE.
39 WELLS MONITOR THE GROUNDWATER
NEARBY.
I MEAN, IT'S LITERALLY JUST A
STREET THAT SEPARATES THE
HABITABLE FROM THE NON-
HABITABLE.
>> THAT'S ALL.
>> Thompson: HOW DO WE KNOW THAT
IT'S ACTUALLY SAFE TO LIVE HERE?
>> WELL, OUR MONITORING WELLS
AND OUR SAMPLING THAT WAS TAKEN
BACK IN THE 1980'S AND '90'S
TRULY REFLECTS THE ANSWER TO
THAT QUESTION.
>> Thompson: BUT MANY CURRENT
AND FORMER RESIDENTS AREN'T
CONVINCED THE AREA'S SAFE, LIKE
LUELLA KENNY, WHOSE SEVEN-YEAR-
OLD JON SON DIED IN 1978 FROM A
RARE KIDNEY DISEASE THAT SHE
BELIEVES WAS CAUSED BY EXPOSURE
TO LOVE CANAL CHEMICALS.
>> WHEN I SEE CHILDREN IN THIS
NEIGHBORHOOD PLAYING I BECOME
VERY UPSET BECAUSE THERE ARE
STILL 20,000 TONS OF CHEMICALS
BURIED UNDER THERE.
>> THE LANDFILL MATERIAL REMAINS
IN PLACE.
>> Thompson: THE E.P.A. KEPT THE
NEARLY 22,000 TONS OF TOXIC
WASTE RIGHT WHERE THEY WERE, IN
A SPECIALIZED LANDFILL BECAUSE
DIGGING UP AND TRANSPORTING THE
HAZARDOUS WASTE WOULD POSE ITS
OWN DANGERS.
THE LANDFILL IS TOPPED WITH
THREE FEET OF CLAY, A MASSIVE
SHEET OF THICK PLASTIC AND 18
INCHES OF TOPSOIL TO SEAL OFF
THE CHEMICALS, AND KEEP OUT RAIN
AND SNOWMELT, WHICH COULD
DISPLACE THE TOXINS.
GROUNDWATER IS GUIDED DOWN
TOWARDS A SYSTEM OF UNDERGROUND
TRENCHES THAT SURROUND THE
LANDFILL AND COLLECT THE WATER
SO THAT IT DOESN'T MIGRATE.
MORE THAN 100 MONITORING WELLS
SURROUND THE SITE TO MAKE SURE
NO CHEMICALS ESCAPE.
>> THE SYSTEM IS MONITORED 24/7,
365 DAYS A YEAR.
>> Thompson: CLINT BABCOCK IS
OPERATIONS DIRECTOR FOR GLENN
SPRINGS HOLDINGS.
IT'S A SUBSIDIARY OF OCCIDENTAL
PETROLEUM, WHICH BOUGHT HOOKER
CHEMICAL, THE COMPANY THAT
ORIGINALLY DUMPED THE WASTE.
UNDER SUPERFUND RULES, GLENN
SPRINGS IS NOW RESPONSIBLE FOR
MAINTAINING THE LANDFILL, WITH
GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT.
>> THIS IS THE LOVE CANAL
TREATMENT FACILITY.
>> Thompson: THIS SPECIAL CARBON
FILTRATION SYSTEM CLEANS UP TO
FIVE MILLION GALLONS OF
GROUNDWATER THAT LEACH FROM THE
SITE EVERY YEAR.
THE E.P.A. STUDIES THE SITE
EVERY FIVE YEARS, AND NEW YORK
STATE RECEIVES ANNUAL REPORTS
FROM GLENN SPRINGS HOLDINGS.
THE MOST RECENT SAID THE SYSTEM
IS SUCCESSFULLY "PREVENTING OFF-
SITE MIGRATION OF
CONTAMINATION."
>> ALL THOSE REPORTS PROVE THE
EFFECTIVENESS OF THE EXISTING
REMEDY.
>> Thompson: BUT SOME NEIGHBORS
AREN'T SO SURE.
IN 1994 DOLLY SALERNO AND HER
FAMILY MOVED TO ONE OF THOSE
HOMES THE GOVERNMENT DEEMED SAFE
A BLOCK NORTH OF THE LOVE CANAL
SITE.
SHE SAYS A FEW YEARS AGO, SHE
BEGAN SMELLING A STRONG CHEMICAL
ODOR COMING FROM THE KITCHEN
SINK.
SHE DID NOT WANT TO SHOW HER
FACE ON CAMERA.
>> I GET DIZZY.
SOMETIMES I FEEL SHORT OF
BREATH.
>> Thompson: SALERNO SAYS SHE'S
DEVELOPED MIGRAINES AND
PULMONARY FIBROSIS, A LUNG
DISEASE.
AIR TESTS BY THE COUNTY HEALTH
DEPARTMENT DIDN'T TURN UP
ANYTHING.
BUT SOIL AND DUST TESTING
CONDUCTED BY A PRIVATE COMPANY
FOUND TRACES OF CHEMICALS FOUND
AT LOVE CANAL, LIKE CHLORINATED
PESTICIDES, DIOXINS AND P.C.B.s.
AND WHERE DO YOU THINK THESE
CHEMICALS CAME FROM?
>> I TEND TO BELIEVE, SINCE WE
ARE IN SUCH A CLOSE PROXIMITY TO
THE LOVE CANAL, THAT SOMEHOW
THEY ARE GETTING INTO THE SOIL,
I DON'T KNOW.
I WISH I HAD AN ANSWER.
>> Thompson: THIS SPRING,
SALERNO AND OTHER FAMILIES FILED
A LAWSUIT AGAINST THE CITY OF
NIAGARA FALLS, OCCIDENTAL
PETROLEUM, AND OTHER ENTITIES
INVOLVED IN THE LOVE CANAL
CLEANUP.
THE SUIT CLAIMS LOVE CANAL
CHEMICALS HAVE "MIGRATED TO
RESIDENTS' PROPERTIES" AND MADE
THEM SICK.
HUNDREDS OF PLAINTIFFS IN OTHER
LAWSUITS HAVE MADE SIMILAR
CLAIMS.
SALERNO'S LAWSUIT POINTS TO AN
INCIDENT IN 2011, WHEN A POCKET
OF LOVE CANAL WASTE WAS
DISCOVERED UNDER A SEWER LINE
OUTSIDE THE SITE.
>> THEY REMEDIATED IT, REMOVED
IT.
>> Thompson: THE E.P.A.'S MIKE
BASILE SAYS THAT WASTE WAS
CLEANED UP IMMEDIATELY, AND HE
WON'T COMMENT ON THE LITIGATION.
HE SAYS THE AGENCY HASN'T
CONDUCTED SOIL OR AIR TESTS IN
THE BLACK CREEK VILLAGE
NEIGHBORHOOD SINCE IT FIRST
DECLARED THE AREA SAFE, 30
YEARS AGO.
>> THERE'S NO NEED TO TEST, AND
I'LL TELL YOU WHY.
BECAUSE WE HAVE OVER 150
MONITORING WELLS AROUND THE
CANAL.
>> Thompson: BUT IF WE KNOW THE
CHEMICALS SPREAD, SHOULDN'T
THERE BE CONTINUING SOIL
SAMPLING, AIR SAMPLING OF THE
WIDER AREA?
>> ONCE AGAIN, BASED ON OUR--
THE INFORMATION THAT WE HAVE
FROM THESE MONITORING WELLS,
THE PUBLIC IS PROTECTED IN THE
IMMEDIATE AREA.
>> Thompson: GLENN SPRINGS
HOLDINGS, A SUBSIDIARY OF
OCCIDENTAL PETROLEUM, SAID IN A
STATEMENT THAT THE MONITORING
WELL DATA DEMONSTRATE THE SYSTEM
IS WORKING AND, "WE BELIEVE THE
PLAINTIFFS' ALLEGATIONS ARE
MERITLESS"... "THE HEALTH AND
SAFETY OF THE SURROUNDING
COMMUNITY AND NEIGHBORHOOD IS
OUR NUMBER ONE PRIORITY."
ANA NAVAS-ACIEN IS A PHYSICIAN
AND EPIDEMIOLOGIST AT COLUMBIA
UNIVERSITY WHO STUDIES PUBLIC
HEALTH NEAR SUPERFUND SITES.
SHE SAYS, IT'S GOOD NEWS THAT
THE WELLS SHOW NO SIGNS OF
CONTAMINATION.
>> THAT'S GOOD.
AT THE SAME TIME, BECAUSE THIS
SITE, IT'S SO COMPLEX-- THERE
WAS SUCH AN ENORMOUS QUANTITY OF
TOXICANTS THAT WERE DISPOSED
THERE.
IT CAN BE CHALLENGING TO MAKE
SURE THAT THERE IS NO RELEASE
IN-- FROM ANY-- ANY PLACE.
>> Thompson: SHE POINTS OUT, THE
TECHNOLOGIES THE E.P.A. USED TO
CLEAN AND TEST THE SITE BACK IN
THE 1980'S ARE OLD, COMPARED TO
IMPROVED REMEDIATION AND TESTING
TECHNOLOGIES THAT EXIST TODAY.
>> I THINK RELYING ON PAST
TECHNOLOGY TO TRY TO UNDERSTAND
WHAT'S HAPPENING TODAY?
I WOULD SAY, THAT'S NOT
REASONABLE, AND-- AND NEW
MEASURES WITH TODAY'S TECHNOLOGY
WOULD BE IMPORTANT.
>> Thompson: THE HEALTH
COMPLAINTS AREN'T CONFINED TO
PEOPLE WHO HAVE LIVED CLOSE TO
LOVE CANAL.
THIS IS THE TOWN OF WHEATFIELD,
ABOUT SIX MILES AWAY.
UNTIL RECENTLY AN OLD LANDFILL
IN A WOODED AREA THAT BACKS UP
TO DOZEN OF HOMES CONTAINED
ABOUT 2400 TONS OF WASTE MOVED
FROM LOVE CANAL IN THE 1960'S.
THE WASTE WAS BURIED UNDER
TOPSOIL AND SURROUNDED BY
NATURAL CLAY FOR NEARLY 50
YEARS.
OTHER COMPANIES DUMPED
INDUSTRIAL WASTE BACK THERE,
TOO.
>> THE KIDS WOULD RIDE THEIR
BIKES BACK THERE, THEY WOULD
BUILD FORTS, THE WOULD DO ALL
KINDS OF THINGS THAT KIDS DO.
>> Thompson: LORI RICHARDS HAD
NO IDEA WHAT WAS ACROSS THE
STREET WHEN SHE MOVED IN NEARLY
29 YEARS AGO.
IN 2015, GLENN SPRINGS HOLDINGS
COMPLETED REMOVAL OF THE LOVE
CANAL WASTE FROM THE WHEATFIELD
DUMP.
NEW YORK STATE CONDUCTED WATER
AND SOIL TESTING AND IS
COMPLETING ITS INVESTIGATION OF
THE SITE.
PRELIMINARY RESULTS SHOWED
"LANDFILL CONTAMINANTS DO NOT
PRESENT AN OFF-SITE EXPOSURE
CONCERN TO NEIGHBORING
PROPERTIES."
BUT LORI RICHARDS ISN'T BUYING
IT.
>> FRANKLY, IT'S SCARY AS HELL.
>> Thompson: WHEN RICHARDS AND
HER HUSBAND MOVED HERE IN 1990,
THEY HAD ONE CHILD, AND A FEW
YEARS LATER STARTED TRYING FOR A
SECOND.
>> I HAD A TOTAL OF 11
MISCARRIAGES.
>> Thompson: 11 MISCARRIAGES?
>> UH-HUH.
THERE'S NO FAMILY HISTORY OF IT.
IT DEFINITELY THREW US FOR A
LOOP.
>> Thompson: RICHARDS EVENTUALLY
GAVE BIRTH TO A SECOND, HEALTHY
SON.
BUT THE PROBLEMS CONTINUED.
SHE SAYS SHE HAD A BRAIN
ANEURYSM, HER THYROID HAS
ESSENTIALLY STOPPED FUNCTIONING,
AND HER HUSBAND STRUGGLES WITH
DAILY HEADACHES AND MUSCLE
TWITCHING.
WHY DON'T YOU LEAVE?
>> WHO ARE WE GOING TO SELL TO?
YOU KNOW, ARE WE GOING TO SELL
TO, ANOTHER YOUNG FAMILY
STARTING OUT?
IT DOESN'T SEEM RIGHT.
SO WE ARE HOPING THAT WHATEVER
HAS HAPPENED TO US IS DONE.
AND HERE WE ARE.
>> Thompson: DOWN THE STREET,
RICHARDS' NEIGHBOR SUE HAS
MULTIPLE MYELOMA.
SHE HAS SIMPLY WALKED AWAY FROM
HER HOME AND NOW LIVES IN AN
APARTMENT NEARBY.
>> IT'S BEEN DIFFICULT, YOU'RE
LEAVING EVERYTHING BEHIND THAT,
YOU KNOW, YOU'VE HAD FOR MANY
YEARS.
>> Thompson: SUE, LORI RICHARDS
AND DOZENS OF OTHER RESIDENTS
HAVE A SEPARATE LAWSUIT,
CLAIMING TOXINS FROM THE
WHEATFIELD LANDFILL HAVE MADE
THEM SICK.
THEIR ATTORNEYS HIRED A PRIVATE
FIRM TO CONDUCT SOIL AND DUST
TESTS IN THE AREA.
THEY SAY THEY FOUND TOXINS
"PREVIOUSLY FOUND IN LOVE CANAL-
RELATED SITES."
INDOORS, TOXINS CAN GET TRAPPED
AND BUILD UP.
TESTS THERE FOUND TOXIN LEVELS
10 TO 100 TIMES HIGHER.
SO FAR, STATE OFFICIALS HAVE
DECLINED TO TEST INSIDE
RESIDENTS' HOMES.
IN A STATEMENT ABOUT ITS
INVOLVEMENT, THE NEW YORK STATE
DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL
CONSERVATION SAID IT "TOOK
AGGRESSIVE ACTIONS TO ENSURE
CONTAMINATION HAS NOT MIGRATED
OUTSIDE THE NIAGARA LANDFILL
SITE."
AND IN RESPONSE TO THE LAWSUIT,
THE PRESIDENT OF GLENN SPRINGS
HOLDINGS, POINTED TO THE
COMPANY'S WORK REMOVING THE
WASTE FROM THE LANDFILL AND
SAID, "WE BELIEVE THE
ALLEGATIONS ARE MERITLESS."
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
>> I MEAN, THESE LEVELS ARE
QUITE ELEVATED.
>> Thompson: COLUMBIA
UNIVERSITY'S NAVAS-ACIEN SAYS,
THE CHEMICALS FOUND IN THE HOMES
ARE CAUSE FOR ALARM.
BUT IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO KNOW
WITHOUT MORE TESTING WHERE THEY
CAME FROM, OR IF THEY CAUSED THE
PLAINTIFFS' HEALTH PROBLEMS.
>> WE DON'T KNOW EXACTLY HOW-
THESE AGENTS, CHEMICALS HAVE
REALLY TRAVELED.
IT WOULD BE VERY HARD FOR ME TO
SAY, "YES, THIS IS THE DIRECT
CAUSE OF ALL YOUR PROBLEMS."
AT THE SAME TIME, CAN THIS
CHEMICAL HAVE THOSE EFFECTS THAT
THEY ARE COMPLAINING ABOUT, THAT
THEY ARE FACING, THESE VERY
IMPORTANT PROBLEMS?
YES.
THE ANSWER IS YES.
>> Thompson: NAVAS-ACIEN SAYS
EVEN THOUGH THE RESIDENTS MAY
NEVER FIND ANSWERS, THE LOVE
CANAL DISASTER WILL ALWAYS OFFER
A CAUTIONARY TALE.
>> LOVE CANAL WAS SUCH AN
INCREDIBLE LESSON FOR THE
COUNTRY.
WE NEED TO BE EXTREMELY CAREFUL
IN THE WAY WE HANDLE TOXICANTS.
BECAUSE THE CONSEQUENCES OF POOR
MANAGEMENT AND THE CONTAMINATION
THAT WE CAN INDUCE IT'S VERY
SERIOUS.
AND THE HEALTH EFFECTS ARE VERY
SERIOUS.
PREVENTION IS KEY.
>> Thompson: AND FOR PEOPLE LIKE
LORI RICHARDS, LOVE CANAL ISN'T
HISTORY, BUT SOMETHING SHE FEELS
SHE'S STILL LIVING, EVERY DAY.
>> I THINK MOST OF ALL, I JUST
WANT MORE THAN ANYTHING, FOR
SOMEONE TO COME IN AND MAKE IT
ALL GO AWAY, IT'S 40 YEARS AFTER
LOVE CANAL AND WE'RE STILL
DEALING WITH IT.
