CAN WE BREATHE CLEAN AIR, DRINK CLEAN WATER, AND GROW GARDENS IN CLEAN SOIL?

Our people are dying from Cancer in Alexandria, LA.

Ms. Agnes Francisco of Alexandria has lost three family members of Cancer. Ms. Agnes will explain what made her start the fight for clean air, clean water, and soil. The area we are talking about is the southern part of Alexandria where there are about 50% African Americans reside.
In this area not only did Ms. Francisco  loose family so did others. It is also very important to know that this also a low -income area of  Alexandria which has no grocery stores, or shopping malls.
Most residents have to walk or take the bus, cab or get a ride to wherever  they need to go. These  are some of the things residents have to deal with on top of  burying or fighting cancer.
I was very surprised at the death toll as of now is about 116 and people are still dying.
Ms. Agnes started to complain to the LDEQ( Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality) and EPA ( Environmental Protection Agency).

Environmental Disaster

  The smell and vapors of the nearby Creosoting Operations ( Colfax Treating) in this area what concerned Ms. Francisco was the fact that in Cresote a chemical contaminant called BENO(A) PYRENE.

BENO (A) PYRENE IS  (BaP) is usually found as pale yellow crystals. It does not dissolve in water, but will dissolve in organic (carbon-containing) solvents. BaP is one of a group of compounds known as the Polycyclic Aromatic Compounds (PAHs).

 How does chemical affect the environment?

 According to the Scottish Environmental Protection Agent  Pollutant Fact Sheet
The most serious environmental impact of BaP is its significant accumulation in organisms exposed to it. Aquatic organisms will also concentrate it. In water, BaP attaches strongly to sediments and any other solid matter. BaP released to soils tends to bind very strongly to the soils particles, but small amounts can leach to ground waters. BaP is stable and can remain (and travel) in the environment for a long period of time - it is a Persistent Organic Pollutant (POP). Releases of BaP   therefore cause concern at a global environmental level as well as on a local scale.  http://apps.sepa.org.uk/spripa/Pages/SubstanceInformation.aspx?pid=22

How does chemical affect humans?

The long-term health effects of BaP were last  assessed by the federal government in 1987. At that point, it was classified as a “probable human carcinogen”; the new assessment upgrades BaP’s cancer classification to “carcinogenic to humans” and sets a limit on the amount of BaP a human can breathe without the risk of developing cancer and other serious illnesses; it also sets a limit on the amount of BaP that can be safely ingested and, for the first time for any EPA chemical assessment, estimates the risk of cancer when human skin is exposed to the chemical.

Research Shows Links to Cancer, Developmental Damage, and Low Birth Weight

Since 1987, the scientific literature examining the health effects of BaP has grown significantly. Studies have shown that BaP is associated with cancer, as well as developmental damage and immunological effects. Epidemiology studies involving exposure to BaP have reported associations with decreased fertility, low birth weight, postnatal body weight, and smaller head circumference in children. Animal studies show exposure to BaP to be linked to a variety of cancers, including alimentary tract, liver, kidney, respiratory tract, pharynx, and skin cancers. Workers exposed to BaP over long periods have been found to have a significantly

On Aug. 21, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a draft revised health assessment of the toxic chemical benzo(a)pyrene (BaP). This chemical is widely found in the environment and in a number of workplaces, and in its assessment, EPA declared that BaP causes cancer. by Ronald White, 9/10/2013 EPA Scientists Deem Benzo(a)pyrene a Cancer-causing Chemical  http://www.foreffectivegov.org/epa-scientists-deem-benzo-a-pyrene-cancer-causing-chemical

Mrs. Joyce White, General Honor'e &  Ms. Agnes Francisco

( picture courtesy of The Alexandria Town Talk by way of Google)

Ms. Joyce White has been living in her house for many years. In the background is the back of  the cross ties of one of the companies that have the citizens health at risk.  Ms. White states that one of daughters has  a severe case of Asthma.

Once it was found that the land where there were  contaminate BaP you would think it would have some urgency to clean up and make the people of South Alexandria whole again. No this was not so. There were three lawsuits against Roy O. Martin two of them  lost and the third was a class action suit where the people who the plaintiffs were awarded from $100.00 to 7,300 this was depending what your illness was. The Lawyers were paid $1,600,000 for their services.  We have to take  in consideration that it was over 500 plaintiffs.

There were some plaintiffs that were on medicare and Medicaid so they would have to give some of their money up. Leaving them with next to nothing.

WHO IS ROY O. MARTIN?
 You can say that Roy O. Martin had a vision and he stepped and made his vision happen from the beginning, one of the key factors to the long-term success of the company has been the acquisition of tracts of timberland. Today, RoyOMartin has a land base of 570,000 acres of prime southern pine and fine hardwoods throughout Louisiana, made up of tracts from 20 acres to over 10,000 acres in size. This natural-resource base supports two state-of-the-art OSB- and plywood-manufacturing operations in Louisiana. In all, RoyOMartin employs approximately 1,000 committed, competent, and contributing team members. https://www.royomartin.com

                                                   

                                                     WHERE ARE WE NOW

At this moment, we have lost many people and now Miss Agnes Francisco has gotten the attention of the EPA they have come up with this two-year initiative called Making a  Visible Difference Committee. Purpose- EPA focus on providing better support to communities, especially in environmentally overburdened, underserved and economically distressed areas where the needs are the greatest.

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