Ooops...What I should have said...

[John Thomas <jnthomas@infinet.com>]

On September 14, 1995 ATSDR told residents of Columbus, Ohio, that 
citizen comments with regard to a proposed dioxin/cadmium exposure study 
were being ignored.  The ATSDR letter proposed to proceed with the 
original study proposed (without modification).  To support this 
decision, ATSDR cited the following reasons:

1.  ATSDR has documentation of dioxin and cadmium emissions from the 
Columbus Waste to Energy facility.

2.  ATSDR is concerned about the potential for human exposure

3.  ATSDR has received correspondence from some residents supporting the 
study

This final reason concerned local residents.  We could not find anyone 
who supported the ATSDR study as proposed on June 8th, 1995.  So we 
submitted a FOIA request to obtain copies of this correspondence.  The 
letters we received did not support the ATSDR study.  When confronted on 
this, ATSDR returned the following explaination.

-------------- ATSDR RESPONSE --------------
Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry

October 31, 1995

Dear Mr. Thomas:

This letter is in response to the most recent electronic mail message 
that you sent to Jerry Pereira.

The letters that you received in response to the Freedom of Information 
Act request were the letters that I referred to as correspondence 
supporting the study.  I regret that I was not more explicit in my 
September 14 letter to Ms. Teresa Mills in which I stated that "we have 
received correspondence from some residents supporting the study."  I 
should have written: "We have received correspondence from some residents 
requesting biological testing for dioxin and cadmium, which generally 
support our proposed exposure study with some modifications."

You are correct that neither letter supports the study in exactly the same
form that we described at the June 8 meeting.  Each letter requests a
larger study than was proposed, by either expanding the list of
contaminants to be looked at or expanding the population to be sampled. 
Both letters do focus on the area near the Columbus Waste to Energy
facility.  Neither mentions Grove City, which we understand is an area of
concern to PARTA.  Both letters requested biological testing for dioxins,
and one included a request for cadmium testing.  If the exposure study
takes place, we will include dioxins, furans, and cadmium in the
biological tests.  One letter requested that soil samples be collected and
analyzed for contaminants.  The Environmental Protection Agency expects to
begin collecting soil samples in areas near the Columbus Waste to Energy
facility soon.  One letter requested that the exposure study be expanded
to include staff and inmates of the Franklin County Prerelease Center, as
well as other persons working near the Columbus Waste to Energy facility. 
If the exposure study takes place, we will determine whether it is
feasible to include inmates of the Franklin Prerelease Center. 

I hope you find these answers to the questions that you posed in your 
electronic mail to be helpful.

Sincerely yours,

Suzanne Folger

------------- END ATSDR RESPONSE -------------

With Respect, in Gentleness and Peace.


John Thomas
For more information ->
http://www.infinet.com/~jnthomas/columbus_ohio