Posted - November 1, 2007

Today, I received the stupidest piece of campaign literature that I have ever seen. The piece was a colored glossy urging me not to vote for a candidate for Schuylkill County Commissioner because of the car that the candidate drives. I am not kidding, that is what this piece of campaign literature implied.

The front of the piece had a picture of an automobile, a picture of the candidate and the following: "Even with her $$$ Car, (She) doesn't understand the value of your taxpayer dollar." The glossy indicated that it was paid for by The Republican State Committee of Pennsylvania. No other names were on the piece.

The first thing that came to my mind was to question whether the Republicans were testing my sanity. Why should I vote for or against someone because of the automobile that he or she drives? What is next? Don't vote for "X" because he doesn't use the same toothpaste as me.

This absurd piece of campaign literature reminded me of the lyrics from the Rolling Stones' tune "Satisfaction":

When I'm watchin' my TV
And that man comes on to tell me
How white my shirts can be
But he can't be a man ‘cause he doesn't smoke
The same cigarettes as me.

The candidate is not qualified because she doesn't drive the same car as me!

Both the Republican and Democrat candidates are not without sin. This entire campaign for Schuylkill County Commissioners has been marked by negative attacks against the other candidates. I have 11 glossy brochures on my desk with the Republican candidates attacking the Democrat candidates and the Democrat candidates attacking the Republican candidates.

The only candidate staying on the issues is the independent write-in candidate John Schickram. He has consistently campaigned with the following priorities:

- return fiscal responsibility to county government;
- keep, solicit and build on industrial bases for better jobs, jobs, jobs;
- address growing environmental problems throughout the county;
- provide quality education for the youth of the county;
- support all volunteer emergency services;
- fight for veterans and their associations;
- strengthen programs for seniors and the disabled.

I am voting for John Schickram on Tuesday, November 6th and I don't know or care what type of car he drives!

Posted - November 7, 2007

If Noah had lived in the United States today the story may have gone something like this:

And the Lord spoke to Noah and said, "In one year, I am going to make it rain and cover the whole earth with water until all flesh is destroyed. But I want you to save the righteous people and two of every kind of living thing on earth. Therefore, I am commanding you to build an Ark." In a flash of lightning, God delivered the specifications for an Ark. In fear and trembling, Noah took the plans and agreed to build the ark. "Remember," said the Lord, "you must complete the Ark and bring everything aboard in one year."

Exactly one year later, fierce storm clouds covered the earth and all the seas of the earth went into a tumult. The Lord saw that Noah was sitting in his front yard weeping. "Noah!" He shouted. "Where is the Ark?" "Lord, please forgive me," cried Noah. "I did my best, but there were big problems.

- First, I had to get a permit for construction, and your plans did not meet the building codes. I had to hire an engineering firm and redraw the plans.

- Then I got into a fight with OSHA over whether or not the Ark needed a sprinkler system and approved floatation devices.

- Then, my neighbor objected, claiming I was violating zoning ordinances by building the Ark in my front yard, so I had to get a variance from the city planning commission.

- Then, I had problems getting enough wood for the Ark, because there was a ban on cutting trees to protect the Spotted Owl. I finally convinced the U.S. Forest Service that I really needed the wood to save the owls.

- However, the Fish and Wildlife Service won't let me take the 2 owls.

- The carpenters formed a union and went on strike. I had to negotiate a settlement with the National Labor Relations Board before anyone would pick up a saw or hammer. Now, I have 16 carpenters on the Ark, but still no owls.

- When I started rounding up the other animals, an animal rights group sued me. They objected to me taking only two of each kind aboard. This suit is pending.

- Meanwhile, the EPA notified me that I could not complete the Ark without filing an environmental impact statement on your proposed flood. They didn't take very kindly to the idea that they had no jurisdiction over the conduct of the Creator of the Universe.

- Then, the Army Corps of Engineers demanded a map of the proposed flood plain. I sent them a globe.

- Right now, I am trying to resolve a complaint filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission that I am practicing discrimination by not taking atheists aboard.

- The IRS has seized my assets, claiming that I'm building the Ark in preparation to flee the country to avoid paying taxes. I just got a notice from the state that I owe them some kind of user tax and failed to register the Ark as a 'recreational water craft.' ?

- And finally, the ACLU got the courts to issue an injunction against further construction of the Ark, saying that since God is flooding the earth, it's a religious event, and, therefore unconstitutional.

I really don't think I can finish the Ark for another five or six years."

Noah waited. The sky began to clear, the sun began to shine, and the seas began to calm. A rainbow arched across the sky. Noah looked up hopefully. "You mean you're not going to destroy the earth, Lord?" "No," He said sadly. "I don't have to. The government already has."

(This story about Noah's Ark is from http://mwhodges.home.att.net/jokes.htm

Posted - November 09, 2007

On October 24, 2007, the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) and the Pennsylvania Department of Health (PA DOH) released the results of a polycythemia vera (PV) investigation in this area.
The ATSDR confirmed 38 cases of PV in Schuylkill, Luzerne and Carbon counties during 2001 - 2005 using a recently discovered genetic marker known as JAK2.

Subsequently, we reported that an analysis of the ATSDR's own data actually showed 131 cases of PV, more than 5 times the expected number of cases. The ATSDR then responded that the 131 cases of PV that we showed were unsubstantiated www.zwire.com because not all of the 131 people were tested with the JAK2 test.

The ATSDR scientists stated that they estimated the expected incidence of PV to be approximately 0.9 in 100,000 per year. The ATSDR used the same selection criteria to arrive at the 131 figure that it did to arrive at the 0.9 in 100,000 estimate. Few, if any, of the people used in the 0.9 in 100,000 estimate were tested for the JAK2 mutation.

Let's take a closer look at the ATSDR's data. At the October 24th meeting, the ATSDR presented Slide 6 entitled "Polycythemia Vera Rates by County in Pennsylvania, 2001-2005 (per 100,000 persons/year)." The slide is shown below.

At the bottom of Slide 6, the legend indicates that the U.S. rate for PV for 2001-2005 was 0.9 per 100,000 and that the Pennsylvania rate for PV for 2001-2005 was 1.49 per 100,000. This clearly shows that the rate in Pennsylvania was 66% greater than the national rate (1.49/0.9 = 1.655). This is an alarming result. The entire state of Pennsylvania has a 66% elevated rate for this rare bone marrow cancer.

Now, let's look at the counties with the highest rates. Potter County had a rate 6.2 times the national rate (5.54/0.9 = 6.155); Somerset County, 5 times (4.54/0.9 = 5.04); Montour County 4.9 times (4.41/0.9 = 4.9); Luzerne County 4.7 times (4.2/0.9 = 4.67); and Schuylkill County 4.5 times the national rate (4.05/0.9 = 4.5).

Again, these are alarming rates. There are at least five counties in Pennsylvania with PV rates 4.5 times or greater than the national rate. Further, the Schuylkill County rate of 4.5 times and the Luzerne County rate of 4.7 times are very similar to the rate of 5 derived from the 131 cases of PV, as described above.

The dictionary describes an epidemic as a classification of a disease that appears as new cases in a given human population, during a given period, at a rate that substantially exceeds what is "expected," based on recent experience. By any definition, we now have evidence of a statewide cancer epidemic and the ATSDR and the PA DOH hardly acknowledge the problem.

At the October 24th meeting, officials from the PA DOH stated that they were committed to continue the monitoring of the situation. TRANSLATION: The PA DOH isn"t going to do anything more than it has been doing, that is, collect the records of the people diagnosed with PV.

Officials for the ATSDR said that they were going to look at the collected exposure data to see if they could find a cause for the increase in the PV rate. TRANSLATION: The ATSDR wasn"t planning on doing much since the existing exposure data is sparse and there was no indication that the ATSDR planned to collect any new data.

If PV were caused by the bite of a mosquito or a tick, there would be more public health officials in this area studying the problem than you could count. However, since we suspect that the PV is caused by a toxic exposure, there are few public health officials to be seen. The last thing that the government agencies want to do is link a cancer with a toxic exposure from a polluting industry.

The government believes that its primary purpose is to protect the polluting industries. However, the true primary purpose of government is to protect the health, safety and welfare of its citizens. The federal and state agencies aren"t doing anything and neither are any of our elected officials. We would hope that you remember this inaction on the part of our elected officials the next time that they run for re-election.

Posted - November 13, 2007

LEHIGHTON TIMES-NEWS
http://www.tnonline.com/node/238931

Dear Editor:

I appreciate the story in the Oct. 31 edition of your paper considering whether coal-fired power plants may be a factor behind the unusually high rate of polycythemia vera in Schuylkill and Luzerne counties ("Are coal fired plants the culprit?"). The story mentioned that I consider this possibility on my Hometown Hazards Web site www.hometownhazards.com. However, it left out some information crucial for understanding why that is.

Last year, with the help of Dr. Samuel Lesko of the Northeast Regional Cancer Institute, I conducted a statistical analysis using state cancer registry data to examine PV rates across Pennsylvania to see if I could identify any commonalities among the counties where the rate of the cancer was particularly high. Looking only at those counties with populations greater than 100,000 (so as not to allow one or two cases in less populous places to dramatically skew the rate), I identified four counties with rates at least double the state's already-elevated rate: Schuylkill, Luzerne, Cambria and Blair.

I then considered what those four counties had in common that could possibly explain the high PV rates. Because despite Dr. Paul Roda's claims repeated in your article that "we do not have any specific evidence to say that exposure to any one chemical or environmental toxin causes polycythemia vera," we do in fact know from the medical literature that several environmental and occupational exposures have been associated with an excess risk of PV. They include working as an embalmer or funeral director (that is, exposure to formaldehyde and other solvents used in embalming solutions), benzene, petroleum refineries and low doses of radiation.

What significant potential sources of those pollutants did I find in those counties? Waste-coal burning power plants. Among various toxic pollutants, burning coal produces benzene and other aromatic hydrocarbons as well as low-level radiation, since coal contains uranium and other radioactive elements. Burning fossil fuels also produces formaldehyde.

Of the 18 waste-coal-burning power plants currently operating in the United States, 14 are in Pennsylvania and five are in Schuylkill County, which has more than any other county in the nation, according to the Energy Justice Network. Schuylkill County's Ben Titus Road community where local environmental advocates have counted more than a half-dozen cases of PV is adjacent to Northeastern Power Co. (NEPCO), which burns anthracite coal waste or "culm" as its primary fuel and diesel or fuel oil as a secondary fuel.

NEPCO sits on the border of Luzerne County, which is also home to the Hunlock Power Station near Nanticoke, a facility that burns anthracite coal as its primary fuel and culm as a secondary fuel. In the south-central part of the state, Cambria County has three waste-coal facilities: Cambria Cogen and Ebensburg Power in Ebensburg, which burn bituminous waste coal or "gob," and the Colver Power Project in Colver, which also burns gob. The Ebensburg facilities are located near the border with Blair County, whose residents would consequently be subjected to the plants' air pollution.

To date, a great deal of attention has been paid by some to a possible link between the McAdoo Associates Superfund site and the unusual number of PV cases along Ben Titus Road (which for some reason the ATSDR was unable to confirm in its recent study, but that's a topic for another letter). Having grown up in nearby Hometown, I don't doubt for a minute that the McAdoo site has had a detrimental effect on the area's environmental health and may even play a role in the high local PV rates. However, it seems unlikely that the site is responsible for PV in western Schuylkill County or the Wilkes-Barre area, let alone Cambria County.

That's why I suspect the waste-coal-burning power plants may play a role in the area's PV epidemic. But as our work on these important questions moves forward, we of course should keep an open mind as to all the possible culprits behind Pennsylvania's environmental health crisis.

Sincerely,
Sue Sturgis
Raleigh, N.C.

The following story appeared on the web site of Sue Sturgis:
http://www.hometownhazards.com

Posted - November 13, 2007

The Hazleton Standard-Speaker recently reported on the Department of Energy's release of the environmental impact statement for the planned waste coal-to-oil plant in Gilberton, Pa. The story quotes John W. Rich Jr. of Waste Management and Processors, the firm building the plant, on the need to keep pace with China's race to adopt the technology:

"We're being outdone by the Chinese ... We're getting beat to the punch."

In another story about the Gilberton plant in today's Pottsville Republican Herald, about the opening of a 30-day comment period on the plant's environmental impact, Rich again holds up China as a model the U.S. should be following:

"The Chinese are taking up the market," Rich said. "It's a horrible situation. The most powerful country in the world is losing its standing."

In fact, China is actually considering canceling its coal-to-oil plans over concerns about high cost, low efficiency, massive greenhouse gas emissions, and intense water usage. I wonder why Rich doesn't mention that?

Labels: coal to oil

POSTED BY SUE STURGIS

Posted - November 16, 2007

The Internet is a wonderful tool. It allows us to freely communicate with all the world. We recently made contact with some Italian citizens. Dr. Raoul Mantini is a member of a group of concerned citizens fighting to protect the public health and environment. The name of the group is Comitato per la Salvaguardia dell'Ambiente e della Salute Pubblica di Gualdo Cattaneo e Giano dell'Umbria. This translates to Committee to Safeguard the Environment and the Public Health of Gualdo Cattaneo and Giano dell'Umbria. The group maintains a web site at: http://comitatoambientegualdocattaneo.blogspot.com.

Dr. Mantini informs us that people in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy are concerned about the health effects from the toxic emissions from trash-burning incinerators or plants. The region has nine of these incinerators. One incinerator was closed down by court action after local doctors and concerned citizens presented evidence of the adverse heath effects and environmental impacts of the toxic emissions from the plant.

Recently, a group of medical doctors in the region asked local officials in the region to oppose the construction of any additional trash-burning plants. In just the city of Forli, 200 doctors raised concerns about serious health problems resulting from the emissions from the incinerators.

Then, as here, the government stepped in and interfered with the inalienable rights of the people to protect their own health, safety and environment. The Minister of Economic Development asked the Minister of Health and the Minister of Justice to investigate the medicals doctors in the Emilia Romagna region because of their opposition to the trash-burning plants.

The Minister of Economic Development wants to see if more than disciplinary measures can be taken against the doctors for their actions. It seems that the Minister wants to bring some type of criminal action against the doctors for trying to protect the health of their patients! Some Italians refer to the Minister of Economic Development as the Minister of Dioxin. We wonder if he is related to Chemical Ali.

The similarities with our situation are obvious. We have the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, the Department of Health and the Department of Agriculture siding with industry on all matters that concern the health, safety and welfare of the citizens of the commonwealth.

We can do something about our sorry mess. We can begin by voting out our state senators and representatives who passed the laws giving these agencies the authority to protect industry rather than the citizens of Pennsylvania. Hopefully, our friends and allies in Italy can do the same. Yes, all the world is one country.

Coal Waste

www.pennlive.com/editorials

For more than 150 years prior to the modern era of government regulation and bond posting, Pennsylvania was ravaged for its coal. It helped fuel America's industrial revolution and emergence as the world's largest economy and undisputed superpower.

There is a price to be paid for tearing up the earth on a wholesale basis and Pennsylvania continues to pay it, with upward of 4,600 miles of biologically dead streams. There are at least 2,000 abandoned and flooding mine pools in the state, discharging polluted water from 5,000 known points. These conditions are not necessarily fixed. Events, such as a storm, can result in the sudden appearance of discharges where there were none before.

Since the late 1970s, when a law was passed requiring coal companies to pay a fee to help clean up abandoned mines and acid-mine discharges, the expenditure of millions of dollars has barely put a dent in what has been estimated to be a $15 billion problem. The state has been actively engaged in plugging and refilling abandoned mines, for the most part with the ash generated from the burning of coal and waste coal.

This practice would, on first analysis, appear to have three beneficial consequences: 1) disposal of coal ash, 2) filling of dangerous mines and 3) neutralizing acid drainage where the ash contains significant quantities of limestone.

But there is a growing body of evidence that the practice of using what is known as "coal combustion waste" to fill defunct and abandoned coal mines and pits is only compounding the problem of polluted mine drainage. Of particular concern are dramatic increases in the levels of toxic heavy metals that have been found at some mine-filling sites.

About 120 mines in Pennsylvania are permitted to accept coal ash. The Boston-based Clean Air Task Force, a nonprofit organization "dedicated to restoring clean air and healthy environments through scientific research, public education and legal advocacy," says it examined data collected at 15 of the mines and found that at 10 of them there were indications that coal ash was contaminating ground water or streams.

Both the National Academies of Science and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have warned of the dangers of mine filling, and have issued a call for federal regulations. Environmental Protection Secretary Kathleen McGinty, however, claims "it is absolutely the case that Pennsylvania has the best and most exemplary program in the country in terms of regulating the use of ash for reclamation purposes."

But Jeff Stant, lead author of the task force study, told The Patriot-News editorial board that the state is not adequately monitoring mine-fill sites, nor is it requiring corrective action where problems are found.

He said Pennsylvania's regulation are lax enough that ash generators in other states are contemplating shipping their ash here. He held up Kentucky's regulations on mine fill as the best among major coal states.

The good news is that McGinty, after a meeting with Stant and others concerned about mine-fill contamination last week, promised to work to improve the program, with the focus on more stringent testing.

With about half of the state's electricity produced from the burning of coal, Pennsylvania obviously has a major coal-ash disposal problem. More stringent -- and environmentally protective -- regulations would likely cost more money, possibly enough to increase the cost of electricity.

But adding to Pennsylvania's already massive environmental woes from coal isn't an acceptable tradeoff.

It is incumbent upon the state's leading environmental-protection agency to ensure that it isn't attempting to solve one environmental problem by creating another.

Posted - November 20, 2007

In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the Earth and populated the Earth with broccoli, cauliflower and spinach, green and yellow and red vegetables of all kinds, so Man and Woman would live long and healthy lives.

Then using God's great gifts, Satan created Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream and Krispy Crème Donuts. And Satan said, "You want chocolate with that?" And Man said, "Yes!" and Woman said, "and as long as you're at it, add some sprinkles." And they gained 10 pounds. And Satan smiled.

And God created the healthful yogurt that Woman might keep the figure that Man found so fair. And Satan brought forth white flour from the wheat, and sugar from the cane and combined them. And Woman went from size 6 to size 14.

So God said, "Try my fresh green salad." And Satan presented Thousand-Island Dressing, buttery croutons and garlic toast on the side. And Man and Woman unfastened their belts following the repast.

God then said, "I have sent you heart healthy vegetables and olive oil in which to cook them." And Satan brought forth deep fried fish and chicken-fried steak so big it needed its own platter. And Man gained more weight and his cholesterol went through the roof. God then created a light, fluffy white cake, named it "Angel Food Cake," and said, "It is good." Satan then created chocolate cake and named it "Devil's Food."

God then brought forth running shoes so that His children might lose those extra pounds. And Satan gave cable TV with a remote control so Man would not have to toil changing the channels. And Man and Woman laughed and cried before the flickering blue light and gained pounds.

Then God brought forth the potato, naturally low in fat and brimming with nutrition. And Satan peeled off the healthful skin and sliced the starchy center into chips and deep-fried them. And Man gained pounds.

God then gave lean beef so that Man might consume fewer calories and still satisfy his appetite. And Satan created McDonald's and its 99-cent double cheeseburger. Then said, "You want fries with that?" And Man replied, "Yes! And super size them!" And Satan said, "It is good." And Man went into cardiac arrest.

God sighed and created quadruple bypass surgery.

Then Satan created HMOs.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Posted - November 25, 2007

There are at least six major fly ash dumps in Maryland. The dumps receive the fly ash waste from the burning of coal at power plants. Two of the dumps are located in Anne Arundel County. Gambrills is an unincorporated town in the county with a population of 7,159. On October 1, 2007, Maryland's Department of the Environment fined fly ash-generator Constellation Energy and dump operator BBSS Inc. $1 million for allowing metals such as arsenic, cadmium and thallium to seep into the drinking wells of 23 homes near the Gambrills dump site www.baltimoresun.com.

Maryland has had enough with the fly ash dumping and is taking action at the federal, state and county levels. At the federal level, U.S. Representative John Sarbanes from Baltimore, Maryland is asking Congress to look into what type of regulations are needed to insure the proper disposal of fly ash www.hometownannapolis.com.

At the state level, the administration of Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley issued proposed regulations designed to stop the contamination problems associated with the dumping of fly ash in the state www.baltimoresun.com.

Briefly, the proposed regulations would require the following common-sense rules:

• Fly ash dust must be minimized by using truck covers and water tanks at the power plant and at the dump site;
• All new fly ash dumps must have liners and runoff collection systems so rain can't wash toxic metals and other pollutants into groundwater;
• Fly ash dumpers must file reports with the state for all fly ash that is dumped;
• Fly ash dumpers must install groundwater monitoring wells to test for toxic metals and other pollutants; and
• Fly ash cannot be dumped within three feet of the water table.

At the county level, the county government enacted a one-year moratorium on the dumping of fly ash in Anne Arundel County www.examiner.com.

In addition, Anne Arundel County Executive John R. Leopold doesn't believe that the citizens should have to wait to see what will come from the federal government and is not pleased with the state's track record on fly ash dumping. Instead, Mr. Leopold said he plans to extend the moratorium or make it permanent when the provision ends. Mr. Leopold concluded, "Anne Arundel's prohibition on fly ash signals clearly how I feel about this issue."

Congratulations to Mr. Leopold for properly representing the citizens of Anne Arundel County and for not acting to protect industrial polluters. Unfortunately, we cannot say the same thing about any of our county, state or federal officials. We have presented all of these officials with regulations similar to Maryland's proposed regulations but nothing is done about our problems.

In Pennsylvania, we protect industrial polluters at the expense of innocent people. As we have said repeatedly, the industrial polluters write the bills for our elected officials. The polluters then donate to the elected officials' campaign funds and the elected officials have the bills permitting pollution enacted into law. The people are then exposed to the pollution and develop health problems. The sick people then complain to their elected officials who tell the victims that nothing can be done because everything that the polluters are doing is legal. Of course, it is legal. The official enacted the laws that made it legal.

How can fly ash be considered hazardous and toxic in Maryland but "beneficial" in Pennsylvania? Ask your legislator for the answer. Our legislators are the ones who, with a stroke of the pen, transformed hazardous and toxic fly ash into beneficial fly ash at the request of the coal and utility industries.

It is time for our federal, state and county officials to start acting like Anne Arundel County Executive John R. Leopold and start properly representing the citizens of Pennsylvania and not acting to protect industrial polluters. One way to ensure that our officials start acting properly would be to vote out all of the present crew and replace them with officials who will represent the people. You have the power. Use it.

Posted - November 28, 2007

Monsanto Company manufactures a synthetic hormone known as recombinant bovine somatotropin or rBST. The synthetic hormone is given to cows to increase milk production. However, some consumers prefer milk produced without the synthetic hormone, much like some consumers prefer organically grown products. In response to the consumers' preferences, dairies that don't use the synthetic hormone have been labeling their milk cartons as such.

Along comes Mr. Protector of Corporate Industry, Pennsylvania Secretary of Agriculture Dennis C. Wolff and announces that dairies will no longer be able to let consumers know that some milk is free of synthetic hormones. www.gbhealthandwellness.com

Then our illustrious Secretary of Agriculture adds insult to injury and gives this fallacious reason for this blatant censorship. Mr. Wolff said that advertising one brand of milk as free from artificial hormones implies that competitors' milk is not safe, and often comes with what he said is an unjustified higher price.

Hogwash! Does advertising one brand of product as sugar-free imply that competitors' products are not safe? Does advertising one brand as low calorie imply that competitors' products are not safe?

Let's have a free market. Let the diaries label their products and let the consumers decide what they want to purchase. Why is some bureaucrat in Harrisburg deciding that you and I should not know what is in the products that we purchase?

The truth is that this political hack has decided that he knows what is best for us. We are too dumb to decide what we want. We must leave these decisions to politicians in Harrisburg. You may, but I won't.

We suspect that there is more. Could it be that that the dairies using synthetic hormones are the larger, corporate factory farms and that the dairies not using the synthetic hormones are the smaller, family-owned farms?

Remember the primary purpose of the present administration in Harrisburg is to protect corporate industry at the expense of the people. These bums will stay in power until we get smart and vote them out.