Word: epa
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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Even as cleanup crews struggled to contain the damage, the incident was igniting a debate on the future of Alaska, intensifying a longtime battle between developers and preservationists. In Washington EPA Administrator William Reilly called for a re-evaluation of oil exploration proposals pending for the state. And in Alaska itself, a tradition of favoring development is suddenly in doubt...
...Washington the feeling is much the same. Interior Secretary Manuel Lujan told oil-industry representatives last week that they had suddenly acquired a serious image problem, and EPA chief Reilly asserted that "we will not move forward if we have any significant concerns that have not been resolved." Anti-drilling lobbyists are increasingly hopeful. Says Sierra Club conservation director Douglas Scott: "This is much bigger than syringes on the shores of New Jersey. It's an important political event...
Most pollutants are probably not present in large enough concentrations to pose significant health hazards. But there are a few worrisome exceptions. Radon, a radioactive gas that gets into the air from soil and rocks, is also present in some water supplies. Rick Cothern, a member of the EPA's Science Advisory Board, points out that when the contaminated water pours out of a tap or shower head, the radon can pass into the air inside a home. He believes that radon from water may cause a few hundred cases of cancer each year. Those cases might be prevented...
...most widespread chemical danger in water is lead, which can cause high blood pressure, arm and leg pains, nausea and vomiting. Lead is especially hazardous to children, since it impairs the development of brain cells. The EPA estimates that at least 42 million Americans are exposed to unacceptably high levels of lead, and the U.S. Public Health Service says that perhaps 9 million children are at least slightly affected...
Government inspectors recently failed to pick up a major case of pesticide contamination in chickens in Arkansas. Heptachlor, a cancer-causing chemical, was banned for use in food more than a decade ago, but the EPA permits it to be sprayed on some grains. Earlier this year sorghum treated with the substance was sold as feed grain and given to the chickens. The problem was detected in routine lab tests performed by the Campbell Soup Co., which had purchased the poultry. As a result, 400,000 chickens have been destroyed in the past month...