News Coverage
Our Opinion: Community urged to submit C8 comments
Published May 28, 2003
We want to remind area residents, particularly those whose drinking water has been found to contain the chemical known as C8, how important it is for them to participate in the information gathering process currently under way at the federal Environmental Protection Agency.
A public hearing planned for 1 p.m. June 6 in Washington, D.C., is intended to serve as a means for collecting concerns and information about the chemical produced at the DuPont Washington Works plant and used in the manufacturing of Teflon. The concern among many is that because the chemical has been found to cause health problems in lab animals it could also be a health risk to humans. DuPont denies that's the case, but at issue is the fact that this is not a chemical regulated by the EPA. The hearing is a step toward determining how much regulation is needed.
What the EPA is asking for is comments, observations and information about C8 and it's important that they hear not just from the company, environmentalists and attorneys, but from the very real people dealing with the fact that C8 is in the water, air and land every day.
The EPA already is expecting the volume of information they'll receive will be more than anticipated and, as a result, the start of the hearing has been moved up by an hour. Also, the deadline for making public comments technically has expired, but EPA officials have said people can still submit their comments.
For the EPA to make the right decision, the agency needs all of the information it can get, and that means from both points of view. The more information that's made available to the EPA, the better that agency can make a decision about how much regulation of C8 is appropriate. The company, local communities, area water systems and residents all have something at stake here, and all should play a role in this hearing either by attending the hearing or submitting comments.