New York City Personal Injury Lawyer - Toxic Substances

EPA Issues Rules to Reduce Water Pollution from Construction Sites

Paul Napoli — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 02:36:08 GMT

November 29, 2009

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a final rule aimed at reducing water pollution from construction and development industries.

The final rule, which takes effect in February 2010 and will be phased in over a four-year period, will require construction site owners and operators who disturb one or more acres to use erosion and sediment control best management practices (BMPs) and pollution prevention measures to prevent run off of pollutants from construction sites into nearby bodies of water.

It also requires construction site owners and operators who impact 10 or more acres to monitor stormwater discharges and comply with a numeric standard for the pollutant turbidity in those discharges. This is the first time that EPA has imposed national monitoring requirements and enforceable numeric limitations on construction site stormwater discharges.

Construction activities like clearing, excavating and grading significantly disturb the land and cause soil and sediment runoff, one of the leading causes of water quality problems nationwide.

“The disturbed soil, if not managed properly, can easily be washed off of the construction site during storms and enter water bodies,” the EPA Final Rule says. “Stormwater discharges from construction activities can cause an array of physical, chemical and biological impacts.”

If you or a family member have suffered illness or your property contaminated by soil or ground water pollution, toxic spillage, chemical seepage, improper waste disposal or other environmental issues from construction, mining or other industrial operations, it is important that you contact an attorney immediately to discuss your legal options. Call Napoli Bern Ripka, LLP today at 888-529-4669.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Paul Napoli

Cabot Pays $120,000 for Environmental Violations in PA

Paul Napoli — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 12:46:20 GMT

November 13, 2009

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and Cabot Oil and Gas Corp. have executed a consent order and agreement regarding Susquehanna County water supplies polluted by migrating gas from Cabot’s natural gas drilling operations.

The Pennsylvania DEP began an investigation early this year when numerous residents of the Dimock Township area reported evidence of natural gas in their water supplies. An explosion that blew apart a concrete slab above a water well in a township resident's yard was also reported. DEP inspectors discovered that the well casings on some of Cabot’s natural gas wells were cemented improperly or insufficiently, allowing methane gas to migrate to groundwater.

Under the agreement, Cabot must develop a plan that specifically identifies how the company intends to prove the integrity of the casing and cementing on existing wells and fix defective casing and cementing by March 31. If Cabot fails to fix the defective casing and cementing by the March deadline, the company must plug defective wells or implement another alternative as approved by DEP.

Cabot paid a 120,000 civil penalty for violations of the Oil and Gas Act, the Solid Waste Management Act and the Clean Streams Law.

This past week, Cabot provided an interim solution for all of the homes with affected water supplies and must develop a plan by March 31 to restore or replace those affected water supplies permanently. Cabot must submit information on all parties who have contacted the company about water quantity or quality issues to the DEP.

Several other violations that have been corrected by Cabot were addressed in the consent order. In September 2008, drilling mud leached into a spring near the Black 2H well; in January, 100 gallons of diesel fuel spilled at the Gesford 3 well; in February, 25 to 50 barrels of drilling mud spilled into a ditch and field at the B Severcool 1 well and in March drilling mud leaked into Burdick Creek during a spill at the Gesford 1 well.

In September, the PA DEP also fined Cabot Oil and Gas Corp. $56,650 for three spills of a hazardous water/liquid gel mixture at its Heitsman natural gas well in Dimock Township, Susquehanna County.

These environmental violations happen at a time when New York has proposed new regulations for natural gas drilling. It is a hotly contested issue across New York State at public hearings of the NY Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC) environmental review of natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale. At a public hearing in New York City on November 10, many residents and public officials called for a ban on natural gas drilling in New York City's upstate watershed, which supplies drinking water for 9 million people.

A layer of rock 365 million years old called the Marcellus Shale rock formation extends deep underground from Ohio and West Virginia northeast into Pennsylvania and southern New York and is believed to hold a giant natural gas reserve. Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking is a drilling process, used by companies such as Cabot, to extract natural gas from the earth in which a mixture of water, sand and chemicals is pumped deep underground to break apart the rock formation and release the gas.

The NY Department of Environmental Conservation has recently extended the public comment period on the report and will hold more public hearings until the review period ends Dec. 31. Comments can also be submitted by mail or online at http://www.dec.ny.gov/energy/46288.html.

Environmental hazards can cause serious illnesses or even death among children and adults living in areas where there is pollution, toxic spillage, chemical seepage, improper waste disposal and other environmental issues. Because the companies that cause these hazards often have excellent attorneys and a lot of money available for fighting claims, it is important that you hire an attorney immediately if you feel that an environmental hazard caused your illness or the illness of a family member. Call Napoli Bern Ripka LLP today at 888-529-4669 to discuss your legal options.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Paul Napoli

Cabot Fined $56,650 for PA Chemical Spills

Paul Napoli — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 00:41:26 GMT

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has fined Cabot Oil and Gas Corp., of Houston, TX, $56,650 for three spills of a hazardous water/liquid gel mixture at its Heitsman natural gas well in Dimock Township, Susquehanna County, last month.

Cabot extracts natural gas from the earth in a process called hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, in which they pump a mixture of water, sand and chemicals deep underground to break apart the rock formation and release the gas.

On Sept. 24, DEP ordered Cabot to cease all hydro fracturing in Susquehanna County and submit an updated plan and an engineering study after Cabot Oil and Gas Corp. had two spills at its Heitsman well on Sept. 16 and a third spill on Sept. 22. The spills totaled about 8,000 gallons that polluted a nearby wetland and caused a fish kill in Stevens Creek.

All three spills involved a water/liquid gel mixture used in the hydraulic fracturing process. Cabot uses a chemical liquid gel called LGC-35 manufactured by Halliburton Energy Services of Duncan, OK. It dissolves in water, making cleanup difficult. Halliburton’s Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for LGC-35 states it to be a known carcinogen in laboratory animals. The MSDS warns inhalation of the chemical to may cause respiratory irritation, allergic reaction, chemical pneumonia, headache, dizziness, drowsiness, incoordination, slurred speech and unconsciousness. Ingestion of LGC may cause irritation of the mouth, throat and stomach, dizziness, drowsiness, incoordination, slurred speech, tremors, convulsions and unconsciousness. It may also cause aspiration leading to chemical pneumonitis including coughing, difficulty breathing, wheezing, coughing up blood and pneumonia, which can be fatal.

Cabot's engineering study showed that the pipe couplings and hoses that ruptured and caused the spills were likely the result of pressure built by an unusually high 240-foot difference in elevation between the field of water tankers and the Heitsman well pad. The company proposed changes to its operations to help prevent further releases. The DEP allowed the company to resume hydro fracking activities on October 16 reviewing the company’s revised engineering plan.

“This penalty was assessed for Cabot’s violations of the Clean Streams Law, Solid Waste Management Act and Oil and Gas Act,” said DEP Northcentral Regional Director Robert Yowell. “We expect that Cabot will do a better job in the future of overseeing its contractors now that the company has an improved preparedness, prevention and contingency plan in place.”
A layer of rock 365 million years old called the Marcellus Shale rock formation stretches underneath 54 of the Pennsylvania's 67 counties and is believed to hold a giant natural gas reserve. It is valued at $1 trillion and an estimated 10 percent of it could supply the entire United States for two years.

Pennsylvania’s budget relies on a plan to raise more than $200 million over two years by opening up more state forests to gas drilling. Environmentalists and others who oppose the gas drilling are fighting the decision. Gov. Rendell said he was sending his top two environmental officials to lobby lawmakers because the fight was threatening the budget deal. He also said the new leases would not damage the state forests because the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources will be careful to steer drilling companies to the areas with the biggest gas reserves to produce the most revenue for the least environmental impact.

Cabot Oil and Gas Corp. has 128 permitted well sites and more than 40 completed wells in Pennsylvania’s Susquehanna County. The company has also had a series of environmental violations this year, including a DEP citation in March for allowing methane to escape into residents' drinking water.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Paul Napoli

Love Canal

Paul Napoli — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 00:13:24 GMT

When it comes to legal issues regarding environmental issues, one of the biggest cases in our history comes to mind, Love Canal. This environmental tragedy could have been prevented but as a result, major changes in the handling of waste management were put into place that still continues today.

Because it happened in the 1970s a whole generation may not be aware of what actually happened and what could still happen today if manufacturers are not regulated in their handling of toxic waste materials.

In the 1890s a man named Fletcher T. Love whose dream it was to connect the Niagara River with Niagara Falls by way of a canal. Limitations of power transmissions and funding problems caused the project to fall by the wayside. A few years later Love figured out an alternate plan and envisioned a perfect little community, ironically called Model City that would be made up of parks and homes that would run along Lake Ontario.

The plans again were abandoned and Model City never came to fruition. The canal filled with water and became dumping grounds for Niagara Falls in the 1920s. In the 1940s the Hooker Chemical Company was granted permission by the Niagara Power and Development Company to dump their ever-growing chemical waste materials. After the canal was drained and lined with thick layers of clay as insulation, the Hooker Company started putting their fifty-five gallon drums filled with hazardous materials. By 1952 more than 21,000 tons of chemical waste had filled the canal and it was covered over with dirt.

While the Niagara Falls area grew, they were looking for more properties to purchase and even though the Hooker Chemical Company warned them about the risks involved with the materials that were buried below, the property was sold to the city for one dollar.

What ensued after that was the result of inappropriate handling of waste materials and ignored warnings of potential exposure to toxic chemicals. Parts of the land began to crumble and the buried drums were exposed and began to taint the waterways and areas nearby.

Further down the line, homes were built in the area and the City of Niagara Falls put in a sewer system that actually broke through the walls of the canal further contaminating the waterways in the community. As a result, an alarming number of miscarriages, birth defects and serious illnesses began to affect the community. The president of the Love Canal Homeowners Association began to investigate these occurrences and the rest is history.

After years of fighting with the government, the Love Canal gained media attention but its notoriety was its claim as “one of the most appalling environmental tragedies in American history.

If you live in an area and recognize a pattern of illnesses, miscarriages or birth defects among residents in your neighborhood, you may want to further investigate the background on the area that you live in. Even though the Love Canal tragedy occurred years ago it doesn’t mean that it couldn’t happen today. Call our attorneys at 1-888-LAW-IN-NY and let one of our environmental litigations attorneys assist you.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Paul Napoli

Bottled Water Needs Stricter Labels

Chrissie Cole — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 07:15:00 GMT

Congressional investigators and nonprofit researchers say, consumers know less about the bottled water they purchase then free tap water because they are both regulated differently.

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) and the Government Accountability Office (GAO), an advocacy organization and a nonprofit research group, suggest bottled water be labeled with the same level of information as required by municipal water providers.

Researchers urge Americans to make bottled water “a distant choice” to filtered tap water because there isn’t enough information about bottled water. However, the EWG recommends purifying tap water with a commercial filter.

In October, The Environmental Working Group released a report that found some bottled waters are “no different than that of tap water.”

Pain medication, fertilizer residue and other various chemicals were found in major brands of bottled water.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole

Johnson & Johnson Urged To Remove Chemicals In Baby Shampoo

Chrissie Cole — Wed, 27 May 2009 14:02:00 GMT

Johnson & Johnson is being pushed to remove two probable human carcinogens from its baby shampoo and personal care products by a coalition of organizations.

The Environmental Working Group, MomsRising, the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and several others have joined forces to push for the removal of Quaternium-15 and 1,4-dioxane. These chemicals are known to cause cancer and skin allergies and are anything but safe and gentle.

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics recently released test results that found several children’s bath products contain formaldehyde or 1,4-dioxane – and, in many cases, both.

“Trace levels of certain compounds that were noted by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics can result from processes that make our products gentle for babies and safe from bacteria growth. Many regulatory agencies around the world consider these trace levels safe," said J&J spokesman Bill Price in a response.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole

Study - Toxic Chemicals Found in Flea and Tick Collars

Chrissie Cole — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 21:05:00 GMT

A new study by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) shows some flea and tick collars leave a toxic pesticide residue on the animal’s fur that can be hazardous to the pets and their owners.

The NRDC - a national, nonprofit organization of scientists, lawyers and environmental specialists - filed a lawsuit following the results of the study, which found high levels of propoxur and tetrachlorvinphos (TVCP) – both which are known carcinogens and neurotoxins.

The suit contends 16 retailers and manufacturers, failed to warn consumers that they were exposed to unsafe levels of propoxur in violation of state law. And, asks the EPA to order the removal of both chemicals. Until now, the EPA has said exposure to chemicals in flea collars is insignificant.

For the study, the group conducted tests on five cats and nine dogs, a sample equal to or larger than studies used by the EPA to determine exposure to pesticides from flea collars, said researchers.

They found the levels of pesticides left on fur were as much as 1,000 times greater than acceptable risk levels the EPA has set for children. The NRDC sees the chemical residue as a “significant neurological risk,” and says that harmful levels can remain on an animal’s fur for as long as two weeks.

Learn more about hazardous chemicals contained in pet products and which products to avoid.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole

Many Children's Bath Products Contain Harmful Chemicals

Chrissie Cole — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 17:48:00 GMT

A new report by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics finds many children’s bath products contain harmful and toxic chemicals that are known to cause skin allergies and cancer.

According to the report titled, “No More Toxic Tub,” two-thirds of the products tested which include Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Shampoo, contained formaldehyde or 1,4 dioxane.

The chemical 1,4 dioxane, considered a carcinogen by the EPA, is a byproduct of a chemical processing technique used to make ingredients gentler to the skin.

Formaldehyde – also a carcinogen, is created as preservatives break down in the container over time. Preservatives are used to make products safer by preventing the growth of bacteria, fungus and other harmful microbes.

Safeguarding your Family from Harmful Chemicals

Formaldehyde and 1,4-dioxane chemicals are not disclosed on product labels because they're contaminants, not ingredients, and therefore are exempt from labeling laws.

Pick products that contain fewer ingredients and no synthetic dyes or fragrances.

Search EWG’s cosmetic safety database to learn more about the products you use and to find safer alternatives.

The Toxic Tub testing results can be found here. #

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole

Carbon Monoxide Scare Sends Seventeen To The Hospital

Chrissie Cole — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 23:10:00 GMT

A generator used to fill up two large Moonbounce playhouses is to blame for a carbon monoxide scare at a birthday party that sent 17 people to the hospital, said officials.

The fan was keeping two large playhouses inflated while children were jumping and playing in them, said Fire Department Captain John Cleary.

Six of the seventeen people hospitalized were between 3 to 16 years of age. None of the injuries appear to be life threatening.

Most of those who were sickened were expected to be released Sunday, Cleary said. Two children were being treated in a hyperbaric chamber and it wasn't clear when they would be released.

The incident happened inside the H & H Community Development Center. Cleary said he did not know if the generator was inside or outside the community center hall.

The incident is still under investigation, but officials believe the exhaust from the generator is likely to blame, said Cleary. Officials are asking anyone else who was at the party to get checked out at a hospital.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole

FDA to Re-Examine Ruling on BPA

Chrissie Cole — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 22:10:00 GMT

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), is reconsidering its ruling on the safety of bisphenol-A, or BPA, a chemical found in plastic baby bottles and hundreds of other plastic products.

The New York Times reports that there was so much criticism of its August decision that the amount of bisphenol-A in containers and baby bottles did not pose a health risk that the FDA has decided to re-examine its ruling.

The chemical is used in thousands of everyday consumer items including food and beverage containers, shower curtains as well as in some medical devices. BPA mimics the hormone estrogen and may disrupt the body's endocrine system. People ingest it when it leaches from plastics into water, food or baby formula.

More than 130 studies, over the last decade, have linked BPA to diabetes, obesity, breast cancer, neurological problems and other health disorders. Much of the newest research suggests that chemical can have an effect even at very low doses – lower than those currently set by the FDA.

Canada has already added BPA to its toxic substances list.

The FDA has not given a timetable as to when they plan to proceed with its BPA re-examination.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole