posted August 11, 2006 04:24 PM              

Our hearts go out to those who have been harmed by Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath. Our best wishes go with the rescue efforts in New Orleans. As the rest of the nation assisted and paid careful attention to New York during its time of need in 9/11/2001, we will strive to make sure that the people get the right information necessary to protect their health.

KATRINA LINKS: many organizations have dedicated their time to run updates on the cleanup efforts in New Orleans. Here are some links the Law Project found exteremley relevant

* New Orleans Environment Watch New Orleans Environmental Watch blog was created on September 15th in response to the lack of clear and full reporting of the environmental damage that has resulted from Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans and the surrounding areas. New Orleans Environmental Watch will challenge news reports and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) spin. Writers include former Congressional staff, EPA staff, and environmental organization staffers
* 9-11 Environmental Action: 9-11 Enviornmental Action has set up a section to update on the articles regarding New Orleans cleanup effort.
* OMBWATCH: OMBwatch is following closely the government's effort to restore New Orleans. - a must read-site for all environmental advocates.
* Sierra Club Ground Zero Report: In the aftermath of 9/11, and now Hurricane Katrina, Americans are left to wonder whether the federal government can be trusted to take steps to protect human health and safety in the event of catastrophe. In an update to its 2004 report, "Pollution and Deception at Ground Zero," the Sierra Club finds the federal government's emergency management plans woefully inadequate. Read the report.
* http://femainfo.us/ an informational site run by the victims, for the victims, of catastrophes. It is not affiliated in any way with any government agency. This site is intended to help victims receive the compensation they are entitled to and justice in the event they are mistreated
* Disaster Network Update on New Orleans: Contaminants a Growing Concern
* Congressman Nadler's Press Release: Nadler to Bush : Learn from the Mistakes of 9/11 Urges President, EPA, to protect Katrina victims from environmental dangers

* FROM RIGHT-TO-KNOW NET
o Community Right-to-Know eUpdate Special Edition: Hurricane Katrina - September, 2005
*
In a situation reminiscent of inaccurate air quality information after the 9/11 attacks, government agencies are not providing complete information about environmental hazards around New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality are not informing the public about chemicals in the flood water, or potential toxic hotspots. For example, EPA appears to only be testing water in downtown New Orleans, rather than in neighborhoods near industrial areas. In addition, EPA is not even testing for several known carcinogens produced by oil refineries. Though a bare minimum of EPA test results are public, agencies have already begun to spin the situation to downplay the health hazards. As a result, emergency workers and citizens returning to their homes will not be able to sufficiently protect themselves or their families. The public has a right to know what environmental risks have been caused by Hurricane Katrina. Clearly these agencies need to do a better job of collecting and releasing information to the public. In the days, weeks and months to follow, the Right to Know Network will be working with local activists and other allies to pressure EPA to:
1. Conduct a full and transparent investigation of potential environmental hazards presented by chemical plants and refineries, hazardous waste handlers, landfills, underground storage tanks and other potential sources; and
2. Implement a monitoring system that identifies released toxics and other environmental hazards and make this information available to the public in a timely manner.
Click here to send a message to EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson. Brief List of Informational Links:
o EPA has only released tested water samples at 13 sites and has posted the results on this website and testing data is over a week old. However very few chemicals tested exceed EPA limits, and scientists are questioning whether EPA is even testing for dangerous petroleum-related chemicals.
o The National Response Center maintains a useful, but incomplete record of chemical fires, spills, and explosions involving oil and chemicals, on incidents ranging from minor to serious. Some affected facilities have reported here. Click here for user-instructions.
o OMB Watch lists major sites that store, use, or produce large quantities of toxic chemicals within Orleans, Plaquemines, and St. Bernard Parishes. It is possible that not all of these sites have been affected by Hurricane Katrina or the ensuing flooding.
o The Sustainable Energy and Economic Network has produced a compilation of news reports and eye-witness accounts (including satellite images) of major industrial facilities have been released contaminates into residential areas.

* MESSAGE FROM OMBWATCH : Environmental Impact of Katrina: Potentially Toxic Sites in New Orleans
o In an effort to jump start a public dialogue on the environmental health hazards wrought by Hurricane Katrina in the heavily industrialized area around New Orleans destructive, OMB Watch has compiled a list of potentially toxic sites in the area. http://www.ombwatch.org/article/articleview/3088/1/97?TopicID=1 OMB Watch used a few major EPA databases to construct the list. While it is far from comprehensive, we felt it was necessary to start providing what limited information we had at our disposal considering the lack of information coming out of EPA at this point. We have also provided an action alert to allow people to urge EPA to make public all information on toxic chemical releases and other environmental health risks in the area. We don't want a repeat of the squelched data on asbestos that followed the 9/11 disaster. http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ombwatch/campaign.jsp?campaign_KE

* Emergency Information System Aiding in Katrina Response

http://www.govtech.net/magazine/channel_story.php/96581
http://eplannews.utdallas.edu/home.htm

Sep 08, 2005 By News Staff

An emergency information system known as E-Plan, developed by The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), is expected to be a valuable resource to emergency responders assessing the extent of damage to chemical industry plants and other facilities in Gulf Coast states in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

The unique database, which contains an inventory of the chemical contents of thousands of facilities in a number of states, including Louisiana and Alabama, will provide emergency response personnel with information on the location and nature of hazardous materials before they enter chemical plants that may be contaminated as a result of damage due to high winds and flooding.

[…]
Jim Staves, E-Plan project sponsor for EPA's Region 6, said "in addition to providing first responders with information they will need to make safe entry into damaged facilities, E-Plan should prove invaluable in locating the likely sources of chemical contamination, spills, or 'orphan' containers that may be found." Staves said that in the Midwest floods of 1993, thousands of orphan chemical containers, such as drums and small tanks, were found. Identifying the owners of those containers, or arranging for government-funded disposal, took months after floodwaters had receded, he said.

E-Plan contains more data on hazardous materials than any other commercial or governmental system in use by government agencies. Its database covers 40,000 facilities in 14 states and contains information on more than 20,000 unique chemicals.

[…]

Press Release Source: Society of Environmental Journalists

Katrina Only Latest Example of Feds Withholding Environmental Data
Monday September 12, 10:02 am ET

JENKINTOWN, Pa., Sept. 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- It's been more than a week since The Times-Picayune newspaper of New Orleans turned in desperation to the federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to answer a basic question: Where are dangerous chemicals leaking as a result of Hurricane Katrina?

The paper's lead hurricane reporter, Mark Schleifstein, had been asking the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that question for days -- without an answer. So he filed a request under FOIA. Even though the federal statute provides for "expedited review" when a situation "could reasonably be expected to pose an imminent threat to the life or physical safety" of the public, he still has not received a response.

The request by Schleifstein, a member of the Society of Environmental Journalists' board of directors, was followed by similar queries from other reporters.

A study of SEJ members' experiences with FOIA released today suggests the journalists face a long, frustrating wait -- and still may not get the information they're seeking.

Government compliance with FOIA appears to be deteriorating in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, according to the SEJ report being released today, "A Flawed Tool -- Environmental Reporters' Experiences with the Freedom of Information Act."

Volunteers with SEJ's First Amendment Task Force interviewed 55 SEJ members, finding that excessive delays in releasing information are common -- with some FOIA requests taking more than a year to fulfill.

Even when documents are turned over, agencies frequently black out huge amounts of information.

In a new twist, agencies have also started refusing in some cases to process a reporter's request until they ponder whether the journalist is entitled to a waiver of search fees -- even though such waivers are mandated by the federal statute.

Perhaps even worse, agencies have started requiring journalists to use the cumbersome, time-consuming FOIA process to obtain information once freely disclosed.

Partially because of the problems highlighted, more than half the SEJ members interviewed said they don't use FOIA. The study team targeted investigative reporters in SEJ's ranks. Presumably, FOIA use is even less prevalent among SEJ members generally.

"This report clearly shows that Congress needs to take action to make sure agencies are complying with the Freedom of Information Act, and should set up a system to punish those that aren't," said SEJ President Perry Beeman, who covers environment for The Des Moines Register. "Freedom of information is a basic American right, one that cannot be watered down by the incompetence, arrogance or indifference of bureaucrats."

SEJ urges other journalism groups to undertake similar efforts to document problems with FOIA use.

SEJ members experiencing problems using FOIA should contact the First Amendment Task Force. (See http://www.sej.org/foia/index6.htm )

EPA officials held a press conference last week to address pollution in New Orleans floodwaters, and late in the week released some water-quality testing results. But they still have not fulfilled the reporters' FOIA request and answer that basic question: Where are dangerous chemicals leaking as a result of Hurricane Katrina?

SEJ is the world's oldest and largest organization of individual working journalists covering environmental affairs. Founded in 1990 and based in Jenkintown, Pa., its membership is composed of more than 1,450 journalists, educators and students dedicated to improving the quality, accuracy and visibility of environmental reporting.

The group's membership guidelines exclude any person paid to lobby or do public relations on any side of environmental issues.

SEJ's report is at http://www.sej.org/foia/SEJ_FOIA_Report2005.pdf . Links to the group's letter to EPA and an op-ed by Beeman are at http://www.sej.org/foia/index5.htm .

http://www.nyenvirolaw.org/nyeljp-katrina.htm