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February 19, 2008

Report aims to up awareness of possible toxic threats

With the aim to create greater public awareness about potential toxic threats in Rhode Island’s cities and towns, the non-profit group Toxics Action Center released a report today called “Toxic in Rhode Island: A town by town profile,” which lists the presence of possible environmental and health risks from former landfills to chemical manufacturers.

Predominantly using information from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the state Department of Environmental Management, the report provides a comprehensive inventory of contaminated sites, power plants and leaking underground storage tanks, which the group said will provide local communities the information they need to demand tougher regulations and enforcement from responsible parties to clean up harmful chemicals that pose dangers to human health and the environment.

“Rhode Island citizens are often left in the dark when it comes to toxic threats in their communities,” said Toxics Action Center community organizer Amelia Rose, who is also the report’s author. “This report reveals a legacy of pollution in the state that may surprise most residents.”

The report, which is posted on the group’s Web site, also contains maps detailing the prevalence of different types of cancer in the state and the locations of potential dangers like Superfund sites, textile manufacturers and hazardous waste sites.

The report did not rank the toxicity of cities and towns or explain the acute risks of individual sites, but it does make recommendations to state and federal governments, such as phasing out the use of persistent toxic chemicals like lawn pesticides and adequately funding the cleanup of hazardous waste sites.

-- Journal environment writer Natalie Garcia

Posted by Mike McKinney  at 4:03 PM | Permalink

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