|
According to a recent report, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) misled the public about the presence of asbestos in Lower Manhattan apartments following 9/11.
The report states that More than 4,000 apartments in the 2 years were cleaned up professionally and the EPA paid for this following the 9/11 attack. The EPA then reported that only a very small number of units had unsafe levels of asbestos. A new report alleges EPA didn't reveal that most of the air testing was done after, not before, the units had been cleaned.
These findings appeared in a report of the Government Accountability Office, released yesterday during hearings of the Senate Health Committee.
"The EPA’s asbestos testing was really misleading," a GAO offical said.
Asbestos is a naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral popular in manufacturing and industry due to its strength, chemical and thermal stability. The small, buoyant fibers are easily inhaled or swallowed, causing a number of serious diseases including: asbestosis and mesothelioma. Asbestosis is a chronic disease of the lungs that makes breathing more and more difficult. Mesothelioma cancer (specific to asbestos exposure) of the membranes that line the chest and abdomen. Symptoms of this incurable disease are persistent coughing or coughing of blood, chest or abdomen pain, fatigue, and weight loss. These symptoms generally appear several decades after the exposure.
Senator Hillary Clinton is planning to request another GAO study to look into the EPA’s readiness to deal with future calamities.
|
 |
|
