News.com reports
that the EPA has made an initial test of flood waters in New Orleans
and found high levels of bacteria and lead contamination. The article
also says the EPA is going to get a soil sample to study.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) chief Stephen Johnson said samples of
floodwater in New Orleans were "highly contaminated with bacteria, both E
(Escherichia) coli and coliform, and high levels of lead".
He told the CNBC network that tests are being done on sediment, which is
contaminated in some areas with a lot of oil and which scientists say could
store chemical toxins for years.
"Obviously, we're concerned about both the ecological effects of the storm as
well as effects on industry, particularly the fishing industry," Johnson said.
In a teleconference with journalists, environmental scientists underlined that
the EPA needs to stay vigilant.
There is also a rumor that toxin levels and dangers are being
covered up by the Bush Administration
and that the city will actually be uninhabitable for a decade and that the
water being pumped out of the city could damage Lake Pontchartrain and the
Mississippi river. Another article
says that Hugh Kaufmann, Hugh Kauffman, a Senior Policy Analyst at the Environmental Protection Agency, is accusing the Bush Administration of refusing to allow the EPA to release information about the toxins.
Kauffman, who was the chief investigator for the 9/11 clean up, also said
that the Bush administration engaged in the same practice after 9/11—covering
up the truth about the dangers in the air and water and lying to the public
in the weeks after the disaster. Kauffman said that over 75% of the heroes
who responded to 9/11 have gotten sick and in some cases have died because of
exposure to toxins at Ground Zero, and that he fears a similar fate will befall relief workers and residents in the Gulf Coast now.
