Action Item: DEP hid AQ results -- Call Gov. Baker

Over the Easter/Passover weekend a new report was published by Itai Vardi of DeSmogBlog and the Huffington Post. You might have missed it due to the Friday news dump and the holidays.  We wanted to be extra sure you knew about this. You can go here to see the full report.

It seems that our friends at the Department of Enabling Polluters (DEP) hid some evidence from us when they did their limited time canister testing in the Basin.  Vardi unearthed this information in a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. The DEP sent canisters to the State Lab in Rhode Island and requested testing not done at the private lab with which the DEP generally contracts. One of the chemicals missing from the Health Impact Assessment (HIA) discovered by the Rhode Island State Lab, in amounts above the DEP guidelines, was a substance known  as 1,3 butadiene.  According to cancer.gov: "Studies have consistently shown an association between occupational exposure to 1,3-butadiene and an increased incidence of leukemia."

Also noted in the article was this: It’s unclear why the DEP did not ask the private lab to look for the presence of 1,3-butadiene and acrolein — especially because the HIA stated that both compounds are relevant to evaluating potential pollution from the gas compressor station.

Why would the DEP intentionally omit this rather damning information from the HIA if they received it days before the HIA was released?  Why did they not request the testing from the private lab so that it could be included in the HIA?  Why would they intentionally omit this testing when it was an essential part of evaluating potential pollution from a gas compressor station?  Inquiring minds want to know.

In our estimation, the DEP fully wanted  to issue the air quality permit and did everything in its power to make sure that the permit was not hindered by the facts.  This has been the case with every permit that has been issued up to this point.  And while FRRACS and the Town of Weymouth still have all permits tied up in appeals, it has become clear that the intent of the DEP was to issue the permits with total disregard for the health and environment of the people of the Basin. Total disregard.

Would you take a moment to call Gov. Baker to ask why his DEP hid the facts from us?

And while we should all know the number by heart, please call Gov. Baker at 617-725-4005.

Thank you for all that you do!