Must-read recap: The New Lede's top stories
Napa Valley's contamination controversy; alleged regulatory failures for PFAS in biosolids; lawsuit over illegal TCE discharges; battle brewing over waste from shuttered nuclear plants.
Worries in wine country: Napa Valley wrestles with chemical contamination controversy
(This article was co-published with The Guardian)
Famous for its lush vineyards and cherished local wineries, Napa Valley is where people go to escape their problems.
What the more than 3 million annual tourists don’t see, however, is that California’s iconic wine country has a problem of its own – one that has spurred multiple ongoing government investigations and created deep divisions among residents and business owners, including some who fear the region’s reputation and environment are at risk.
At the heart of the fear is the decades-old Clover Flat Landfill (CFL), perched on the northern edge of the valley atop the edge of a rugged mountain range. Two streams run adjacent to the landfill as tributaries to the Napa River.
A growing body of evidence, including regulatory inspection reports and emails between regulators and CFL owners, suggests the landfill and a related garbage collection, recycling and composting business known as Upper Valley Disposal Services (UVDS) have routinely polluted those local waterways that drain into the Napa River with an assortment of dangerous toxins.
The river irrigates the valley’s beloved vineyards and is used recreationally for kayaking by over 10,000 people annually. The prospect that the water and wine flowing from the region may be at risk for contamination with hazardous chemicals and heavy metals has driven a wedge between those speaking out about the concerns and others who want the issue kept out of the spotlight, according to Ellsworth. (Read the rest of the story.)
EPA enabled widespread contamination of farmland from PFAS in fertilizer, lawsuit alleges
US regulators failed to prevent toxic PFAS in fertilizers from contaminating farmland across the country, alleges a lawsuit filed last week by a watchdog group on behalf of two Texas farm families who suffered health problems after their properties were polluted.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) violated the Clean Water Act by failing to identify at least 18 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in treated sewage sludge spread on farmland even though scientific evidence suggests the chemicals are present in the sludge, according to the complaint filed June 6 in the US District Court for the District of Columbia by the nonprofit Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).
The EPA also neglected to develop regulations restricting several other PFAS chemicals the agency has previously recognized exist in sewage sludge, according to the complaint. As a result of its inaction, the EPA has enabled “millions of acres” of land to become contaminated with PFAS-laced sewage sludge, exposing many communities to the harmful chemicals, the lawsuit alleges.
“PFAS poisoning of farmlands is fast becoming a national agricultural emergency,” PEER attorney Laura Dumais said in a press release. “EPA needs to act immediately to protect farmers and our food supply from this toxic mess.” (Read the rest of the story.)
Lawsuit alleges company illegally discharged cancer-causing TCE for decades
A Mississippi auto parts company illegally dumped toxic waste for more than 50 years, poisoning workers and sparking a cluster of cancer cases, according to a lawsuit filed last week by a group of former employees.
The lawsuit, filed June 4 in the US District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi, names EnPro Industries and multiple other corporate entities as defendants in the case, alleging they participated in illegally discharging trichloroethylene (TCE) into the environment, contaminating soil, air and groundwater, and knowingly exposing workers to the cancer-causing chemical.
“This greedy company cheated to cut costs at the expense of human health and risking countless lives,” Nick Rowley, co-founder of the national public interest law firm Trial Lawyers for Justice, said in a press release. “The scope and scale of harms and losses caused by this wrongdoing is devastating.”
TCE is a clear, colorless liquid that is used as a degreasing solvent and dry cleaning agent, among other uses. It is considered a human carcinogen by the US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). (Read the rest of the story.)
Battle brews over radioactive wastewater discharge from shuttered nuclear plants
An effort by New York to ban radioactive waste from polluting the Hudson River has embroiled the state in a bitter legal battle emblematic of challenges facing communities across the country as they wrestle with what to do with the waste from shuttered nuclear power plants.
At the heart of the matter in New York is a law enacted last August that aims to block plans by Holtec International to discharge more than one million gallons of radioactive wastewater into the river during the decommissioning of the Indian Point nuclear power plant. The company sued the state in April, arguing that the discharge was allowed under federal regulations, which preempt state regulation.
The state filed a countersuit, asking the US District Court for the Southern District of New York to dismiss Holtec’s claims and validating the state new.
The United States has long had the largest nuclear power plant fleet in the world, with nuclear power accounting for roughly 20% of annual electricity generation from the late 1980s into 2020, according to the US Congressional Research Service. There are currently more than 90 commercial nuclear reactors in operation at 54 nuclear power plants in 28 states. But many have been closed over the last decade, with more scheduled for closure, due to economic challenges and battles with environmental and public health advocates who cite a number of risks associated with the facilities. (Read the rest of the story.)