Where's Erin Brokovich When You Need Her?
by Lah-May
Miesen’s poem made me curious. Living in a small city and a basically rural area, I didn’t think there was much to worry about in relation to toxic chemicals in the environment. Boy was I wrong.
I ran across a website (www.scorecard.org)
that basically lets you “Get an in-depth pollution report for your
county, covering air, water, chemicals, and more.”
After entering the zip code in which I live (86336) the information
returned revealed that “In 2002, this county ranked among the dirtier
30% of all counties in the U.S. in terms of land releases.”
Digging a little deeper to find out what I’ve got to worry about, I learned that in Yavapai County the top polluting chemical released in 2002 was chromium (you know, the one Erin Brokovich found out was the cause of so much sickness in Hinkley, California). Chromium is ranked as one of the most hazardous compounds (worst 10%) to human health. In neighboring Coconino County, besides also having the distinction of being a chromium host, the top polluting chemical released was barium compounds, which can have adverse affects on skin or sense organs.
Who do we have to “thank” for these chemicals in our local environment? For the chromium, Scoreboard lists Phelps Dodge Bagdad, Inc. (in Bagdad, Arizona), a metal mining industry, as a major contributor. The Navajo Generating Station (parent company is the Salt River Project) in Coconino County was also a major chromium contributor to the environment in 2002.
Yavapai is also host to other harmful and suspected chemicals such as lead, mercury, and zinc compounds, manganese, sulfuric acid, and ammonia.
If you don’t live in Yavapai or Coconino County, don’t feel left out. No doubt there are tons of toxins being released in your area as well.
I highly recommend visiting the organization Scorecard at the above mentioned website. Not only can you learn more about what’s happening in your environment, you can also click on a button that says, “TAKE ACTION.”