In 1968, the National Academy of Sciences estimated the annual release to the marine environment, from both dumping and disposal (through a pipe), of 100 million tons of petroleum products, two to four million tons of acid chemical wastes from pulp mills, more than one million tons of heavy metals in industrial wastes, and more than 100,000 tons of organic chemical wastes.
EPA records indicate that between 1946 and 1970, more than 55,000 containers of radioactive wastes were ocean dumped at three ocean dump sites in the Pacific Ocean. In addition, almost 34,000 containers of radioactive wastes were ocean dumped at three dump sites off the East Coast of the United States from 1951 to 1962.
REF:
http://www.EPA.gov
Earth's Coral Reefs Slowly Decline
Study backs environmentalists' suspicions that chemicals from sewer pipes and coastal runoff may be harming coral reefs.
Coral reefs reduce beach erosion, support tourism and serve as breeding grounds and habitat for fish.
A 2006 report by the United Nations Environment Programme put the value of coral reefs at $100,000 to $600,000 per square kilometer per year.
The UNEP report states that 30 percent of the world’s coral reefs are severely damaged or dead and that 60 percent of remaining reefs will vanish by 2030.
Environmentalists have long suspected this chemical brew of playing a role in the decline of coral reefs.
Now a study by academic and government scientists has tentatively linked sewage pipes and coastal runoff to coral damage off southeast Florida, finding harmful changes in levels of molecules associated with the ability to heal wounds.
Six sewage pipes in Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties discharge about 300 million gallons a day into the ocean.
While the sewage undergoes treatment, no one claims the water is perfectly clean.
Waste-water loaded with nitrogen, phosphorus and ammonia, the treated sewage is suspected of fueling the growth of algae that smother South Florida's only living reefs to death. These Florida reefs had been the protection for millions of vividly colored tropical fish.
The reef research is being coordinated by the Southeast Florida Coral Reef Initiative, a state-sponsored group of scientists and government officials trying to come up with ways to protect the reefs against ship groundings, coastal development and other threats.
Chantal Collier, is a reef specialist for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
Tim Powell, a DEP permitting supervisor, said the best solution would be to recycle treated sewage to irrigate lawns, golf courses and other places that need water. In addition to reducing ocean discharges, it would ease the demand on the region's supply of fresh water.
Broward County (alone), Waste Services discharges 40 Million gallons a day into the ocean off Pompano Beach, Florida.
Reducing the pesticides, fertilizers, oils and other chemicals washing into the ocean from cities and farms may be more difficult to solve than sewage pollution. To a person spreading fertilizer on a lawn in West Boca, it's not obvious they could be harming a coral reef 20 miles away.
"We have a lot of green lawns, and people want to keep them green," Collier said. "A lot of chemicals are used in that process, and some of that finds its way into the ocean."
David Fleshler:
dfleshler(at)sun-sentinel.com
tel: 954-356-4535
PBDE contamination indicate U.S. levels are now 50 times higher than levels found in Sweden.
REF: MindFully.org
PBDEs are remarkably similar to PCBs, a class of chemicals found to cause immune system suppression, as well as altered sexual development, plus cancer, and delayed brain development, lower IQ, and even behavioral problems like hyperactivity... in humans.
As with PCBs, exposure to PBDEs is particularly harmful during the critical window of brain development during pregnancy and early childhood.
Levels of toxic PBDEs in people are rising dramatically (exponentially).
Some types of PBDEs concentrate in the tissues of living organisms. As a result, they bioaccumulate, or build up in the food chain, and now can be found in human blood, fat tissue, and breast milk. Initial studies of PBDE contamination of breast milk indicate U.S. levels are 40 to 60 times higher than levels found in Sweden. Levels of PBDEs in animal and human tissues are growing exponentially, doubling every two to five years. At this rate, tissue levels will increase 100- to 1000- fold every 25 years.
All commercial PBDE compounds should be considered bioaccumulative.
Recent research (2003) shows that PBDE exposure can interrupt brain development in mice, permanently impairing learning and movement.
Scientists have never identified a "safe" level of PBDE exposure, that does not produce damage.
Additionally, both PCBs and PBDEs are found in humans, and their effects on brain development are additive.
The most highly exposed people (2003) may now have PBDE levels within two-fold of the levels shown to damage mice.
If PBDE concentrations in people continue to double every 2.5 years, levels found in the average person will reach this threshold in 2013.
Scientists reported the first indications of systemic harm to life caused by PCBs as early as 1937, however, North American industry decided to use 74 million pounds of PBDEs, in 1999 alone.
Experience with PCBs shows that failure to act on early warnings can lead to irreversible environmental contamination and damage.
More than 2.8 billion gallons of industrial waste water per day are discharged directly into U.S. ocean waters (U.S. EPA), excluding electric utilities and offshore oil and gas effluents.
Heavy metals released from industry, such as mercury and lead, are often found in marine life, including many of those often consumed by humans. The longer-lived, larger fish such as king mackerel, tilefish, swordfish and shark often contain harmful levels of the pollutant mercury which can harm the developing brain and nervous system of children and fetuses.
The list of dangerous chemical pollutants is long, including chemical contaminants like pesticides, pharmaceutical agents, and biological contaminants like bacteria, viruses, and protozoa.
Dioxins from the pulp and paper bleaching process can cause genetic chromosomal degradation in marine animals and may even cause cancer in humans.
PCB's (polychlorinated biphenyls), which usually come from older electrical equipment, typically cause reproduction problems in most marine organisms.
Poly-aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) are another source of marine toxic pollution and typically come from oil pollution and burning wood and coal. These PAH's are responsible for causing genetic chromosomal aberrations in many marine animals.
For the first time, quantitative water samples from the Florida Keys and sponge tissues in the Dry Tortugas, contained entero-viruses.
Species identified in the Keys included Coxsackie viruses and Poliovirus.
This was the first time that human wastewater indicators had been detected in benthic reef dwelling invertebrates in the Florida Keys reef tract, lending further credence to the hypothesis that human wastewater is in part responsible for the deterioration of Florida's reefs.
Reef Check Australia is part of the United Nations official community-based coral reef monitoring organisation. Reef Check Australia’s Marketing and Communications Manager, Roger Beeden, said that the competition was designed to raise community awareness of the threats to our coral reefs...
We asked people to come up with a name, and a slogan for the beer, and an educational concept that would help make Reef conservation into a conversation topic,” Mr Beeden said. “We were very pleased to get more than 100 entries, and some really great ideas,” he said.
The name Beeramundi was the brainchild of Eion Howe. The judges were particularly impressed with ‘Beeramundi’ as it relates to both the highly prized estuarine Barramundi and the protected Barramundi Cod found on the Reef. The artwork for the beer shows a Barramundi Cod peering out of the label.
A team effort by Dean Miller, Alana Grech and James Moloney was responsible for the slogan “Saving the Reef one beer at a time”.
Johnston Davidson was the winner of the educational concept part of the competition, with his idea to feature a Reef quiz on beer coasters, with questions on one side, and the answers on the other.
Beeramundi will be available on draught from Friday the 21st of April at the Brewery, Flinders Mall Townsville. The prizes will be presented at a public launch at the Brewery at 8pm on April 21st. Beer and Reef enthusiasts can support Reef Check simply by enjoying a Beeramundi from Townsville’s own microbrewery. Financial support will come in the form of a percentage profit donation from each Beeramundi that is sold.
Source: Reef Check Australia
T R I = Toxic Release Inventory
By Karl Blankenship
TRI data, including facility-specific and chemical - specific listings, are available to the public.
The figures show that 180.2 million pounds of TRI chemical releases were "reported" in the Chesapeake Bay Area watershed in 1988.
Jackie Savitz, a staff scientist with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, noted that EPA studies of water discharge permits have found that only about 10 percent of the toxics entering waterways are counted in the TRI data. That was largely due, she said, to the fact that wastewater treatment plants are not required to submit TRI data.
Rich Batiuk, toxics coordinator with the EPA Bay Program's Office, said it was unclear exactly what percentage of all toxic emissions are captured by the TRI requirement.
Facility-by-facility, as the data is publicly reported, some of the manufacturers might make voluntary reductions as a goodwill gesture... after tons of their toxins are in the Ocean, silently killing all dimensions of life, from coral reefs to blue whales and eventually, the humans who consume seafood, ironically, for their health.
Many of the TRI numbers are based on estimates, and some of the reductions over the years have also been decried as "paper reductions" that resulted from changes in the way estimates were made.
In some cases, huge errors in the data have been found by government auditors, but EPA officials say the numbers have become more reliable over time.
Even more toxins are released into the air, and not all manufacturers are required to report their toxic releases.
Federal Government facilities, which are planning to make a 75 percent reduction in chemical releases, did not have to report the toxic data until 1994.
The figures made public show that 180.2 million pounds of TRI chemical releases were reported in the watershed in 1988.
By 1993 releases declined to 85.7 million pounds.
In 1995, the EPA began requiring industries to report releases of an additional 286 chemicals and 650 substances.
Federal facilities, which are to make a 75 percent reduction in chemical releases, did not have to compile such data until 1994.
And while releases of Toxics of Concern have declined from 1.6 million pounds in 1988 to 730,644 pounds in 1993, only eight of those 14 chemicals, which are considered to pose the greatest threat to the environment, were on the reporting list prior to 1995.
For the Toxics of Concern included in the 1993 data, naphthalene releases were reported to be down 95 percent from 1988; PCBs were down 89 percent; cadmium was down 49 percent; chromium was down 21 percent; copper was down 70 percent, and lead was down 7 percent. No releases were reported for mercury or chlordane.
In 1995, industries will have to begin reporting releases of atrazine, benzo[a]anthracene, benzo[a]pyrene and tributyltin. There are no reporting requirements for the remaining two Toxics of Concern, fluoranthene and chrysene.
The Toxics Release Inventory stems from the 1986 Emergency Planning and Community "Right-to-Know" Act. It requires manufacturers to report releases of listed chemicals IF they have 10 or more full-time employees and process more than 25,000 pounds, or use more than 10,000 pounds, of any listed chemical during the calendar year.
Since 1988, the number of facilities reporting TRI data in the watershed has ranged from 845 to 974. Because of fluctuating production levels and other factors, some manufacturers do not have to report every year.
The TRI list is not a comprehensive measure of the amount of toxics entering the environment. It does not, for example, measure car emissions, discharges from utilities, releases from small businesses and manufacturers, pesticides used in agriculture or discharges from sewage treatment plants.
For information, contact the EPAs Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Hotline, at 1-800-535-0202.
Government officials, for uncounted reasons, repeatedly allow deep pocket corporations to discharge toxic waste into our Oceans, at levels harmful to the planet's ability to heal.
The Federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is violating the Endangered Species Act (ESA) by letting the state's permitting system, potentially contribute to the decline of salmon and other protected creatures, the groups claimed.
Five environmental groups filed a formal notice and plan to sue the EPA for inadequate oversight of water pollution. The move marks the first major effort since Puget Sound chinook were protected in 1999 to force the government to better control legal discharges and toxic stormwater runoff.
The EPA is responsible for water quality but has delegated that authority to Washington state since the 1970s.
US Government officials said they hadn't had time to review the complaints but maintain they use a "rigorous process" to ensure pollution discharges aren't dangerous.
"We feel like we're using the best science available," said state Department of Ecology spokesman Glenn Kuper.
The environmental groups, including Puget Soundkeeper Alliance and People for Puget Sound, commissioned a scientific report and cited numerous examples they said highlight failings in the state's system for controlling water pollution.
They claim Ecology has underestimated the number of polluted rivers and streams around Puget Sound.
They also contend the state has overestimated how effectively sewage and toxic discharges from 170 major industries and 86 wastewater-treatment plants are diluted once dumped into the Sound.
US government officials allow paper mills, oil refineries and other industries dump everything from mercury, lead and zinc to dozens of toxic organic compounds into the Sound, relying on computer models to ensure they are diluted in "mixing zones" before spreading to the rest of the Sound.
In addition, when rains run over parking lots, roads and construction sites, that washes heavy metals, bacteria, viruses, oil and pesticides into the Sound that, at the right concentrations, can harm the immune systems, spawning and development of fish and other species.
"All the copper, the toxic chemicals and the heavy metals they permit?
How can it not be harmful?" asked Richard Smith, the lead attorney for the groups. "Can I prove that? I don't know. But I don't have to."
EPA has an obligation under the Endangered Species Act to consult with salmon managers, such as the National Marine Fisheries Service, any time the federal government takes an action that could hurt salmon.
Smith argued that even though the state is effectively in charge, EPA, as the oversight agency, still must prove to salmon managers that the permit system is safe. But EPA has not.
Mike Gearheard, who runs EPA's water-quality program in the Northwest and Alaska, said his agency rarely inserts itself into the state's management of pollution.
"We engage on a small handful of issues when they're important," he said, citing his agency's recent rejection of Washington's new water-quality standards for major rivers as an example.
He also said it's not clear that EPA is required to do more.
When the Clean Water Act was passed in 1972, it stated two goals: that there would be zero discharge of pollutants into the nation's waterways by 1985, and that waterways would be "fishable and swimmable" by mid-1983. Today, industry is still discharging approximately 7 billion pounds of toxic chemicals into the environment annually and 40 percent of America's waterways are unsuitable for fishing and swimming.
Scientists find substance linked to diseases in dolphins
BY JIM WAYMER
FLORIDA TODAY
Scientists have discovered chemicals used to fireproof plastics and products in the blood and blubber of bottlenose dolphin in the Indian River Lagoon.
They don't yet know for certain how the chemicals got there, but they suspect they could be playing a role in the new diseases, such as herpes, that are attacking the marine mammals.
"The data suggests at this point that these flame retardants suppress a part of the immune system that makes antibodies," said Greg Bossart, one of the researchers who made the discovery.
"There's a potential of opening up these animals to a Pandora's box of diseases."
Bossart and his colleagues found flame retardants called polybrominated diphenyl ethers or PBDEs in tests of dolphin in the lagoon and in Charleston Harbor, S.C.
They measured mean levels of total PBDEs in lagoon dolphin at about 1,500 parts per billion in fat tissue, more than three times the highest levels found in humans, 500 parts per billion.
The EPA’s Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) requires industrial facilities of a certain size
and in certain sectors to report annual discharges of about 650 chemicals and chemical
categories (e.g., arsenic and “arsenic compounds”) sent to publicly owned treatment
works. These 650 substances represent only a portion of the more than 75,000 chemicals
registered in the United States for commercial use.
Given that less than 0.001% of Earth is living Ocean... I am surprised that the millions of tons of dumped and deadly manufacturing byproducts are not mentioned as often as the rising CO2 levels and rising temps in the only living Oceans in the entire universe.
Larry
http://OpenDoorWorld.org
Key Largo sewer plant could face fines, while PK plant OK
BY STEVE GIBBS
AND ROBERT SILK
Free Press Staff
UPPER KEYS — The Florida Department of Environmental Protection has notified the Key Largo Wastewater Treatment District of possible treatment plant violations that, if not remedied, could bring a $10,000 per day penalty.
But district General Manager Chuck Fishburn is downplaying the May 10 letter which seeks the district's cooperation in resolving the matter.
As of late last week the district's lone plant, brought on line last May, appeared virtually certain to fall short of state-mandated annual treatment standards in three of the four areas the DEP monitors, said Steven Johnson, a DEP environmental manager.
Meanwhile, a dozen miles down the highway, the north Plantation Key wastewater treatment plant in Islamorada is working just fine.
Readings running from May 2006 through March 2007 at the Key Largo plant showed an average phosphorus count of 2 milligrams per liter in newly treated water, twice the allowable limit. Nitrogen levels were running more than four times the allowable limit. And total suspended solids were averaging 8.7 milligrams per liter, above the allowable limit of 5 milligrams per liter. Total suspended solids are minute particles of bacteria that remain in the water after it is filtered.
Only carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand, or CBOD, levels — pollutants such as sugars and starches that feed bacteria — fell within annual state standards.
Despite the discouraging totals, figures show that after a tough start the plant has been functioning much better in recent months. In March, for example, readings were below the acceptable annual average for phosphorus, nitrogen and CBOD.
Johnson said it is not unusual for plants to have problems in the their first months of operation due to the complexity of the biological process involved in sewage treatment.
But the Key Largo plant is still not making the grade on its treatment of suspended solids. In March the average readings nearly doubled what would be allowed on an annual basis and one reading showed 14.5 milligrams per liter of the pesky bacteria, significantly above what the state allows on any given sample.
Fishburn says he will give new plant operator John Capone a few weeks to see if he can work out the problem with the plant's builder, the Haskell Company.
"We're committed to make it right," said Pete Kinsley, Haskell's division leader. "We're ready to step up on this job."
The district still retains $330,000 of Haskell's money pending the plant passing all of the DEP requirements. Kinsley is scheduled to be in Key Largo this week.
Capone started with the Key Largo district as its plant manager two weeks ago. He says he is optimistic about getting the filters to bring down those suspended solids, but needs some time.
"I haven't been here long enough to figure out if this filtration system will do the job," he said. "I still have hopes for it."
Though Key Largo's plant, which has been processing an average of 36,000 gallons of water per day, has struggled to meet state standards during its first year of operation, its collection system has performed well.
That contrasts sharply with the Islamorada-run north Plantation Key treatment system, which has garnered headlines for the many failures and sewage backups it has sent into homes. But the problems have not translated over to the plant.
After opening in July and going through some of the expected immediate growing pains, pollutant levels in the treated water have quickly declined.
By the end of March, the overall average levels of phosphorus, suspended solids and CBOD were well within the annual state requirements. Only nitrogen, with an average since July of 4.4 milligrams per liter, remained out of compliance.
But that, said Johnson, is because of very high readings immediately after the plant went on line. In recent months, nitrogen levels at the Plantation Key plant have been well below the state mandated 3 milligrams per liter.
On a recent Thursday, Lee Penick, a project manager for U.S. Water, which operates the Plantation Key plant, peered over the holding tank where the treated water is stored. Though the water was 6 feet deep, Penick could see the bottom as clear as glass.
"This particular treatment system, the way it is set up, is a much better design than what Key Largo has," Penick said.
But Johnson declined to speculate on why Islamorada's plant, which in March processed an average of 31,000 gallons of sewage per day, has worked better, faster.
"They are two different designs of plants, like a Chevy and a Dodge," he said in reference to the different types of technology they employ. "One seems to be doing better — is that because of the operation or because of the design? I can't tell you that."
Both designs produce a by-product of sludge which must be hauled out of the county for disposal.
Islamorada has yet to haul a single gallon of sludge, though Penick said the time has nearly come to move their first load.
Key Largo, on the other hand, hauls about 10,000 gallons of sludge per month at a cost of 20 cents a gallon, for a total of $2,000 per month.
But that is a small portion of what it costs to operate the plant.
From October 2006 through March 2007, the district spent $240,683 — or about $40,000 a month — on plant operations, documents show.
Islamorada spends approximately $20,000 per month on plant operations, Utilities Director Myles Milander said.
That figure does not include the approximately $3,500 spent each major rainstorm to protect the system from water immersion. Those expenses, which relate to system defects, will be covered by contractor WPC Industrial, Milander said.
Environmental Enforcement Under the Bush Administration
by Eric Schaeffer
May 23, 2007
Over the past five years, environmental violators have been less likely to face court actions, be subject to criminal investigation, or pay civil or criminal penalties. There is one bright spot: EPA staff have negotiated settlements that require polluters to spend billions to reduce emissions. But this achievement is threatened by EPA's continued efforts to weaken laws its own staff is trying to enforce.
By CARL HIAASEN
Say goodbye to the days when you dipped a toe in a lake to see if it was warm enough for a swim.
Soon that toe will be the only part of your anatomy that you'll dare immerse in certain waters, and only then if you're not especially worried about arsenic, cyanide or fecal bacteria.
Florida's Department of Environmental Protection is steaming ahead with plans to reclassify state waterways for the benefit of corporate and agricultural polluters.
Rather than requiring paper mills, phosphate mines and ranches to clean up their effluent, the DEP has devised a ranking system that could forever surrender some of the most damaged rivers, lakes and canals to those who are using them as a sewer.
Florida waterways now fall into one of five classes, depending on cleanliness and safety. Class I is drinking water, followed by shellfish harvesting (Class II), recreational uses such as swimming, boating and fishing (Class III), agricultural (Class IV) and industrial (Class V), which is currently not used.
It's noteworthy that the state has more rigorous aquatic health standards for oysters than for humans, a policy that would be creatively expanded under the DEP's new proposal.
Under the plan, Class III recreational waters would be divided into three ''Human Use'' categories with escalating degrees of risk.
Waterways classified as HU-3 theoretically would be safe for all fishing and swimming activities. Full-body contact with the water would not be considered dangerous, so you could dunk all your extremities, not just a toe. However, an outing to a river rated HU-4 would be more adventurous. Fishing would be permitted, but the state would recommend only ``limited human contact.''
By way of elaboration, the DEP says an HU-4 waterway would be considered ''splashable'' -- meaning a splash or two won't be toxic. You still shouldn't go in the water, but a few random drops won't necessarily blister your flesh.
Fun, huh? And I bet you can't wait to reel in one of those two-headed carp and fry it up for supper.
Things could get seriously interesting on waterways rated HU-5 -- ''boatable,'' though unswimmable and unfishable. No human contact would be advised, so forget the shoreline picnic unless you've got hazmat suits for the whole family.
Gift to polluters
DEP insists that a new rating system is necessary because some Florida waterways are misclassified. The agency says it's unrealistic to expect water in an urban drainage canal, for example, to be as clean as that of an estuary or a natural spring.
But critics such as Linda Young of the Clean Water Network say the proposed Human Use categories could be a gift to polluters, allowing them to continue poisoning waterways at levels hazardous to fish, wildlife and humans.
Instead of cleaning a polluted river to make it safe for all swimming and fishing -- as the rules now putatively require -- heavy industry and agriculture will be able to lobby for the more lenient ''splashable'' or ''boatable'' rating.
Such an option would have been a godsend to the Buckeye pulp mill in Perry, on Florida's northwest coast. Built in 1952 by Procter & Gamble, the mill dumps 58 million gallons of dioxin-filled waste daily into the Fenholloway River, a foul, lifeless spume that threatens the Gulf of Mexico.
For years, state and federal regulators looked the other way while Young and other conservationists tried to make Buckeye stop killing the Fenholloway and restore it to the standards of a Class III waterway.
Buckeye wants to bypass the river and pipe its filth directly into the Gulf, a ludicrous idea approved by the knuckleheads at DEP. The case remains tangled in court, but Buckeye would have prevailed a long time ago if the Fenholloway was designated anything less than fishable-swimmable.
Under DEP's draft plan, companies will be able to flush substantially heavier loads of contaminants into HU-4 and HU-5 waterways. The limits haven't been set, but the long list of acceptable chemicals and compounds include benzene, arsenic, methylene chloride, chloroform, mercury, lead, copper, nickel, arsenic, PCBs, pesticides, fertilizers and that yummy old favorite, fecal Coli-form bacteria.
At a time when pollution threatens virtually every important body of water in Florida -- from the St. Johns to Lake Okeechobee to Florida Bay -- it's incredible that the state wants to make life easier for the polluters.
For the correct fee, governments give the "green light" to industry to break the law.
June 2007
Startling realities are coming to light of the city's sewer-use practices, including the prevalence of "special arrangements" that actually give the "green light" for industry to break the lawful limits of toxic dumping into the Ocean, for a "fee" for services rendered... paid to the government... to abuse the only living Oceans in the entire universe.
VFT industry distills coal tar from steel makers, and then dumps / discharges "phenol" into the sewers, leading to the Oceans, at up to 1,000 times the legal limit.
Is it any wonder why the Oceans and coral reefs are dying.
By Pamala J. Suarez Keynoter Contributor
Posted-Friday, July 20, 2007
It's scheduled to be unveiled this Tuesday.
A study funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has found evidence of human sewage contamination on a reef more than six miles off the Keys.
Complete results of the study, "Human Fecal Indicator Bacteria and Pathogenic Viruses in Offshore Reefs and Human Recreational Risk in Nearshore Waters of the Florida Keys," are expected to be revealed at Tuesday's meeting of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Water Quality Protection Program steering committee.
The meeting is scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. Tuesday at Key Colony Beach City Hall.
Bill Kruczynski, program scientist for the EPA's water-quality protection program, will give the study report. He declined comment about the study's findings, saying he would issue no specific information about what the researchers discovered until Tuesday's meeting because the study, conducted by researchers from the University of Georgia, U.S. Geological Survey and Michigan State University, is undergoing peer review, meaning experts in the field are examining it to check its validity. The study was submitted to the EPA in December.
Until that review is complete, or until Tuesday's meeting - whichever comes first - Kruczynski said he would have no comment except to say "the conclusion of the report supports improving wastewater and stormwater treatment in Monroe County."
Kruczynski said the study's principal investigators have been told not to issue statements to the media pending the outcome of the peer review.
However, a copy of the study obtained by the Keynoter and Keys Sunday paints a grim picture of the quality of ocean water and reefs off the island chain, and cites in-ground untreated waste disposal as the likely culprit.
The document states the goals of the project were to investigate the levels of human waste contamination along a nearshore-to-offshore portion of the Upper Keys using human enteric (intestinal) viruses as the indicator of sewage; and to determine health risks associated with contamination.
Between July 2003 and September 2005, researchers took samples from coral mucus, the water column and groundwater at five testing stations off Key Largo.
Coliform found
Researchers detected evidence of fecal coliform, enterococci and C. perfringens - which are found in human and animal waste - at several testing stations off Key Largo. Although the levels were well below those indicating a hazard to recreational swimmers and divers, fecal coliform bacteria were detected on coral growing offshore, and evidence of human enteric viruses were found more than six miles from land.
During the course of the study, researchers also sampled surface water from Port Largo Canal and the canal at West Shore Drive on Big Pine Key.
Coliform bacteria were detected in both areas, and it was found that movement of waterborne contaminants into the bay and ocean waters were dictated by tidal ebb and flow.
Finally, samples were taken from Higgs Beach in Key West and the beach at Bahia Honda State Park. While fecal coliform levels were below state standards, higher levels of enterococci at Higgs corresponded with beach advisories issued twice during the study period.
If the concentration is high enough, viral and/or bacterial contaminants can pose a health risk to people exposed to them by swimming or diving.
They can also kill coral, said DeeVon Quirolo, executive director of Reef Relief in Key West.
"Coral are highly sensitive to any pollution at all, and we've already witnessed the decline of the coral due to contamination," Quirolo said. "The marine ecosystem cannot absorb this level of pollution. We have got to get systems installed to adequately treat our sewage and deal with stormwater runoff.
"This latest study just underlines the urgency of swift action on the part of our municipalities and the county."
The Keys are under a state mandate to replace septic tanks and cesspits with modern sewer systems by 2010 or face possible sanctions. Many communities throughout the area are scrambling for money to complete their sewage treatment facilities.
‘Same song and dance'
Islamorada flats guide Mike Collins, a governing board member of the South Florida Water Management District, said he has read the study and, in his opinion, "it's the same old song and dance."
"This is ridiculous and inexcusable," Collins said. "We've had evidence of contamination for years and we all know it's due to a lack of proper wastewater treatment."
He said the water district stopped allocating money two years ago for studies like the one to be released Tuesday because "nothing ever comes out of those studies."
Collins also said he does not understand why the EPA has been holding the results of the current study for seven months without releasing its findings to the public.
"The federal government's behavior in this is despicable," Collins said. "It's wrong, and people should be screaming from the rooftops."
Citizens will have a chance to hear the full report of the study and comment on it and other topics of concern at Tuesday's meeting. A public comment session is scheduled to begin at 3:15 p.m.; Kruczyski's presentation of it is set for 11 a.m.
Also on the meeting agenda are annual reports on projects monitoring seagrass, coral and water quality, as well as a report on the status of the Monroe County wastewater master plan and an update on the status of money for wastewater and stormwater upgrades.
Relationships among Exposure to Environmental Contaminants,
Immunotoxicity, and Individual and Population Health Effects
in Marine Mammals
Immunotoxicology Subgroup Report
Subgroup Members: De Guise (Rapporteur), Fisher,
Fournier, Hall, Hollady, O’Hara, and Thomas
Issue Title: Relationships among Exposure to Environmental Contaminants,
Immunotoxicity, and Individual and Population Health Effects in Marine Mammals
Issue Description and Rationale:
Why Is This Issue Important? In recent years,
large-scale epizootics have affected several populations
of phocid seals (Geraci et al. 1982, Osterhaus
et al. 1988) and dolphins (Domingo et al. 1990,
1992, Lipscomb et al. 1994, 1996, Schulman et al.
1997). Many of the animals that died during these
disease outbreaks had high levels of environmental
contaminants in tissues (Hall et al. 1992, Aguilar
and Borrell 1994). Viral infections were strongly
implicated as the primary causes of these epizootics.
However, experimental animals chronically exposed
to PCBs are known to have increased susceptibility
to viral infections. A wide variety of viruses were
used in the experiments, including duck hepatitis
virus, a picornavirus (Friend and Trainer 1970),
murine leukemia virus, a retrovirus (Koller 1977),
and herpes simplex virus (Imanishi et al. 1980).
Accordingly, an immunosuppressive role of
organohalogens has been suggested to explain the
severity of the cetacean and pinniped epizootics (Eis
1989).
Contaminant-induced immunosuppression has
also been suggested as an underlying cause of
abnormal conditions observed in two other wild
marine mammal populations: the high incidence,
severity, and diversity of lesions, often associated
with opportunistic and mildly pathogenic bacteria,
found in dead beluga whales from the St. Lawrence
River (Martineau et al. 1988, De Guise et al. 1995)
and the prevalence of infectious disease as a mortality
factor in southern sea otters (Kannan et al.
1998). Although many contaminants in the marine
environment, including organochlorines, heavy
metals, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
(PAHs), are well characterized as immunotoxicants
in laboratory rodents, immunotoxic effects on
marine mammals exposed to these agents have been
demonstrated to only a limited extent.
What Is Generally Known about the Issue?
Direct determination of the effects of environmental
contaminants on the immune systems of free-ranging
marine mammals is difficult largely because of
logistical and ethical considerations. Approaches to
evaluating the effects have ranged from semi-field
and field studies to in vitro exposures and animal
models (Table 2).
Immune cells of beluga whales from native
hunts in the Canadian sub-Arctic were exposed in
vitro to heavy metals and organochlorines. The
proliferation of lymphocytes was significantly
reduced in cells exposed to concentrations of 10-5 M
of HgCl2 and CdCl2 (but not in cells exposed to
lower concentrations) when compared to unexposed
control cells (De Guise et al. 1996). These concentrations
are within the ranges of mercury and cadmium
found in tissues of free-ranging beluga whales
(De Guise et al. 1996). Similarly, the proliferation
of lymphocytes exposed to 20 ppm or more of PCB
138 and 50 ppm or more of p,p’-DDT, but not to
PCB 153, 180, or 169, or to p,p’-DDE, was significantly
reduced when compared to unexposed control
cells (De Guise et al. 1998). Interestingly, some
PCB congener concentrations which had no effect
on splenocyte proliferation when tested individually
(5 ppm) were found to reduce proliferation significantly
when three of them were mixed (De Guise et
al. 1998). It is difficult to explain why the addition
of PCB 169, a coplanar congener that is usually
considered particularly immunotoxic, would have
reduced the toxicity of the mixture on beluga whale
cells.
I'm a travel writer from the United States traveling the world to photograph and experience different cultures throughout the world. I've gone many places and seen many beautiful countries and had some wonderful experiences. Nothing in my experience though, prepared me for what I would find along the Southern coast of Spain.
I first arrived on Spain's Mediterranean coast with the expectation that this would be the Riviera of Spain and that May would be the most delightful time to visit. Indeed, when I traveled to my host destination along the Andalusia coast, the scenery was very spectacular.
I was reminded of the lyrics of Chieto Lindo, about a man who dreamt of returning home to the land of the clean pristine sky and purity that was Andalusia.
Its beautiful vistas and rugged coastline and lovely beaches reminded me of the western coast of California. Looking outward toward the Mediterranean with its sparkling sea was awe inspiring. It was truly a thrilling sight to see.
As I headed down the coast starting from Malaga and heading for Motril, Spain, I began to notice the hillside dotted with what I later found out were greenhouses that were planted with vegetables year around. I learned that Spain's Andalusia was a primary source of vegetables for all of Europe.
The greenhouses are large rectangular shaped structures covered in plastic and dot the mountainsides along the coast line and terrace up the sides of the mountains. Looking seaward is spectacular but looking toward the mountainside is like looking at a commercial enterprise run amuck.
My ultimate destination was a host family hacienda on a mountaintop with a view of the Mediterranean about three kilometers inland from the town of Castel de Faro. As we drove inland toward this rural tourist location the view went from pristine to ghastly almost immediately.
The road took us alongside what was later described to me as a Rambler or what might be called in western terms a culvert that ran between two roads and was designed to handle the runoff of the beautiful Sierra Nevada Mountains all the way to the Mediterranean Sea.
The rambler was about a hundred and fifty meters across with a sloped cement sides to handle large amounts of water.I could see that the entire dry bed was littered with pieces of plastic and litter of all kinds and description. As we drove the short distance along the rambler and less than two kilometers from the quiet seaside town, we passed through smoke from a burning dumpsite that wafted its foul smell across the highway. Part of the site was hidden but I could still see that the trash mound was over five hundred meters long.
As we neared the resort hacienda, I couldn't help but notice the trash that littered the entire length of the highway and up the side of the mountain that took us up. It wasn't until I arrived at my little oasis inside the compound that I felt at all comfortable. The grounds and restored Spanish farmhouse is beautifully maintained and flowers and plants give the place a lovely feeling. All of the beauty was diminished by flies. Hordes of flies attracted to the waste from the greenhouses made being out of doors on even the most beautiful days horribly uncomfortable.
I settled in and began exploring my surroundings and found that inside the compound was lovely but when I hiked beyond the grounds I was assaulted by trash and litter everywhere I looked. I walked down to the base of the mountain and through the underpass to the rambler. I hiked inside the rambler and was horrified to see big sheets of plastic and trash everywhere with an unobstructed path directly into the Mediterranean Sea. I really did not believe what I was seeing.
I also made it a point to hike into town along the highway opposite the dumpsite only to walk the gauntlet of the foul odor of smoke from the smoldering site. The trash and litter carried the entire length of the road to town. It was appalling.
As I began to document with pictures and video what I was seeing, I was shocked to see flocks of goats and I was later informed sheep that farmers sent down the rambler to graze on the trash and scrub. I wondered to myself how much of the toxic waste material was eaten by the animals and exactly how these animals found there way into the food chain and what kind of effect there would be on future generations.
The rambler fed directly into the Mediterranean Sea. The devastation that the plastic sheeting and toxic containers must be causing to this body of water can only be described as catastrophic. I was told that very little fishing was done in this area as there were few fish to be had. From a purely scientific perspective, the plastic does not break down but does deteriorate to small enough particles to be ingested by even the smallest fish. The contamination of the fish and wildlife feeding on the fish, which include you and me, create a devastating chain of mutation that we can hardly imagine. The carcinogens produced in this process are dynamic and immediately damaging to human life and our precious environment.
I didn't think it could be much worse until I actually saw and drove by the dumpsite on the opposite side of the rambler. The festering burning mess contained the waste of the greenhouses and the toxic plastic of uncontrolled trash that included toxic plastic containers. Next to the dumpsite was a so called controlled plastic disposal site with fencing that was completely broken down and the site looked like it had not been tended to in a very long time.
I was shocked to see a group of farmers that had brought there herds of sheep down to graze on the actual dump itself. I observed and filmed three shepherds tending their flock with hats pulled down to hide their faces. The long term effect of this could only be devastating to the people that might consume this contaminated meat and the thought of it entering our food chain was horrifying.
Wedged at one end of the dumpsite and the plastic recycle compound was one of the greenhouse distribution centers. The workers at his plant were subject to the toxic illegal fires every single day. Indeed the smoke carried into the surrounding area and I'm sure the village itself.
When I actually went into the dumpsite itself, I found discarded plastic bottles that contained ever type and verity chemicals that were clearly illegal to be disposed of in this manner.
This was not a secret location in an out of the way location but within clear site of the sea and one of the areas landmark historical ruins. There could be no possibility that local authorities were not aware of the contents of the site, the animals that grazed on the toxic waste, the plastic sheets that were washed into the sea, and the open burning of toxic waste products. But apparently the local farmers and community are fine with this as it much easier to turn a blind eye to what is happening.
I told my host family of my intention to write an article about the situation there and although they were supportive of this, they were afraid to speak out for fear of reprisal from both the farmers in the area and local authorities.
It is my intention to bring this situation to light in the hope that the National Government of Spain will not continue to allow this situation to continue unabated and unmanaged.
I wondered again whether the man who wished to return home to the pristine beauty that was Andalusia would recognize what it has become.
A small Green Sea Turtle was found along a
rock wall near the Dive In dive center in Key
Largo, completely covered with thick, black
oil. The baby turtle was rescued, using
mayonnaise (which dissolves the oil without
harming the turtle)
www.TurtleHospital.org
CO2 is now absorbed into the Oceans, causing acidification and potentially toppling food chain domino #1, the plankton.
Ocean "acidification" occurs when chemical compounds such as carbon dioxide, sulfur, or nitrogen mix with seawater, a process which lowers the pH and reduces the storage of carbon.
Ocean acidification hampers the ability of marine organisms—such as sea urchins, corals, and certain types of plankton—to harness calcium carbonate for making hard outer shells or "exoskeletons." These organisms provide essential food and habitat to other species, so their demise could affect entire ocean ecosystems.
Earth's rivers polluted with cancinogenic chemicals
Wed Oct 10, 2007 3:11pm EDT
www.reuters.com
PARIS (Reuters) - Rivers in eastern and northern France found to be contaminated with chemicals that have been outlawed since 1987 and are proving very hard to eliminate, the government reported on Wednesday.
The River "Rhone" which runs through the southeastern corner of France (scientists said) contained dangerous levels of polychlorinated biphenyls ( PCB / PCBs ).
The latest report said additional rivers were in an even worse condition because of industrial dumping dating back decades, including the River Seine which runs through Paris.
"It's a huge clean-up job," Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet, the secretary of state for ecology, told a news conference. Other big rivers in Europe are affected by the same problem, she said.
PCB's were used primarily as a cooling and insulating fluid for electricity transformers and capacitors. It has been banned in France since 1987 after research showed it could cause fertility, growth and cancer in humans.
Kosciusko-Morizet said PCB had been very heavily used in industry since the 1930s and France was suffering the consequences of long-standing pollution.
"Cleaning it up is far from easy. It's very complicated because there are huge amounts of sediment." She said it would be technically and economically impossible to clean up the whole Rhone River... (... what about the Ocean?)
Here is the PCB problem
.... connecting the dots .....
with plastic pollution....
=============-------..-------===============
( text_insert )
"Alguita, the oceanic research vessel from Algalita, just came back from one of its research expeditions in the Pacific Gyre, an area of the Pacific Ocean otherwise known as the Garbage Patch. They collected samples on the surface of the ocean and found evidence of record high concentrations of small plastic particles.
Birds and fish eat the plastic because it mimics the food they eat, zooplankton. Research data from the Algalita Foundation shows plastic particles outnumber zooplankton 6 to 1. Especially concerning is the fact that the plastic pieces can attract and hold hydrophobic elements like PCB and DDT at up to one million times background levels. As a result, this floating plastic is a "poison pill".
... so... the "easy" solution would simply be to get industry to stop
dumping millions of tons of toxins into the rivers/oceans....
( ... going back 50 years or so... )
... then just get the entire world to stop using plastic 'once',
and tossing it into the garbage/oceans....
... that will probably be about as easy as
oh... maybe stopping the use of fossil fuels...
then we can get back to work on that little global warming "issue".... :-)
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