ADEM Won’t Lower Cancer Risk
Today, “the Alabama Environmental Management Commission voted unanimously this afternoon to defeat a proposal to lower the cancer risk allowed from chemicals poured into Alabama’s waterways.” The Alabama Environmental Management Commission oversees the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM).
Twenty-eight other states and nearly two-thirds of the country’s population live with the tougher standards that were proposed for Alabama, but the agency whose mission it is to “improve the quality of Alabama’s environment and the health of all its citizens” agreed with Alabama Power, the Alabama Coal Association, and the Business Council of Alabama that our lower standard is good enough for Alabamians.
More from today’s story:
The state’s water rules are written that 1 in 100,000 people could get cancer from chemicals in the state’s waters. Clean water advocates had asked for a tougher rule incorporating a standard of 1 in 1 million.
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Is anyone else shocked a state agency ruled in favor of the big mules again?
Comment by walt moffett — June 29, 2007 @ 9:05 pm
No.
Comment by Kathy — June 30, 2007 @ 9:50 am
Hey, is anyone reading correctly?? They denied it and sent it to the a select committee. And, btw, Dr. Felker was present at the meeting.
Comment by moonbeam — June 30, 2007 @ 5:51 pm
Moonbeam, I am not sure what your point is. Are you saying that sending it to a committee is a hopeful thing? Perhaps it is hopeful in that it not completely dead, but the idea that the group needs more time to consider the proposal rings a little hollow when you consider that the petitions were presented three months ago and the vote was already postponed once (from April to June).
Legislative committees routinely kill legislation by sending it to sub-committees; is that what is happening here? Will it languish, not quite killed but never really considered, like the draft of a strategic plan (pdf) finalized last August for the Environmental Management Commission that has been sitting on the shelf ever since?
Comment by Danny — June 30, 2007 @ 10:19 pm