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March 30, 2005
To have and have not
William Stavropoulos, outgoing CEO of Dow Chemical, last year took $2.2 million in bonuses, which works out at $6027.40 a day. His total pay was more than $7 million, or $19,178 a day.
His company's victims must survive on compensation that, over 20 years, works out at 7 cents a day.
Is Stavropoulos's life worth 273,972 times more than a Bhopali's?
DOW EXECUTIVES REWARDED
Pay is directly related to performance for those at the executive level of management at The Dow Chemical Co., and in 2004, meeting and exceeding goals meant rewards.
Along with salaries and stock awards, the top six positions at the company were given between a half million and $2.2 million bonuses for their performance. Bill Stavropoulos, who served 10 months of the year as Chief Executive Officer, received the most – $2.2 million, bringing his total annual compensation to more than $7 million. Andrew Liveris, who took over the helm in November, received $1.55 million in bonus pay, bringing his earnings to $3.6 million.
"As Dow’s (financial) results improve, our compensation is aligned to reward those employees," said Greg Comeaux, global director of compensation and benefits. "Our compensation is reflective of the type of year we had."
For a second year running, the company’s action plan has lifted earnings and profits while cutting costs and reducing debt. In 2004, despite continued pressure from feedstock and energy costs, Dow achieved a drastic increase in overall per-share earnings – $2.93 compared with $1.87 in 2003. It produced record-breaking sales of 40.2 billion, reduced debt by 9 percent and expanded profit margins by $2 billion. Net income was $2.8 billion, exceeding the $1.73 billion in 2003 and towering above the $338 million loss of 2003.
Dow’s independent compensation committee took those numbers into consideration when deciding this year’s salaries and bonuses. The goal is to set executive compensation around the median level of companies with which Dow competes for executive talent. Some of the 18 benchmarkers include General Motors, IBM and 3M.
About 75 percent of executive pay is tied directly to performance. In 2003, the senior executive group was denied both bonus pay and stock awards when net profit lagged below the minimum performance goal of $700 million.
Reporter Kathie Marchlewski can be reached at Kathie@mdn.net or 839-4233.
Posted by bhola at 07:19 AM | Comments (0)
March 25, 2005
"Two years later, dioxin suit in limbo." No surprises there then.
Homeowners in Freeland, Michigan, are chafing at the delay in their case against Dow Chemical which has now been held up two years and is shelved until Michigan's Supreme Court decides an issue that some say could have disastrous effects on the state and national economy.
Writes the Midland Daily News's Kathie Marchlewski, "Gary and Kathy Henry, a Freeland couple, along with about 160 others, are suing for the value of their homes, which they say have been made worthless by dioxin contamination. They also are asking that Dow fund a trust to monitor their health, which they say has been jeopardized by exposure to the historical manufacturing byproduct.
Idyllic Tittabawassee scene, but property prices are being hit. Dow's own property is worth less due to dioxin contamination!
"The health monitoring facet of the suit is what is keeping it from proceeding. Dow argues that plaintiffs haven't claimed actual injuries, and there is no proof that injury ever will occur. Company attorneys say if courts allow people to sue for potential, future injury, then every industry and manufacturer will be at risk of such lawsuits."
The people of Bhopal know very well about the futility of trying to Dow to accept its responsibilities on the issue of health-monitoring, and Bhopal is a city where there can be no doubt that massive harm has occurred and is continuing to occur. Just today, by chance, I've put on bhopal.net a chronicle of the medical catastrophe in Bhopal, culled from twenty years of press clippings. Read it here.
Cast your eye also over this long list of 20 years of medical-related headlines to get a sense of how a corporation that is determined to evade its liabilities can manipulate politicians and drag out lawsuits almost indefinitely.
No surprise then that Dow officials say the stretch of time that has passed since the Freeland dioxin suit was filed is not unusual. Says Dow spokesman Scot Wheeler, "The Michigan Supreme Court is deciding an issue -- the medical monitoring claim -- that is an important issue not only for this case, but is also important for the state of Michigan."
To the residents of Freeland and all others whose health might be impacted by the pollution of the Tittabawassee basin I say this, read the documents I have indicated and beware. This is your fate too, unless you can find support and strength that even Dow and its pals in government and the judiciary cannot ignore.
We who know the horrors of Bhopal would not wish anyone else anywhere in the world to suffer as the people in Bhopal have. We will support you. Let's work together. Let's talk.
(Click extended entry link to read the Midland Daily News article)
TWO YEARS LATER, DIOXIN SUIT IN LIMBO
Kathie Marchlewski, Midland Daily News 03/25/2005
It's been two years today since residents of the Tittabawassee River flood plain reacted to knowledge of their dioxin-contaminated properties with a lawsuit. The now thick court file titled Gary & Kathy Henry et al. v. The Dow Chemical Co. is shelved, on hold in Saginaw County Circuit Court. It's on hold until Michigan's Supreme Court decides an issue that some say could have disastrous effects on the state and national economy.
The Henrys, a Freeland couple, along with about 160 others, are suing for the value of their homes, which they say have been made worthless by dioxin contamination. They also are asking that Dow fund a trust to monitor their health, which they say has been jeopardized by exposure to the historical manufacturing byproduct.
The health monitoring facet of the suit is what is keeping it from proceeding. Dow argues that plaintiffs haven't claimed actual injuries, and there is no proof that injury ever will occur. Company attorneys say if courts allow people to sue for potential, future injury, then every industry and manufacturer will be at risk of such lawsuits.
The high court has until July to decide the issue.
Dow officials say the stretch of time that has passed since the suit was filed is not unusual, especially for a case of this complexity. "The Michigan Supreme Court is deciding an issue -- the medical monitoring claim -- that is an important issue not only for this case, but is also important for the state of Michigan," said Dow spokesman Scot Wheeler.
Meanwhile, the wait for plaintiffs is long, especially for those wanting Dow to pay for their homes so that they can move out of the contaminated flood plain. "Everyone knew when we filed the lawsuit that it would take a long time," Kathy Henry said. "Just how long, no one can predict. A lot of patience has been required, and more will be required in the future. In the end, the truth is on our side, and we can only hope that justice will be served."
DIOXIN SUIT TIMELINE
March 2003
* Kathy and Gary Henry of Freeland, along with 24 other residents of the Tittabawassee River flood plain, file suit against The Dow Chemical Co. seeking the value of their homes, which they believe have been made worthless by dioxin contamination. They also seek the funding of a trust that would monitor their health now and in the future, for dioxin-related health effects.
June 2003
* Saginaw County Circuit Court Judge Leopold Borrello hears Dow and plaintiffs' arguments for the first time. By this time, the number of plaintiffs in the suit has grown to more than 140.
August 2003
* Judge Borrello streamlines the suit by removing claims for trespass, strict liability and punitive damages. He allows plaintiffs to proceed with claims for medical monitoring, nuisance and public nuisance and negligence.
September 2003
* Dow asks Borrello to reconsider his decision to keep the medical monitoring potion of the lawsuit intact.
October 2003
* Dow files a request with the Michigan Court of Appeals, requesting a review of Borrello's decision to allow the medical monitoring claim to remain a claim in the suit. The court decides it will not hear the argument.
November 2003
* A hearing to decide whether the suit should be granted class action certification is moved to December.
December 2003
* Dow files with the Supreme Court, requesting a review of Borrello's decision to allow the medical monitoring claim to remain a claim in the suit.
* A hearing to decide whether the suit should be granted class action certification is moved to January.
January 2004
* A hearing to decide whether the suit should be granted class action certification is moved to February, then to April.
March 2004
* A hearing to decide whether the suit should be granted class action certification is moved to June.
June 2004
* Less than a week before the Saginaw Circuit Court is scheduled to conduct a hearing on the class action status of the case, The Supreme Court agrees to hear Dow's appeal of the medical monitoring facet of the suit. It also ordered circuit court proceedings to stop while the matter is under consideration.
The stay order by the court marks the sixth delay of a class hearing.
* Plaintiffs' lead attorney Jan Helder leaves the law firm handling the case to start his own practice. Teresa Woody of Kansas City-based Stueve Siegel Hanson Woody takes over.
September 2004
* The American Public Health Association, American Lung Association, Science and Environmental Health Network, and Physicians for Social Responsibility, along with local environmental groups including the Lone Tree Council, file a "friend of the court" brief supporting medical monitoring as an actionable claim.
* The National Chamber Litigation Center, American Tort Reform Association, National Association of Manufacturers, American Chemistry Council, Coalition for Litigation Justice Inc. and Property Casualty Insurers Association of America file a "friend of the court" brief supporting Dow's defense regarding the medical monitoring claim.
October 2004
* The Michigan Supreme Court hears plaintiffs argue that medical monitoring should be able to be pursued in court and hears Dow's defense. It has until July 2005 to make a ruling.
©Midland Daily News 2005
Posted by bhola at 08:01 PM | Comments (0)
March 19, 2005
Incredibly good news from Bhopal
Several important health and monitoring studies on the long-term effects of Union Carbide's gases on Bhopal survivors are to be revived, ten years after they were abandoned by the Indian government.
Survivors and their supporters have protested since 1994 that the studies were crucial, and the reasons for dropping them have never been adequately explained.
Today, with the scale and severity of the medical catastrophe continuing to grow, a special advisory committee appointed by India's Supreme Court has announced the revival of the studies as the beginning of a stream of new initiatives aimed at bringing proper medical relief to the survivors.
For more information on the medical situation in Bhopal, please visit www.bhopal.org, the website of the Bhopal Medical Appeal and the free Sambhavna Clinic in Bhopal. Donations to the Medical Appeal may be made from this page.
Union Carbide, the corporation directly responsible for the disaster continues to defy the summons of an Indian court where it is charged with the criminal homicide of more than 20,000 Bhopalis.
Please sign our petition addressed to Union Carbide's owner, Dow Chemicals and tell all your friends about this massive injustice.
Dainik Bhaskar, Bhopal
Thursday March 17, 2005
GAS DISASTER FILES WILL BE OPENED ONCE AGAIN
Director ICMR says research is necessary
By Neelam Sharma
Research that was wound up 18 years back is likely to be resumed. Four to five studies that need to be started immediately have been identified. A team of ICMR [Indian Council of Medical Research] specialists will work on this. These decisions were taken at the meeting of the Advisory Committee set up by the Supreme Court for the health care of the gas victims. The first meeting of the Committee was held at the auditorium of the Kamala Nehru Hospital. The Director General of ICMR Dr. N K Ganguly chaired the meeting.
Dr. Ganguly said that studies on the health consequences of gas exposure are necessary and all related will be collected. A task force has been set up to monitor the research that will begin soon. Given the higher number of cases of lung cancer among the gas victims this was thought to be an area that requires more attention. Dr. Ganguly said that in today’s meeting recommendations have been made to start few research studies with immediate effect. Proposals will be made on these and work will begin from April 1.
The treatment protocol for the gas victims have remained unchanged since 1987. He spoke in detail on the need for preparing treatment protocols taking into account the current health problems. Dr. Ganguly directed that all information related to the treatment of all gas victims be submitted to the Committee. Treatment protocols will be prepared afresh taking into consideration current health problems and the treatment facilities available to them. The matter of transfer of Gas Relief hospitals to the Health Department will be decided on the basis of information on health problems and available treatment facilities. Dr Ganguly did not seem to be in favour of transfer of the Gas Relief hospitals to the Health Department. He said that in view of the significant work to be done in future it is better to keep them as a separate unit. Dr Ganguly also indicated the possibility of bringing together all research done on the health consequences of gas exposure and carrying out an evaluation of data quality. The research carried out so far will be assessed and published according to their scientific value. Dr. Ganguly accepted the possibility of impact on the reproductive system of women because of the effect of Methyl isocyanate on cell chromatin of uterus of pregnant women. He indicated that research could be carried out on this after current data and that from the immediate aftermath are studied.
What Has Been Decided At The Meeting
· Coordination will be established between the Advisory Committee and the Monitoring Committee.
· An agency has been identified for collection of data on patients.
· A Task force to be constituted for monitoring the work of rehabilitation of gas victims.
· In any research carried out in future data will be collected from all 56 wards for evaluation of actual damage.
· Full attention will be paid to the needs and expectations of the gas victims.
· It was recommended that the funds available for relief and rehabilitation be spent depending upon the priorities of the gas victims.
Members Of The Committee
Chairman Dr N K Ganguly, Director General ICMR
Dr. P M Bhargav, Molecular Biologist
Dr C C Choubal, Gastro Enterologist
Dr Shyam Agrawal, Oncologist
Dr Deepak Mehta, Medical Practitioner
Dr. C Sathyamala, Community Medicine
Director, All India Institute of Medical Sciences
Gas Relief Hospitals Will Be Networked
Dr Ganguly suggested the networking of all Gas Relief hospitals and coding of patients to improve treatment of gas victims and access to information. This will enable patients to receive same treatment at any of the health care facilities. This will also help in estimating the actual number of gas victims. Commenting on the inadequacies of the system of patient registrations in hospitals he said that all data should be on the computers so that patients do not have problem in receiving immediate treatment. Currently patients go from one hospital to another in the hope of finding relief.
There Are No Super-Specialists
The qualifications of doctors appointed at the Gas Relief hospitals were considered inadequate at the meeting. Chief Medical Officer, Gas Relief Dr B S Ohri accepted that there was a problem in this regard. Till today Dr Ohri held that doctors at the Gas relief hospitals were adequately qualified. The Committee has decided that the incharge of the center for rehabilitation studies should currently work under the directions of Dr Pande of All India Institute of Medical Sciences.
Posted by bhola at 02:34 AM | Comments (0)
March 13, 2005
Bummer of a mistake
A Midland doctor, James Brasseur, who said he received a report on a blood sample he had never given in the controversial Dow/University of Michigan dioxin study (see previous item), now says that he misremembered and misspoke, that he had in fact had a sample taken and remembers it clearly and wishes Dr Garabrant and his study very well. He is looking forward to the results of soil and dust testing from his house.
Of his error, Dr Brasseur says, "This mind lapse was a serious error on my part, and I apologize to those of us involved in the dioxin question but more of an apology is due to Dr. Garabrant, his crew and the university. Once again, I apologize and hope this letter will reinforce the credibility of Dr. Garabrant and his study...It was a bummer of a mistake...I never dreamed it would drop a bomb like it did."
Tell us more about this bomb, Dr Brasseur.
Original Midland Daily News story
Midland Daily News reports the "bummer"
Posted by bhola at 02:19 PM | Comments (0)
March 11, 2005
Dow funded dioxin study is "junk science", say worried Midlanders. "Confusing" says Midland Daily News
The Dow-funded University of Michigan study into dioxin exposure of Midland residents has presented first results of blood tests to a confused, derisive and angry audience of locals whose hearts are pumping Dow's dioxins round their bodies.
The tone was set by a U-M scientist Alfred Franzblau, who told the audience that carrying a measurable dioxin load was "just a fact of life of being alive in the 21st century in the United States."
 |  | |
| Garabrant: Leader of the "study" | Franzblau: Dioxin is a fact of life |
People expressed fears about their health and the impact of dioxin contamination on he value of their homes, however they will get no help from the study whose aims do not include positively establishing links between health problems with dioxin, or dioxin and Dow.
It will measure levels of dioxin in people's blood and then, if people in certain areas are found to be more contaminated than others, it will ask "why".
A local doctor, James Brasseur, thanked the study leader Professor David Garabrant for sending him his blood test results. "The only problem with that," he said, is I didn't have my blood drawn."
"Unless I was whisked up into a flying saucer and had all that stuff done." Brasseur added, to cries of "junk science" from the audience.
The study seems to have been according to a peculiar set of criteria. For example people who own their homes will have their blood, dust and soil tested. But people who rent will not be eligible for dust and soil testing. Garabrant gave a typically specious reply to those who questioned why this was so, and you can read it in the extended article by clicking the link at the foot of this item.
Finally, when some people, who felt they had been considerably exposed to the contaminated waters of the Tittibassawee asked why they had not been included in the study, Garabrant said that it would bias the results. He strongly advised against having blood privately tested because, said he, the tests are costly and difficult to interpret.
What is not very difficult to interpret are the motives of Garabrant and his team, nor the University of Michigan which receives significant funding from Dow.
Dow had directly contributed over $10 million to the University by September 2000, placing it among the top 26 all-time donors to the University. The company has endowed numerous professorships in such fields as sustainable science, business, chemical engineering and public pealth; it sits on the University's External Advisory Board; it sponsored events such as a 2002 Summer School for Chemical Engineering faculty in Boulder, Colo. Two buildings on campus bear the Dow name; the University's William Davidson Institute has completed credit risk assessments and developed growth ideas for Dow; more than 600 University alumni work for the company. MICHIGAN DAILY
Midland and Bhopal ought to be twin-cities. Both were glad to play host to two large chemical corporations (now merged into one). Both focused on the jobs and revenue these companies brought to town and played down the dangers posed by careless handling and disposal of chemicals.
The difference is that Bhopal now knows the true cost of turning a blind eye. For Midland the discovery and the dying looks likely to be long, slow and painful.
DIOXIN STUDY BLOOD RESULTS BACK – AND CONFUSING
Kelly Jerome, Midland Daily News 03/11/2005
Participants in the University of Michigan-led dioxin exposure study found explanations but no conclusions during a community advisory panel meeting Thursday night.
During the meeting at Freeland Elementary School, study leader David Garabrant presented a slide show that explained the confusing results of blood tests contained in letters sent to 265 study participants last month.
Garabrant stressed the importance of not drawing conclusions before all the results are finalized, which will not happen until late 2006.
"If we do that, we may have to change our answers in a year when we have a complete data set," he said.
The U-M study will not link health problems with dioxin. The study has two goals, Garabrant said. The first is to determine whether dioxin levels in those living on the Tittabawassee flood plain are higher than people who live in other areas of Michigan. Second, if the levels are found to be higher, why?
Almost everyone has a measurable level of dioxin in their bodies, U-M scientist Alfred Franzblau said.
"That's just a fact of life of being alive in the 21st century in the United States," he said.
During public comment, Curt Dalton, 49, of Thomas Township questioned U-M scientists' decision not to take volunteers. Dalton, who has multiple sclerosis, said the scientists should seek people who have had the most exposure to dioxin. He said he and his friends frequently exposed themselves to water in the Tittabawassee River during the late 1960s.
"We marinated ourselves. We waited on the beaches for our friends to get done water skiing so we could be next," he said. "I sucked in water for years.
"Wouldn't I be the perfect person to take my blood sample and take my tissue sample and see if I'm loaded with dioxin? Then you will have something to go on," he said.
Garabrant responded by stressing that samples have to be taken randomly for the results to be scientifically accurate.
"Whatever bias they bring into the study actually takes the validity away from the random study," he said.
James Brasseur, a family physician who lives on North River Road in Thomas Township, said during public comment that he received results of the blood test. "The only problem with that is I didn't have my blood drawn," he said.
U-M scientist Alfred Franzblau reassured the man that the team would look into the problem while the audience burst into whispers, which were punctuated with a few shouts of "junk science."
"Unless I was whisked up into a flying saucer and had all that stuff done," Brasseur said.
During an earlier press briefing, Garabrant explained that four staff members took great care while sorting results and preparing them for distribution. Each letter was at least triple checked, he said.
"We think it was right. We hand checked them over and over again," he said, crossing fingers on both his hands.
Gary Schmidt of Freeland said he received test results in the mail, but could not fully understand what the numbers mean. He said the results put his blood dioxin level in the 75 to 90 percent range, but he does not want to draw any conclusions about possible health effects at this point.
"I think we have to get more studies before we can come to any conclusions. It's all too early in the game," Schmidt said.
Esther Schmidt, his wife, said one of their children has health problems that could be linked to dioxin, but right now the couple is not considering a lawsuit.
Schmidt said he also worries about the effect dioxin could have on the value of his Midland Road home. Recently, neighbors tried to sell their house with discouraging results.
"They couldn't sell it and they ended up foreclosing. The offers were less than the value of the home," he said.
The U-M study is funded by The Dow Chemical Co. and will cost $15 million. Garabrant said the money pays for more than 60 researchers, including a mobile phlebotomy service, teams collecting house dust samples, teams collecting soil samples, statisticians, laboratory teams and people in charge of quality control.
Garabrant said letters should be sent in April to people who had house dust collected and in June to those who had soil samples taken. Teams are 40 percent finished collecting samples in Midland and Saginaw counties, and are in the field now collecting the remaining data. Researchers will begin taking samples, a total of 175 sets, in Jackson and Calhoun counties in May and probably will finish in September, Garabrant said.
In all, teams will collect dust, soil and blood from 700 people in Midland and Saginaw counties. About 900 people will have blood taken, but are ineligible to participate in dust and soil collection because they do not own their homes. Garabrant said non-homeowners do not qualify to give soil and dust samples because the homeowner would have to be informed of the collection, which would break the confidentiality agreement researchers have with study participants.
Not chosen for the study?
Study leader David Garabrant advises strongly against people having their blood tested for dioxin at independent labs because the tests are costly and difficult to interpret. The panel did, however, distribute flyers from the Michigan Department of Community Health that listed labs that test for dioxin. Tests cost around $1,000 to $1,500, Garabrant said.
Alta Analytical Perspectives
2714 Exchange Drive
Wilmington, NC 28405
Phone: (910) 794-1613
Contact: Yves Tondeur, Ph.D.
Eno River Labs, LLC
2445 S. Alston Ave.
Durham, NC 27713
Phone: (919) 281-4031
Contact: Norman Hoffa
Keika Ventures, LLC
PO Box 4704
Chapel Hill, NC 27515
Phone: (866) 333-1092
Contact: Lorri L. White
Understanding the results
This will explain the results found in letters sent to study participants. The terms in the following article are from the letter and might be unclear to those who did not receive results:
The U-M study tests for 29 dioxin-like compounds found in the blood. Previous studies by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tested for 21 components.
Within the letter, table one indicates the blood serum concentration of each compound. The concentration is multiplied by the TEF, or toxic equivalency factor, to produce the contribution to TEQ, or toxic equivalency. The toxicity factor varies widely because different components have different levels of toxicity in the body, study leader David Garabrant said.
A study by the CDC provided a graph that assigned percentile rankings to blood dioxin levels. The CDC study only reported on 21 components, so the U-M results were adjusted so the graph could be used to indicate percentile rankings from the U-M findings.
So, if study participants compare the overall "contribution to TEQ (based on 21 congeners)" number found on the bottom right of table one to the numbers on table two, they can find the percentile in which they fall.
©Midland Daily News 2005
Posted by bhola at 06:24 PM | Comments (0)
People living near Dow plant in New Zealand face higher risk of cancer
We've talked before about the Dow plant in New Plymouth, New Zealand where an entire town was exposed for decades to dioxin waste, and where reports of illness were routinely dismissed by the corporation. Now the New Zealand Ministry of Health has confirmed that people living nearby have higher dioxin levels in their blood, and may face a future of cancers. For more details follow the link at the foot of this entry.
Mount Taranaki seen from New Plymouth
Somehow, we do not expect this news to be reported in Midland, Michigan, Dow's home town where the corporation is involved in a battle with local homeowners and environmentalist about massive dioxin contamination of the local river basin. They need our support, go here to learn more.
Midland homeowners are rightly worried about their families' health.
Idyllic Tittabawassee scene, but property prices are being hit. Dow's own property is worth less due to dioxin contamination!
Wouldn't eat that walleye, Cap'n Dan. Michigan Department of Community Health says be very careful.
NEW ZEALAND MINISTRY OF HEALTH CONFIRMS DIOXIN THREAT TO HEALTH OF NEW PLYMOUTH RESIDENTS
Health officials confirmed today that blood tests show some people who have lived near the Ivon Watkins Dow agrichemical plant in New Plymouth have elevated levels of dioxin in their blood, and may have a higher risk of falling ill with cancers.
Some of these people may have a 10 per cent higher risk of contracting some types of cancer, the Ministry of Health said.
But it said there was no specific indication of a raised incidence of cancer, because the ministry's systems did not allow it to track former residents of the Paritutu suburb.
The blood serum tests showed some people had had a "more significant exposure" to certain type of dioxin, 2,3,7,8-TCDD, a by-product of the herbicide 2,4,5-T, the ministry said today.
It was not able to say what this meant for the future health of the affected individuals, but "it is possible that the TCDD levels found may have adverse health consequences, or may cause increased rates of disease, in particular cancer".
The ministry said that the blood serum study by the Institute of Environmental Science and Research (ESR), showed that the closer residents live to the Ivon Watkins Dow plant – where 2,4,5-T was made until 18 years ago to spray gorse – the more likely they were to have elevated levels of dioxin in their blood.
Today's report showed residents who had lived very near to the plant for at least 15 years between 1962 and 1987 were more likely to have higher levels, probably from breathing fumes from the plant, and eating contaminated leafy vegetables from home gardens.
The 52 participants of the study had blood levels of TCDD ranging from 0.85 to 33.3 parts per trillion (ppt). The average TCDD level of this group was 6.5ppt, compared with an expected level of 1.7ppt.
"I have considerable sympathy for those people whose tests showed an elevated level of dioxin," the director of public health, Mark Jacobs said in a statement.
It was possible there might be a small impact on cancer mortality rates in people who lived within 1km east and 400m south of the plant for more than 15 years during the years 2,4,5-T was manufactured, from 1962 to 1987.
Dr Jacobs said that a local study of specific cancers that had been linked with historical dioxin exposure (lymphocytic leukaemia, soft tissue sarcoma, Hodgkin's disease and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma) was expected to be completed in June.
A similar study comparing data on local birth defects with other regions for the decade 1980-1989 would be analysed for any trends in the New Plymouth area that might be associated with past dioxin exposures.
The ministry said there was no treatment for removing dioxin from the body, which naturally excreted every seven to 10 years half of the dioxin it held. But international studies of people with high exposures to dioxins – 100 to 1000 times the levels seen at Paritutu – indicated the cancer risk for some people who lived close the plant for many years might be a small increase above the national all-cancer mortality rate.
Green Party health spokeswoman Sue Kedgley said it should be remembered that because of the body's natural discharge of dioxin, the person with a level of 33.3 parts per trillion in their body fat probably started out with levels 70 times that of the national average.
She called on the Government to offer free annual medical check-ups and medical treatment to all affected residents, and offer free blood tests to concerned residents who lived near the plant during the peak exposure period.
Ms Kedgley also called on the government to make the Dow corporation liable for the damage they had caused to residents and the environment in New Plymouth.
"The taxpayer shouldn't be picking up the bill, it should be the company that caused the pollution," she said.
Public health officials had assured the community that recompense would be sought from Dow AgroSciences – which now ran the Ivon Watkins Dow plant – if it was proven there was a problem, she said.
"It has been proven and now the Government must take steps to get compensation," she said.
Posted by bhola at 09:36 AM | Comments (0)
Students call for University of California to sever links with Dow
In another manifestation of what has become the largest students campaign against Dow since the Vietnam War, students at the University of California called for the university to divest from Dow and refuse further donations. Among the reasons given were the unresolved Bhopal liabilities of Dow's 100%-owned subsidiary Union Carbide, which is officially "an absconder from justice" in India, having failed since 1992 to attend court hearings in the city where it is accused of the criminal homicide of more than 20,000 people. For the official press release go here. More details at our student website www.studentsforbhopal.org>.
Posted by bhola at 08:15 AM | Comments (0)
March 09, 2005
Dow caught pants down in Texas, New Orleans, Berlin and Chicago. Plus a word in your ear about bhopal.net
Bhopal protests have been cropping up all over the planet where Dow least expects them. On February 17, Diane Wilson and others attended a Dow banquet at Lake Jackson, Texas where they were received with all the joy and hospitality Macbeth showed to Banquo's ghost. Read about it here.
Bhopal campaigners turned up to picket Dow's New Orleans office with some good looking posters and handed out information to passers by.
International Women's Day saw an open-air protest in Berlin, and Bhopal supporters staged an action at a trade fair in Chicago where Dow was peddling its poisonous wares.
For more on these last three actions please visit our new Actions and Press pages, anent which a word.
A SHORT RAMBLE ABOUT BHOPAL.NET
Bhopal.Net is an archaeological midden of hidden treasures, hidden being the operative, it has become discombobulatingly difficult to navigate, thanks to the accumulation of layer upon layer of html pages, piled haphazardly one upon the other. We could simply trash the site and start over again, using modern software to database everything, but that would make us horribly corporate, besides which the old site and its evolution is itself part of the history of the Bhopal struggle and it is quite fascinating to dig up old pages and discover news, events and information we thought had been lost forever. Truthfully, this writer has spent hours combing the internet for information only to find that the source is bhopal.net.
So mister, what to do? As Johnny Walker used to say in the old Guru Dutt movies. Don't know who is Johnny Walker?
Arré baba, click here right away.
Following bhopal.net tradition, we have decided to preserve the old site untouched in its entirety as an archaeological curiosity, but create a new entry and navigation system. There will soon be a triple front-page of interlinked Opinion, Action and Press Releases. These are blog-powered, which gives all the usual features like easily accessed archives and enable readers who have registered to add comments.
The site navigation will operate from the left column and will be identical in all three pages. It will lead to a layer of category pages from which in turn we intend to sink links to every page, file, photograph, report, feature, news item, in short every resource on this huge (2,000 page +) website.
This will take some time, so for the moment, if you go to Actions, Opinion or Press Releases, you will find that the left links don't yet work. Please return here to continue your researches and if it all proves too much, have a cup of tea and send us an email. In fact, why not send us an email anyway, just for laffs, who wouldn't?">
Posted by bhola at 12:31 PM | Comments (0)
March 01, 2005
Murky deal may allow Carbide to sneak back into India
A new Union Carbide scandal broke in India today as furious Bhopal survivors protested against leaked plans of a shadowy deal between Carbide's 100% owner Dow Chemical and the Indian Oil Corporation to supply ethylene glycol technology for IOC's Panipat complex. The process, called METEOR, is thought to belong to Union Carbide, a corporation which dare not show its face in the country where it is officially listed as a criminal fugitive from justice, having failed for 13 years to turn up to the Indian court where it stands accused of the criminal homicide of more than 20,000 people.
The circumstances of the proposed deal are surrounded by controversy, and Bhopal survivors' groups are lobbying politicians to investigate.
For the ICJB's official press statement, see our new Press Release page.
Posted by bhola at 04:57 PM | Comments (0)