04-Lancastar Fanning, Saturday, March 6 1993
RALEIGH, N.C. A group of
23 farm and tobacco organizations
is urging congressional support
for investigations surrounding the
Environmental Protection Agen
cy’s (EPA) conduct in classifying
environmental tobacco smoke as a
group A carcinogen.
In a resolution circulated to
congressional leaders on capitol
hill, the twenty-three organiza
tions call for “all representatives
and senators with an interest in
family farmers and scientific inte
grity to support congressional
inquiries into the extremely ques
tionable process by which the
EPA reached its conclusions.”
The final version of the EPA
risk assessment on environmental
tobacco smoke (ETS), which was
released on January 7, is shrouded
in controversy over the credibility
of EPA’s science. The General
Accounting Office is now con
ducting an investigation into
EPA’s scientific review process
and handling of ETS. In addition,
EPA’s own inspector general is
investigating contracting irregu
larities for a workplace smoking
guide.
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Organizations Urge
Of particular concern to drafters
of the resolution is the precedent
setting change in the way EPA
analyzed the statistical data on
ETS. The groups charge that EPA
manipulated the data on ETS to hit
a predetermined antitobacco poli
cy goal.
Fred Bond, chief executive of
the Flue-Cured Tobacco Coopera
tive Stabilization Corporation in
Raleigh, N.C., said that EPA
aimed its own established guide
lines to classify ETS as a group A
carcinogen. Bond said, “when
EPA first analyzed the scientific
studies on tobacco smoke, they
found that the data was too weak
to support the group A classifica
tion. Then, violating their own
established procedure, EPA low
ered their scientific requirements
so that ETS could fall into the
group A classification. EPA has
clearly chosen to ignore the scien
tific data in pursuit of its policy
goals against tobacco.”
“EPA has applied a double
standard and demonstrated
extreme bias in making this risk
assessment,” said Danny McKin
ney, chief executive of die Burley
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Support For Investigation Of EPA
Tobacco Growers Cooperative
Association in Lexington, Ky. “I
firmly believe that a risk assess
ment based on such weak and
clearly manipulated data would
not have been issued by EPA on
any other product. With sub
stances other than tobacco, it’s
common to see results of scientific
studies reported as too weak to be
conclusive. But in this case, EPA
would not accept the fact that the
scientific studies do not support
their anti-tobacco agenda.”
The resolution sponsors have
also asked why one of the largest
and most comprehensive studies
of ETS completed to date was not
included in EPA’s risk assess
ment. In November 1992, the
American Journal of Public
Health published the findings of a
study on ETS conducted by the
National Cancer Institute.
The National Cancer Institute
study reported no statistically sig
nificant increase in nonsmoker
lung cancer risk based on expo
sure to environmental tobacco
smoke. In fact, 80 percent of the
studies that were included in
EPA’s risk assessment showed no
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statistically significant association studies confirms that ooliriP.
between nonsmoker lung cancer rather than science were at woricTn
risk and ETS. Critics charge that making this risk assessment
EPA’s selective use of scientific
Clinic For Well Owners
EPHRATA (Lancaster Co.)
Concerned about the quality of
your drinking water? If you
depend on your own well or
spring, you should be.
"The quality of water from a
private supply is the responsibility
of its owner,” said Leon Ressler,
Penn State extension agent in agri
culture and environmental issues,
Lancaster County. "If you don't
test your water, no one else will.”
Persons whose water supply is
from a private well should plan to
attend a free “Safe Drinking
Water Clinic” sponsored by the
adult fanner program of the
Ephrata Area School District,
under the direction of Charles
Ackley, agriculture education
teacher.
The meeting will be held on
March 9 at 7:45 p.m. in the Ephra
ta Senior High School Audion
Room.
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Ressler will speak on water
quality issues in Lancaster Coun
ty, drinking water quality prob
lems, ground water quality, proper
well construction, water testing
and interpretation of water test
results, and water treatment for
private water systems.
Dr. Robert Thee will address
radon in drinking water. He will
discuss how radon enters your
water, what risks are associated
with it, and how to treat contami
nated water. Thee joined Penn
Slate extension in 1988 as a multi
county agent serving Lancaster,
Montgomery, and Chester coun
ties. He works with a variety of
programs, including residential
property management for part
time landlords, tenant education,
the home purchase process for
first-time buyers, barrier-free
housing, radon, lead poisoning
prevention, indoor air quality, and
household waste management
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