Editorial Editorial (September 03, 2004)

Let science determine toxic rating

How to measure the dangerous vapors that leak into some Mountain View homes from underground plumes of the toxic chemical TCE is now the subject of a disagreement between the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the companies and agencies that polluted the ground water more than 30 years ago.

The issue, which could have national implications, has been bubbling under the surface since 2001, when EPA scientists revised their original assessment of TCE toxicity, making it 56 times more likely to cause cancer than originally thought. As a result, the gases that continue to seep into numerous commercial buildings and the basement and living area of at least one northeast Mountain View home (tests are underway at several others), as well as military housing on Moffett Field, are considered much more dangerous now than if measured under the old standard.

The companies that have been paying to clean up the local Superfund site, including Fairchild, Raytheon and the Navy, object to EPA's new measurement method, and claim that it is "... scientifically inappropriate and contrary to EPA policy and law," in a statement issued by one of their consultants.

However, several local and national EPA officials support the assessment by requiring its use in screening homes and buildings in the area for TCE contamination. In one case, the EPA ordered some companies at the local GTE site to clean up contamination based on the new assessment numbers, and they agreed. Apparently, it will take several more years for the new measuring method to take the place of the old standard, although the majority of regional offices already rely on the new formula for testing, EPA officials say.

For local homeowners and businesses near the site, the question is whether opposition by the Navy, the local site's largest polluter, and the companies involved in this clean up and others around the country will be able throw out or delay the tougher standards. They are are understandably concerned about the possibility that TCE gases will leach into their basements and living areas. The stricter standards mean that more tests on area homes can be conducted by the EPA.

It is likely that the next presidential administration, either of President Bush or John Kerry, will decide how to enforce the standard, although it will be difficult to return to the earlier ways which have been out of use for many months.

Already, members of the local NMAC (Northeast Mountain View Advisory Committee, which includes some affected homeowners) are receiving some help from the companies to purchase ventilation equipment following tests using the new standard. And the city is advising that extra precautions be taken by a developer planning to build homes in the area.

Local residents should have much more faith in EPA scientists than the obviously conflicted representatives of the companies that unleashed the pollution in the first place. At this point, we believe the tougher standards established by EPA scientists should be used to evaluate emissions of toxic fumes in Mountain View neighborhoods.

It would be a serious mistake to ignore the new scientific evidence that appears to be bringing increased testing and vigilance in the fight to eradicate the toxic TCE from the air and ground water.

E-mail a friend a link to this story.