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Ike impact: Hurricane waters may have disturbed contaminated areas
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By VAL CLIFTON
In the 77040 zip code, 295 sites have been identified as managing hazardous waste or are considered to be toxic locations. And a strong flood could easily mobilize these contaminants.
So while many areas have lifted the “boil water” notices and business is resuming as usual, one environmental agency warns that there could be latent environmental consequences stemming from Hurricane Ike.
Thousands of toxic locations were flooded by storm water that may have impacted the soil and drinking water, according to Environmental Data Resources, which is working with officials to develop maps that detail these sites.
Knowing this, the EDR believes that it is critical for federal, state and local governments to identify the locations of all properties with chemicals of concern to assess the human health impact of Hurricane Ike.
EDR’s Jon Walker, Managing Director of Corporate Legal and Government Services, became involved in studying these issues after Hurricane Katrina when thousands of hazardous waste containers were opened and leaked into the flood waters.
Health problems resulting from ingestion of contaminants in the water included nausea, diarrhea, skin rashes and other long-term health issues.
“They’re still finding remnants in the public water supply in New Orleans and surrounding areas,” Walker said.
He said similarly, there is a possibility that contaminants found their way into the flood waters during Hurricane Ike, and consulted the EDR database to examine the zip codes within The Sun coverage area.
“When we first did the study, we were concerned that if it hit the six counties surrounding the entrance of the storm as hard as it hit Galveston, there would have been significantly more potential of contamination,” Walker said.
In the 11 zip codes The Sun covers, there are seven CERCLIS sites, or the state’s equivalent of a superfund. In addition, there are 74 current and historical dry cleaners, one Superfund, 135 spills, 401 facilities registered to manage hazardous waste and five landfills.
Walker said he’s not predicting that there is definitely contamination in the water, but it is a possibility of which residents need to be aware.
“When there are cases of flooding, these are where the issues of flooding can come in and take the contamination into unwanted areas,” Walker said.
For more information about the EDR, visit www.edrnet.com.
So while many areas have lifted the “boil water” notices and business is resuming as usual, one environmental agency warns that there could be latent environmental consequences stemming from Hurricane Ike.
Thousands of toxic locations were flooded by storm water that may have impacted the soil and drinking water, according to Environmental Data Resources, which is working with officials to develop maps that detail these sites.
Knowing this, the EDR believes that it is critical for federal, state and local governments to identify the locations of all properties with chemicals of concern to assess the human health impact of Hurricane Ike.
EDR’s Jon Walker, Managing Director of Corporate Legal and Government Services, became involved in studying these issues after Hurricane Katrina when thousands of hazardous waste containers were opened and leaked into the flood waters.
Health problems resulting from ingestion of contaminants in the water included nausea, diarrhea, skin rashes and other long-term health issues.
“They’re still finding remnants in the public water supply in New Orleans and surrounding areas,” Walker said.
He said similarly, there is a possibility that contaminants found their way into the flood waters during Hurricane Ike, and consulted the EDR database to examine the zip codes within The Sun coverage area.
“When we first did the study, we were concerned that if it hit the six counties surrounding the entrance of the storm as hard as it hit Galveston, there would have been significantly more potential of contamination,” Walker said.
In the 11 zip codes The Sun covers, there are seven CERCLIS sites, or the state’s equivalent of a superfund. In addition, there are 74 current and historical dry cleaners, one Superfund, 135 spills, 401 facilities registered to manage hazardous waste and five landfills.
Walker said he’s not predicting that there is definitely contamination in the water, but it is a possibility of which residents need to be aware.
“When there are cases of flooding, these are where the issues of flooding can come in and take the contamination into unwanted areas,” Walker said.
For more information about the EDR, visit www.edrnet.com.
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