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About St. Johns review. (Saint Johns, Or.) 1904-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 30, 2015)
The St. Johns Review * #22 OCT. 30, 2015 * Page 5 Email: reviewnewspaper@gmail.com * Mail: PO Box 83068, Port. OR 97283 * Web: www.stjohnsreview.com * Phone: 503-283-5086 TY NEWS ke issue with EPA’s conceptual plan sistence fi shing for both cultural and economic reasons, and neighborhoods that experience exposure due to being near the river. These groups have been exposed to cumulative contaminants and EPA needs to address both En- vironmental Justice and Cumulative Risk issues in the remedy selected. Communities adjacent to the North Reach of the Willamette have been a historic dumping ground for the neg- ative effects of industry including not only the superfund site, but hazard- ous materials tank farms, industrial air pollution, diesel exhaust and truck movement. North Portland is also the location for a sewage treatment plant and a major, former dump. Our com- munities are “becoming weary of be- ing the repository of everything that stinks, burns or blows up,” as St. Johns activist Ben Poe has noted. Cleanup al- ternatives that leave either signifi cant amounts of contamination in the river or which result in a Confi ned Disposal Facility are inequitable and environ- mentally unjust, and add to the cumu- lative effects on community members. All of the current options rely far too heavily on approaches such as moni- tored natural recovery (MNR) that leave contamination in place across most of the lower Willamette (Alterna- tive G relies on MNR across more than 60% of the superfund site), unreliable institutional controls such as warning signage, and fail to provide credible evidence that compliance with legal requirements for the Clean Water Act will be achieved. Contamination left behind is subject to re-exposure by fl ood, expected geological events or navigational accidents and so poses an ongoing risk to human health and the environment. The end result of any of the options would be that our river would remain severely contaminated, our communities, especially our most vulnerable underserved communities, would remain at risk for generations, fi sh and wildlife populations would Like to write stories? Contami- nation in the lower Willa- mette directly undermines long-term in- vestments in the river by the community that is already in the millions. A clean lower river could be an integral part of our commu- nity, providing recreation, food through fi shing, Jackie Calder, Vice Chair, Portland Harbor an attraction for Community Advisory Group development and visitors, and could build “It is at odds with years of research and our identity common sense to ask the public to accept as a gateway that natural recovery would suddenly to nature. The represent an effective cleanup strategy cleanup is also for contaminants which have already re- a revenue and mained in the river for 50 to 100 years job generator. or more” An EcoNorth- ~ Portland Harbor Community Advisory west Study of Group, written testimony to EPA Nation- the lower Wil- al Remedy Review Board lamette showed that every dol- lar of cost to continue to experience signifi cant clean-up will generate more than harm from exposure and bioaccu- a dollar’s worth of economic ac- mulation, and access to the river tivity. The river is held in trust for would remain restricted. It is time now to move forward citizens, from headwaters to con- with effective, vigorous, long- fl uence it belongs to all. This is our term cleanup strategies that place one chance to make a difference. a signifi cantly higher priority on Let’s have the fortitude to do the removing contaminants from our cleanup right the fi rst time with river. We call on EPA to imple- Alternative G+.” ment a more aggressive plan that we refer to as Alternative G+. This alternative will reduce the acreage http://portlandharborcag.info/ of MNR from that in Alternative sites/default/files/Comment- G, reduce the extent of capping stoNRRBfromPHCAGr.pdf. and increase the amount of surface contamination removed. You can be a part of The St. Johns Review family! Be a contributing reporter! Find a North Portland subject and submit your article to: reviewnewspaper@gmail.com for consideration. Business & Service Directory Interested in running a Color Business Card Ad? AD PRICING: 1 Year (26 issues) $32 each = $832 9 Months (19 issues) $33 each = $627 6 Months (12 issues) $35 each = $420 Call 503-283-5086 or email: reviewnewspaper@gmail.com 3 Months (6 issues) $38 each = $228