Memorandum comparing asbestos data in Manhattan to other sites and arguing for cleanup under the Superfund statute.
NYC-WTC_000140235–000140258Folder label: “EPA Cate Jenkins”
OCR status: ok · source: pdftotext
NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document
Montana, a designated Superfund site.
Most of the available data for Manhattan is before even a rudimentary cleanup. One particular piece of data, the residue inside an air vent at 105 Duane St., three blocks outside the boundary where EPA said there was any contamination (7 blocks from Ground Zero), is particularly alarming. This air duct sample was taken on December 3, 2001, long after all cleanups that had been thought necessary were completed.
The highest level of dust inside a building in Manhattan was 79,000 structures (asbestos fibers) per square centimeter (s/cm^). This was at 45 Warren St., an apartment building 4 blocks away from Ground Zero where all of the windows faced north, away from the World Trade Towers, locked in on all other 3 sides by other buildings. To the casual observer, this apartment would not be described as being heavily contaminated. There is a color photograph included at the begiiming of the study,® where a dining room table showing only a light dusting from WTC fallout, the dark grain of the wood clearly visible.
In comparison, the highest concentration of interior dust found inside a home at Libby was only 3658 s/cm^. This means the highest amount of asbestos lying on a surface in Manhattan was 22 times that ever found in Libby.
The logical question thus arises: Why is EPA leaving people to their own devices in the cleanup of New York City, while intervening to clean homes at taxpayers expense in Libby because of an “imminent and substantial endangerment to public health”?
2. INEFFECTIVE CLEANUP OF WTC ASBESTOS TO DATE
To date, the cleanup of the WTC fallout containing asbestos, fiberglass, fine particulate matter, and possible significant concentrations of other toxic materials is not proceeding efficiently or effectively.
Asbestos does not leave buildings with ordinary cleaning methods
The asbestos contamination is not going to leave buildings in Manhattan by itself with ordinary cleaning any more than it will in Libby. In the case of Libby, MT, the EPA stated:’
-3-
NYC-WTC_000140237
OCR can misread numbers and units. Confirm readings against the page image before using them.
Ranked by indexed similarity. Reasons describe shared subjects and filing context; check the source records.
NYC-WTC_000140138
EPA memorandum addressing World Trade Center asbestos contamination status and agency efforts to provide information on the situation.
17 shared non-person entities · 1 shared topics · Same agency, volume and box · similarity 0.983
machine-extracted · confidence unavailable · Check page ↗NYC-WTC_000140170
EPA memorandum on wipe sampling methods for asbestos in Lower Manhattan buildings, resuspension projections, and cancer risk estimates from WTC dust exposure.
18 shared non-person entities · 1 shared topics · Same agency, volume and box · similarity 0.980
machine-extracted · confidence unavailable · Check page ↗NYC-WTC_000140259
Memorandum detailing procedures for asbestos wipe sampling in Lower Manhattan and estimating associated cancer risks from dust exposure.
18 shared non-person entities · 1 shared topics · Same agency, volume and box · similarity 0.979
machine-extracted · confidence unavailable · Check page ↗NYC-WTC_000140083
Forwarded EPA memorandum dated June 9, 2002, concerning the Asbestos Reservoir and carpet testing methods.
13 shared non-person entities · 1 shared topics · Same agency, volume and box · similarity 0.979
machine-extracted · confidence unavailable · Check page ↗NYC-WTC_000140040
Technical memorandum from EPA discussing ultrasonication testing for asbestos in carpets and HEPA vacuuming effectiveness.
13 shared non-person entities · 1 shared topics · Same agency, volume and box · similarity 0.977
machine-extracted · confidence unavailable · Check page ↗NYC-WTC_000154652
Internal tracking document for managing reports, comments, and actions related to environmental compliance cases.
19 shared non-person entities · 1 shared topics · similarity 0.984
machine-extracted · confidence unavailable · Check page ↗NYC-WTC_000151635
EPA memorandum detailing plans for asbestos wipe sampling, projecting airborne dust levels, and estimating increased cancer risks from WTC dust exposure.
18 shared non-person entities · 1 shared topics · similarity 0.979
machine-extracted · confidence unavailable · Check page ↗NYC-WTC_000161674
Document excerpt listing counsel and staff members assigned to a paper on infrastructure related to World Trade Center recovery.
15 shared non-person entities · 1 shared topics · similarity 0.973
machine-extracted · confidence unavailable · Check page ↗NYC-WTC_000125845
Draft fact sheet from DOH and DEP addressing tenant concerns regarding asbestos fibers at 105 Duane Street.
24 shared non-person entities · 1 shared topics · similarity 0.973
machine-extracted · confidence unavailable · Check page ↗NYC-WTC_000155264
Letter from EPA official to a Congressional representative criticizing the adequacy of the 114 Liberty Street cleanup.
15 shared non-person entities · 1 shared topics · similarity 0.967
machine-extracted · confidence unavailable · Check page ↗NYC-WTC_000148115
Frequently asked questions and updates regarding disaster assistance, road reopenings, and victim support funds issued in October 2001.
23 shared non-person entities · 1 shared topics · similarity 0.967
machine-extracted · confidence unavailable · Check page ↗NYC-WTC_000154976
Correspondence criticizing the EPA and DEP regarding asbestos, silica levels, and safety clearance after cleaning at 114 Liberty Street.
15 shared non-person entities · 1 shared topics · similarity 0.967
machine-extracted · confidence unavailable · Check page ↗Similar subjects in other documents. Similarity does not establish the same event, measurement or conclusion.
Page similarity is temporarily unavailable or this page has no indexed vector.
Machine-extracted building matches; verify each source. Buildings, never households.
Readers open these alongside this record — through an Ask answer, the same folder, or indexed similarity. Not a claim they are about the same event.
Summary of air and dust sampling results collected from private residences and common areas at 250 South End Avenue.
Cited alongside this record in an Ask answer
NYC-WTC_000089519
Computer-generated sequence listing samples including pesticides and toxics analyzed under EPA Method 508 in late November and December 2001.
Cited alongside this record in an Ask answer
NYC-WTC_000089710
Technical record outlining liquid-liquid extraction parameters, including drip rates and reagent lot numbers for environmental sample processing.
Cited alongside this record in an Ask answer
NYC-WTC_000090502
Log sheet detailing liquid-liquid extraction parameters including drip rates and pH measurements for laboratory samples.
Cited alongside this record in an Ask answer
Single page document header identifying the subject property as 250 South End Avenue with associated block and lot numbers.
Cited alongside this record in an Ask answer