Law Department notice on WTC document preservation, Oct 2001

NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document : EPA also emphasized that people returning to dusty homes and workplaces should have these spaces professionally cleaned by asbestos contractors * The Report erroncously focuses on five early Agency press releases, neglecting tooo po oa the extensiveness of EPA’s communications. fecas | be EPA undertook ¢ massive outreach program, which inchided hundreds of media interviews (print, radio, TV), participation in pubhe forums, distributions of ters of thousands of fact sheety and handouts, and extensive usage of the Intemet (including information in three languages). * An immediate and continuing problem in measuring and cornmunicating environmental risk associated with the WTC dust/debris cloud was the fact that for many of the contaminants of concer, there were no health based standards. * "The need for such standards could not have ever been reasonably a fevers ix R anticapated, . Even for asbestos, the contaminant of greatest concem, there was no applicable standard covering the situation in Lower Manhattan. . In exercising its professional judgement, EPA consulted with experts in environmental health and science at federal, state and local levels. Confd thinga have been done better? Certainly. Were mistakes maze? Without a doubt. Bat like other agencies of government in the wake of this event, EPA has reviewed its response, asked tough questions about its conduct, and begun the process the process of change and improvement. To be s valid basis for planning, the Draft Report needed to capture the things that went right - and the vast majority of our efforts did - as wel) az what needs tn be improved. Fhis Report simply seems out of touch with the reality of what tonk place at the World Trade Center, and thos it trivializes both the horrendows event that occurred and the extraordinary efforts of jo” als jixR | By ignoring that good work, the Repost leaves a bruised population wondering once again if their government properly served them at their fime of greatest need. The fact is, the dedicated people of the BPA -- and government at all levels ~ moge to the challenge of the Workd Trade Center disaster... and performed with courage end distinction. 119 Report No. 2003-P-00012 NYC-WTC_000145474