Panel agenda for Air Quality After 9/11 conference, March 2004

NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document

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Oversight hearing; Air Quality in New York City following 9/11

On Monday March 29,2004, the Select Committee on Lower Manhattan Redevelopment,

chaired by Council Member Alan J. Gerson, and the Committee on Health, chaired by Council

Member Christine Quinn, will hold a hearing regarding the air quality in New York City

during the days, weeks and months that followed the WTC terrorist attacks of September 11,

2001. The Committees will focus on “EPA’s Response to Exterior Air Quality after 9/11”,

“EPA/NYCDEP/NYCDOH Response to Interior Air Quality after 9/11” and “Illnesses and

disabilities associated with 9/11”.

1. EPA’s Response to Exterior Air Quality After 9/11.

The terrorist attack on New York City’s World Trade Center, on September 11, 2001,

created an unprecedented environmental disaster, especially in Lower Manhattan and many areas

of Brooklyn. The collapse of the Center’s twin towers and the fire that followed generated a

gigantic plume of debris and gases that lingered for months and particulate matter that settled

from the plume was often resuspended by wind gusts or the movement of vehicles and workers

involved in the rescue and cleanup effort. While the immediate priority was to rescue survivors

of the attack many questions have since arisen regarding potential health hazards that may have

existed due to poor air quality at the site. To what degree an air quality hazard existed and

whether appropriate information and safety precautions were made available to volunteer rescue

workers at the site has given way to a national debate with obvious ramifications for rescue and

recovery efforts in the future.

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