Interagency coordination message, WTC response, March 27, 2002

NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document

§9604), and provides the framework for ERA'S response to the release of hazardous substances, pollutants and contaminants. Commenting on ERA Regional Administrator Kenny's statement in the press release that "Actions speak louder than words..." Rep. Nadler said, "When it comes to the needs of the residents and workers who have been victims of the terrorist attack, the ERA refuses even to mouth the right words, let alone perform any actions on indoor environments that would ensure the health and safety of people living and working in and around Ground Zero." (MORE)

Rep. Nadler pointed out that in a speech delivered by ERA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman in November 2001, she acknowledged the ERA’S responsibility for cleanup of buildings contaminated in a terrorist attack. Under the Rresidential Decision Directive 62, signed by then-Rresident Clinton in 1998, she said, "the ERA is assigned lead responsibility for cleaning up buildings and other sites contaminated by chemical or biological agents as a result of an act of terrorism." "If Administrator Whitman was so clear on the duties and responsibilities in November 2001, why did she not enforce them two months earlier, and why does the ERA continue to shirk its duties more than six months after the attack," asked Rep. Nadler. Rep. Nadler was elected to Congress in 1992. He represents the Sth Congressional District in New York, which includes parts of Manhattan and Brooklyn, including the area now known as Ground Zero. ### ERA RELEASE FOLLOWS: U.S. Environmental Rrotection Agency — Region 2 >New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands >290 Broadway - New York, New York 10007-1866 >www.epa.gov/region2 > >EPA - Mary Mears, 212-637-3669 >NYC - Frank McCarton (OEM), 718-422-4888 > > >FEDERAL, STATE AND CITY AGENCIES ANNOUNCE ACTIONS FOR LOWER >MANHATTAN AIR QUALITY > >FOR RELEASE: Monday, March 25, 2002 > >(#02114) New York, New York - Today the Environmental Protection >Agency (EPA), along with New York City and other federal and state >agencies, announced additional actions to address outdoor and >indoor air quality. As part of the overall effort to continue to >protect air quality, DEP will remove residual debris from rooftops >and facades with EPA's guidance. OSHA will work in a coordinated >effort with the City and EPA to ensure the safety and health of >the workers performing this cleaning. > >EPA and New York City will expand the program to remove residual >debris from rooftops and facades around the World Trade Center >site. In addition, agencies will work to build on an indoor air >study conducted in November and December. These actions are a >result of the collaborative efforts of the EPA Administrator >Christie Whitman's Task Force on Indoor Air and New York City >Mayor Michael Bloomberg's Lower Manhattan Air Quality Task Force. > >"Actions speak louder than words, and these actions will help >increase confidence about outdoor and indoor air quality," said 2

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