Rep Reyes, House intelligence committee chair 2006 said news was never supposed to see light of day: 4/21/24

Saturday, April 27, 2024

10/2006 press release written by teacher heather mcmurray , that then caught attention of nytimes

[note: God had to have been involved, 2024; errata, the ep gtlo was started by mcmurray as splinter group, when the "get the lead out" (GTLO/senator shapleigh) group failed to meet over long long periods, the SPEG group was a kids' group 2 mi from epicenter, let by taylor moore esq - mcmurray attended regularly. The local sierra club refused to endorse the press conference & only the sierra club employee was there. ][Pps this newswire was paid out of pocket ($300.00) by teacher h.mcmurray as there were no other funds. Epgtlo and speg were not funded

NEWS

(PRN) Asarco Texas Smelter Secretly Burned Toxic Waste for Nearly a Decade

Oct 9, 2006

EPA-Federal Department of Justice (D.O.J.) papers documenting the illegal

burning were sealed from news reporters, and public -- until now

EL PASO, Texas, Oct. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- El Paso Get the Lead Out and Sunland Park Grassroots Environmental Group will release formerly confidential EPA-Federal Department of Justice (D.O.J.) documents at 5:30 MDT, 11-October- 2006 in a National Press Conference. The group will meet across from the El Paso Asarco smelter, on the access road paralleling Paisano (near old Smelter Town and the IBWC American Dam Offices).

"SHAM RECYCLING"

Article continues below this ad

Asarco illegally burned hazardous waste sent from Corpus Christi

Asarco used their new Con-Top furnaces for this "Sham Recycling," calling it "Energy Recovery" A smoking-gun EPA internal memo shows how top environmental officials were worried that metals testing might uncover what had happened in El Paso, TX and at Asarco-Encycle in Corpus Christi.

The El Paso GTLO, Concerned Citizens of Sunland Park and concerned groups want the Asarco Contamination exposed, the responsible officials to step down, and correct clean-up to begin.

Contact Information:

Heather McMurray

El Paso Get the Lead Out

Sunland Park Grassroots Environmental Group

heamc@earthlink.net (915) 539-3388 This release was issued through eReleases(TM). For more information, visit http://www.ereleases.com.

Oct 9, 2006

Sunday, April 21, 2024

Update how you do google searches

Use

Before: 2023

In front of your search and watch the differences...all the seo stuff removed (awesome)

DECEMBER 6, 2010 Ex-ASARCO Workers Claim Secret Dump Sites In Plant

RecastingtheSmelter.com

DECEMBER 6, 2010

Ex-ASARCO Workers Claim Secret Dump Sites In Plant

Monica Balderrama-KFOX News Reporter

EL PASO, Texas — A handful of ex-ASARCO employees claim that working at the smelter has made them sick and toxic waste still remains on the property.

Ex-workers, along with an attorney with Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid Inc., held a press conference Monday disclosing concerns about the remediation process of the plant.

“While I was working there I came down with some rashes and my skin would crack,” said Mario Nevarez, a 12-year ASARCO worker.

Nevarez and several other co-workers said their illnesses have been a mystery for years. But the workers said they now realize why they’re so sick. They blame the years they worked at ASARCO, the copper smelter.

The Environmental Protection Agency reached a landmark national $20 million cleanup and penalty settlement with ASARCO in 1999, the year the plant shut down. The details of the violations were not disclosed until years later.

A few years ago, a 1998 confidential memorandum regarding the ASARCO settlement statement was obtained by two El Paso environmental groups. In the document, the EPA said ASARCO had a permit to extract metals from hazardous waste products, but it was illegally burning waste. The EPA states, “This activity, plain and simple, was illegal treatment and disposal of hazardous waste.”

“All this is new to me as well, I didn’t know they were burning this stuff illegally. Not knowing why I was sick,” said Patrick Garza.

Garza along with other employees have interviewed other workers and uncovered information identifying six unregulated dump sites on ASARCO property. Workers disclosed that in the late ’70s they were given instructions to excavate around the property and bury oils.

The group feels that the trustee selected to manage work plans, data consolidation and conduct community outreach has not incorporated their concerns. They believe the site hasn’t been tested properly because if it was they would have found the dump sites. Veronica Carbajal, an attorney with the Texas RioGrande Legal Aid said nearby residents and future residents could be at risk.

“However, the community will be in danger. Schools, apartments, homes that maybe established in that people, owners may not know,” said Carbajal.

The workers have contacted the EPA and asked to take over the oversight and corrective action of the ASARCO site.

We know know that Asarco, Dupont and Englehard --- all caught by EPA and the US DOJ as sending illegal wastes to be burned here (the EPA still refused to release the invoices listed by ID numbers in the 1998 73 page US DOJ EPA secret document NYTimes 10/2006) were US DOE HIGH LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL CONTRACTORS. TO THIS DAY none of them have been held responsible through the bankruptcy court for ANY of the illegal waste disposal damage to our community and its water. It is very likely that they hid under the protection of the 1940's Atomic energy act (see book on rocky flats plutonium site by Karen Iversen).

Sample FOIA request Letter

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region VI

Attn: Freedom of Information Officer (6MD-00)

1445 Ross Ave

Dallas, TX 75202-2733

Re: FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT REQUEST

Dear Sir or Madam:

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552, we request a copy of all documents, ((from January, 2007 to present, pertaining to the __________________... add your specific description)).

If any documents or items are withheld, please identify the exemption under which you believe such materials may be withheld from disclosure. To the extent any exemption is claimed with respect to a document, please produce so much of such document that is not covered by any claimed exemption. We reserve the right to appeal your decision to withhold any information.

In compliance with the Freedom of Information Act, we will pay reasonable charges incurred for search and copying costs [- - add this part if you need a limit of charges: “up to $25.00” (($25.00 is the default)]. In the event that there are a substantial number of responsive documents, we would appreciate the opportunity to review all responsive documents.

Please reply to this request within the next twenty (20) working days, as required by the Freedom of Information Act. If you have any questions or comments, please call ____________.

Sincerely,