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Great Lakes Study Mired in Politics: Author

Scientist says feds didn't like pollution report, reassigned him

By Katherine Thompson,  Newser Staff

Posted Feb 18, 2008 7:52 AM CST
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(Newser) – A report suggesting industrial contamination in the Great Lakes poses health threats to residents is being suppressed by the feds, says study author Chris De Rosa, who also claims he was demoted because of his findings. The study found 230,000 "vulnerable" people are living in polluted areas, but the government cited concerns with methodology, reports the Washington Post. 

Peer reviewers involved with the study are crying foul because, as one says, "All science has limitations, but to stress the limitations at the expense of getting this kind of information out to the research community is not in the public interest at all." A House committee is investigating the reassignment of De Rosa, who was also involved in publicizing health concerns with FEMA trailers.

Part of the BP Refinery waste water treatment includes clarification tanks, clarifiers with a total capacity of 5.7 million gallons of water. Shown here is the clarifier overflow Tuesday Nov. 13, 2007 in Whiting, Ind. Three months ago, the London-based oil company said it would scrap the Whiting refinery's...
Part of the BP Refinery waste water treatment includes clarification tanks, clarifiers with a total capacity of 5.7 million gallons of water. Shown here is the clarifier overflow Tuesday Nov. 13, 2007...   (Associated Press)
Shane Engelken, right, and Keith Beltz spar outside their temporary FEMA trailers in Greensburg, Kan. Tuesday, July 24, 2007. Higher-than-normal levels of formaldehyde in some trailers are just one of many toxic problems faced by the Centers for Disease Control. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Shane Engelken, right, and Keith Beltz spar outside their temporary FEMA trailers in Greensburg, Kan. Tuesday, July 24, 2007. Higher-than-normal levels of formaldehyde in some trailers are just one of...   (Associated Press)
A runner braves sub-freezing temperatures as she jogs along the ice covered Lake Michigan water front Monday, Jan. 21, 2008 in Chicago. A new report estimates that 230,000 people living near Lake Michigan are especially vulnerable to contamination. (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green)
A runner braves sub-freezing temperatures as she jogs along the ice covered Lake Michigan water front Monday, Jan. 21, 2008 in Chicago. A new report estimates that 230,000 people living near Lake Michigan...   (Associated Press)
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environment • pollution • Great Lakes • FEMA • contamination • Chris De Rosa • health risks • industrial contamination • FEMA trailers

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