Submitted by fraaankie485 t3_z1v9hg in newjersey
Comments
Yimpa_aum t1_ixgcgrl wrote
Have you reported this to Al Lupiano by any chance? The environmental scientist who initiated this investigation.
poke532810 t1_ixguaws wrote
Yes I've been in touch with AL. Thanks for the reminder.
fraaankie485 OP t1_ixcy5yk wrote
I’m glad they are doing testing again but the township was adamant prior in saying that there would be no more testing. When it comes down to it, it’s an ego trip for the mayor because if there is indeed a bigger issue, he fumbled the ball and looked the other way because he doesn’t want to look bad in front of the cameras.
The photo op from hell for him I’m sure. He can always build something new and grimace as the cameras flash
Irlydidnthaveachoice t1_ixdzrhu wrote
The concern is a cancer cluster folks developing a unique form of cancer. They conducted a radiation survey which came back negative. A parent tested material and soil at the school which came back positive for PCBs and pesticides both of which "are not sources of the ionizing radiation most associated with the occurrence of primary brain tumors". - from the linked article.
I do not understand the mentality that the government must be lying. How does it benefit the mayor to learn a school has an environmental threat to his constituents and his action is to cover it up? The amount of people involved for that to be pulled off is just laughable.
Is there ever a point were you stop and think that maybe the school is not the issue.
Unfortunately, I fear we are past that point and fear mongering has taken over. The only thing the residents will accept is demolishing the school and building another even though it does not provide an answer to your concern, why are folks developing a unique cancer.
Probably upwards of half a billion dollars and it does not stop or answer the question of why there is a cancer cluster some folks have developed a similar form of cancer.
I say this as a parent and someone that works in environmental consulting.
Edit: public officials have determined Colonia was not a true cancer cluster.
fraaankie485 OP t1_ixe4n4i wrote
As a resident of Woodbridge, hearing and seeing the news when this first hit was on everyone’s lips. Once the rounds of testing came back, it was basically said that there was no need for anymore testing. But no answers. The mayor at one point wouldn’t even take messages about this. He hid from it for a brief moment. But people kept pushing. And they have to continue to push for better answers.
I’m not saying he covered anything up. I’m saying he didn’t want anymore testing because of the National exposure. What mayor wants to deal with this? I’m sure none but they have to step up to the plate. He never stepped up and did the bare minimum.
He lives only a short slip from the school, his biggest concern his political image. His daughter never went to the HS because she was enrolled in a private school so this issue doesn’t affect him directly since his child or himself or wife never attended the school. But people want clear and consistent answers and unfortunately the residents and patients and victims aren’t getting the answers. Spend all the money they want to get it, but when it comes down to it, he wants it swept under the rug and to move on.
angusshangus t1_ixeyhem wrote
Isn’t it more of a BOE responsibility? The mayor doesn’t typically have much say over the schools.
fraaankie485 OP t1_ixez2ys wrote
Normally yes. But in Woodbridge BOE elected, many are Mayor Mac Team so he has a hand in BOE doings. “Column A Mac’s Team”
Irlydidnthaveachoice t1_ixfwn22 wrote
Your fallacy is you will not accept the results. You want there to a a neatly package answer but in all likelihood that is just not going to happen. This is not some fiction novel that conveniently starts with tragedy and ends with a satisfying conclusion.
1 in 3 people get cancer and 1 in 5 die from it. The exact cause can often be evasive because cancer is not responsive as a light switch, it can take years or decades to be found.
Regarding the additional testing, > That kind of follow-up could have the opposite effect, said Shawn LaTourette, New Jersey’s commissioner of environmental protection, and send “the wrong message” that the suspicions deserved any more resources than what had already been invested.
> One month later, Mayor McCormac echoed this sentiment to me: “It’s frustrating that people who hoped that there was no radiation on the site now are upset that there’s not,” he said. “They asked us to do this, and we did it. We did exactly what they wanted.”
The Township did not hid from this. They did exactly what needed to be done. The issue is folks have a predetermined narrative. The school is toxic and we will not stopping testing until that is proven true.
> When the state health department calculated the number of brain and other nervous system tumors that would be expected among the cohort of students and staff from 1968 to 2021, it concluded it could be up to 120 individuals — just slightly under Mr. Lupiano’s count of about 125 (though he believes his tally is an undercount). At least one epidemiologist I spoke to for this article told me that, just glancing at the numbers, he wasn’t surprised that public officials have determined Colonia was not a true cluster.
Yimpa_aum t1_ixgfiqv wrote
“The issue is folks have a predetermined narrative.”
—
So are you claiming that science and government is above that? C’mon, give me a break.
We are all in this together; I’d prefer we all learn from each other rather than fighting. This is an opportunity to advance science and possibly create better policies in government regarding toxic chemicals - that is, if the new investigation does find new concerns.
Yimpa_aum t1_ixgfqcm wrote
I say “new concerns” because there is proof that this school has had concerns as early as this past summer:
zincink t1_ixy96pe wrote
We aren’t far away from toxic Linden and air travels. The schools are old and years ago they always had roofing issues. The incinerator burning medical waste and lots of other questionable things they ship in for decades doesn’t help either. “The Bayway Refinery in Linden alone in 2012 dumped 2,084,440 pounds of toxins including ethylene glycol, lead and lead compounds, sec-butyl alcohol, and toluene into the Morses Creek watershed, which feeds the Arthur Kill. All of these toxins cause either cancer, developmental or reproductive problems”.
Linenoise77 t1_ixfne2e wrote
Yeah, i'm not saying there isn't something going on there, but centering on the school because "people who got it went there" seems silly. Those people also probably spent considerable time at other places in the immediate area. The places we regularly hung out and goofed around with in HS were the same places people had done the same at for decades.
If the numbers are that out of wack compared to the general pop and you ruled out the low hanging fruit in the school, its time to look at other places, or admit its just a statistical anomaly, not keep doubling down on the easy answer.
[deleted] t1_ixfhcr7 wrote
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42ndRedBalloonFromUp t1_ixd9tp5 wrote
My wife and I moved to Colonia 2 years ago and have a 6 month old. How concerned should I be when she gets to be school age? Looks like we’re gonna be heading out once she hits around 10 to avoid the risk.
Irlydidnthaveachoice t1_ixe0kwv wrote
A link between the cancer cluster and the school has not been established. Could they find something, sure that possibility exists but considering they have preformed a radiation survey and results were negative, more than likely the school is not the issue.
Yoshiyo0211 t1_ixibes2 wrote
Is it a possibility that it's not the school grounds but the residential areas in Colonia?
Irlydidnthaveachoice t1_ixim60u wrote
From my understanding, the type of cancer comes from radiation exposure. There are plenty of radiation exposures in our daily life.
Radon naturally occurs and creeps into home's via cracks in the ground. Woodbridge is not in an area where this would be expected though, where the average is below EPA's 4 pCi/L threshold.
Although concerning and worthy of investigation, it appears, especially after the school tested negative and the general population cancer assessment determined that the cancer numbers are not an anomaly, it does not appear to be a cancer cluster
Edits: spelling
Yoshiyo0211 t1_ixjg1ff wrote
Ah! Thanks! Useless info I've learned as a teen living in Perth Amboy from my Natural Science class in the early 2000s. Since Perth Amboy was famous for it's brick making and exterior decorations/facades due to the amt of clay available in the ground basements in Perth Amboy have little Radon.
Yimpa_aum t1_ixgcpdg wrote
Let’s wait for the investigation to be complete and hope for the best.
Although, I would feel suspicious about the school, because this letter was sent out to parents in September:
tashabunn t1_ixgn8qd wrote
Yikes. So 60% of the schools do need remediation…
panfist t1_ixeakmx wrote
>In the case of Colonia High School, many of these valid limitations apply. The New Jersey cancer registry offers little help, since not everyone who went to or worked at Colonia still lives in Woodbridge, and not everyone in Woodbridge went to Colonia. When the state health department calculated the number of brain and other nervous system tumors that would be expected among the cohort of students and staff from 1968 to 2021, it concluded it could be up to 120 individuals — just slightly under Mr. Lupiano’s count of about 125 (though he believes his tally is an undercount). At least one epidemiologist I spoke to for this article told me that, just glancing at the numbers, he wasn’t surprised that public officials have determined Colonia was not a true cluster.
From a nytimes article
Pie4Weebl t1_ixfk35r wrote
That sounds too reasonable, let's just keep dumping money at testing until we find *something *, and if we don't find anything the only explanation is we need to do more testing.
Irlydidnthaveachoice t1_ixfsybn wrote
From the same article: > The Woodbridge town council spent $221,000 to deploy 83 radon testing devices and conduct radiological testing at the school building and encircling 28-acre campus. Officials also reviewed local data on naturally occurring radioactive deposits and followed up on reports of a radioactive rock discovered in a science classroom in 1997.
This is not to say the original testing was not warranted, it certainly was but what is the point of testing if we do not accept the results?
Pie4Weebl t1_ixftkge wrote
I was being sarcastic. They tested for the cause of the cancer, found nothing and that should be that. I don't understand how spending money for testing on things that couldn't cause that cancer makes any sense at all.
Irlydidnthaveachoice t1_ixfx3vz wrote
I figured, just want to tag on how much the original round of testing cost the folks of Woodbridge.
Completely agree.
Yimpa_aum t1_ixggory wrote
https://www.twp.woodbridge.nj.us/DocumentCenter/View/20094/MAYOR-STATEMENT_CHS-PC_5-26-2022
“Although we appropriated the funds, we fully expect to be reimbursed for any expenditures through State and Federal entities and we have made that clear to all parties involved and we have received assurances that they would work with us to accomplish this goal.”
Irlydidnthaveachoice t1_ixioqlr wrote
Good to know, thank you.
Both NJDEP and EPA are satisfied with the results, as in they do not believe additional sampling is necessary. I would imagine the Township is now on the hook for the this second round sampling.
Yimpa_aum t1_ixiuyow wrote
No problem!
My stance is this investigation is an opportunity for science to evolve and government agencies to learn from novel cases, such as what’s supposedly going on in this school.
If this investigation brings us new insights about how cancer develops in humans as well as how toxic chemicals play a role in our ongoing environmental issues, then I’m all for it. Looking at long term solutions instead of short term.
Irlydidnthaveachoice t1_ixfs4f9 wrote
paseqb t1_ixf3u00 wrote
I graduated from Colonia… so of course this is a little concerning. Tangentially related my youngest child has had two brain tumors but has never been to Colonia. Go figure.
CrazyCatGirl226 t1_ixe8oth wrote
This is crazy. I used to live in that area. I hope they find the cause.
MY_FUCKING_USERNAME t1_ixgrxf1 wrote
From an outsiders view, there is way too much correlation to not be able to identify causation in this situation.
The brightest minds of our generation(s) should be trying to determine why such rare forms of cancer were focused on such a small area. Even if you can't change the past, you may be able to change the future. This is NOT something for the back burner.
Maybe if there was an incentive, somebody would put in the effort to figuring out.
Yimpa_aum t1_ixiv8up wrote
Cheers!
deluxepepperoncini t1_ixhfw7z wrote
This shit scares me. I’m moving to central Jersey and I keep worrying how much filtering I can do on my water, any other precautions I can take.
[deleted] t1_ixgfg6n wrote
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poke532810 t1_ixe9ygh wrote
I grew up in Colonia and graduated there during the 90s. One classmate later died from brain cancer and I had gotten cancer myself (non life threatening).