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Stephen L. Johnson, Administrator Dear Administrator Johnson: In the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attack on the World Trade Center, your agency failed to take proper action to warn the public of the highly toxic hazards from the Ground Zero pollution and conduct an effective testing and cleanup of the contamination that spread over much of Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn. This put innocent families who lived near the towers – and the conscientious workers and small business owners who restored New York City after the disaster – at risk of toxic exposures. Thousands of people today suffer respiratory illnesses and other health impacts from this exposure. Many have no health insurance and are not even receiving medical screening and diagnostic services, let alone proper medical care. Your agency must take effective action to prevent more exposure to 9/11-contaminated dust harbored in buildings that were never properly tested and cleaned after the disaster. I urge you to strengthen your current indoor 9/11 pollution testing/cleanup plan to address the issues about testing methods, risk guidelines and cleanup actions raised by Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, Representative Jerrold Nadler and the coalition of concerned public interest and labor organizations that presented comments to your agency. I also urge you to expand the plan to cover all adversely affected areas of Manhattan and Brooklyn, advocating for resources as needed from the federal administration. Sincerely, Sincerely, |