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Dirty Secrets
Vashon Islanders learn to limit exposure to persistent toxins
by Kari Mosden
What happened between a copper smelter, consistent northerly winds, and
an island just north of Tacoma, Washington, is now another unfortunate
chapter of toxic pollution in Pacific Northwest history. What's being
done about it on Vashon Island, on the other hand, is promising and
important work.
Vashon Island is an idyllic and nearly rural place to live, a popular
get-away on the weekend, and a bedroom community for Seattle commuters.
It takes just a short ferry ride from Seattle to get there, and once you
arrive, the tranquility of the place is immediately apparent--the closest
thing to a stoplight is a wait at the ferry dock. However, Vashon has a
secret, something that is literally right under its residents' toes:
elevated levels of the toxic heavy metals arsenic, lead, and cadmium
permeating the soil on most of the island. Arsenic can cause death at
high levels, but lower levels may produce effects on the blood and
heart, as well as several kinds of cancer. Lead can damage the nervous
systems, kidneys, and reproductive system. Cadmium damages the lungs,
can cause kidney disease, and may also cause cancer.
Lead and cadmium are both persistent toxic chemicals (known as PBTs)
that stay around in the environment for decades, increase in
concentration as they move up the food chain, and are extremely toxic in
tiny amounts. These heavy metals would be targeted in the future for
clean up and reduction under the Department of Ecology's PBT program, if
funding is restored. But, for now, those living on Vashon could be at
risk for toxic exposure, depending on where kids play or what types of
vegetables are planted in the garden.
How is it that such a quaint, hidden gem of a place could be
contaminated by this invisible threat? It was the copper smelting plant
just south of the island in Ruston, Washington. The stacks from the
plant spewed toxic wastes into the wind for years and years, and Vashon
is the living legacy of the effects. This is not news to the ten
thousand or so residents of Vashon Island. In fact, there was quite a
ruckus a few years back when some parents discovered the high levels of
toxic chemicals in the parks and school playgrounds. After much
replacing of topsoil, those parts of the island are safe enough for
children to play in again, but much of the island is still contaminated.
The residents have been educated about the problem, and they know better
than to eat dirt (at least the adults do), but the threat is still
there. The Heavy Metals Remediation Committee (HMRC) is a subset of the
Vashon-Maury Island Community Council, formed to "address community
concerns and health risks relating to heavy metals in our soil, plants,
air and water." They put on informational programs, such as Get the
Scoop on Our Dirt, and You Can Grow Cleaner Dirt, and serve as a
resource for residents of the island. May Gerstle, the chair of the
committee, heads up the effort to clean the soil and educate the
residents. "We have done quite a bit of work to uncover the impacts of
these heavy metals in the soil," May tells me, going on to explain that
their focus is now on the human health impacts of the toxic substances.
May is not a newcomer to community activism and organizing, which
probably explains why she is so successful in rallying people to action
on Vashon. She grew up in Berkeley, California, where she was exposed to
the many social movements from that famous activism hot spot. She has
lived on Vashon for eight years, and prior to moving there she was a
community relations director in Seattle. Her former career helped her to
understand and prioritize important issues. It seemed fitting to be
elected to the board of the Community Council when she moved to Vashon.
When residents of the island found out that the soil in the playgrounds
and schools was contaminated, May was there to organize the group that
became the HMRC. Her own health had not been affected by the toxic soil,
as far as she knew, but she was concerned. Vashon is her home, and the
health of her community and the environment is important to her.
Now, having cleaned up playgrounds and educated gardeners and other
island residents, the HMRC is moving on to doctors. Their latest project
is a Handbook for Healthcare Practitioners. "Doctors and other
healthcare practitioners don't always know what the symptoms of lead,
arsenic, or cadmium poisoning look like because they are not usually
trained for that in medical school," May said, adding that the HMRC
hopes this handbook will help close that gap. They have gone to great
lengths to ensure the relevance and accuracy of the handbook. As May
puts it, "this is no 'woo-woo' publication," meaning it's a
well-researched and evidence-based document.
We often don't think much about the harm of tracking dirt into the
house, what our vegetable gardens may take out of the soil aside from
water, or where our animals have been. However, it is seemingly harmless
activities such as these that can expose residents of Vashon Island and
elsewhere, to toxic chemicals. Harmful exposure to these toxic metals
typically comes by accidental ingestion, but health problems can also
develop only after years of exposure, or may not show up until many
years after exposure has stopped. Safe practices, such as frequent hand
washing, taking shoes off in the house, and washing all vegetables and
fruits before eating them, can go a long way towards reducing one's
exposure. As with most toxic issues, there is too much that we don't
know, and, as the HMRC has pointed out, the best course of action is
education and caution.
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