TIVERTON -- North Tiverton residents have been prisoners in
their homes since high levels of arsenic, cyanide and other carcinogens
were found in their neighborhood's soil more than a year ago.
Children can't play outside. Sneakers can't be brought inside. And
forget about eating homegrown vegetables.
Some say their property values have dropped considerably, to the point
where selling or refinancing a home is wishful thinking. Making the
property more desirable, such as building an addition, is a no-no, too.
Town officials ratified a moratorium on digging and excavation in August.
More than 120 families are stuck and scared.
Anger and frustration is leading their fight back, beginning with a
proactive neighborhood group called ENACT.
An ENACT news conference yesterday brought statewide attention to the
neighborhood battle. A few dozen supporters stood in the cold in front
of the media at a contaminated recreation area on Hooper Street.
The cameras focused on Lois Gibbs, who led a fight 25 years ago to
evacuate more than 100 families from a massive toxic waste site in her
Love Canal neighborhood in Niagara Falls. ENACT president Gail Corvello
spoke of the community's discontent with the gas company that is
suspected of causing the soil contamination.
The cameras also did not ignore the local toddlers who held signs that
read, "Bay Street Neighborhood. . . Total Clean-Up NOT Total Denial."
Also present was the director of Toxics Action Center, a Boston-based
organization, members of the Town Council and residents.
They stood in the playground's soil where, they say, there is as much as
six times more arsenic than the state standard.
"I cannot begin to describe the total disappointment that this entire
community is feeling right now," Corvello said. ". . . People that know
the history of this area know without a doubt that there is much more
contamination to be found."
Southern Union Gas Co. (the parent company of New England Gas) has
already determined in a recent report that 40 of 68 properties in North
Tiverton tested do not need further action or remediation despite having
some contaminants above state standards.
The Department of Environmental Management ordered Southern Union in
March to test those properties after it discovered documents that said
Fall River Gas Co., which Southern Union bought, used the area in the
1960s as a landfill for hazardous waste from its coal gasification plant.
"Based on the limited number of tested done," Corvello said, "all 68 of
these properties require, no, are entitled to more testing."
She called Southern Union's report biased and inadequate, adding that
its conclusions were premature and dishonest, especially when it states
the contaminants found in some places are not related to manufactured
gas plant waste. The report suggests lead paint and pesticide may be the
cause.
"These people are entitled to know their land is safe," Councilman
Donald Bollin said. "They are entitled to know that their children have
a safe place to play."
He and council president Claudia Linhares came to the media event to
show support. Bollin also said the council wasn't surprised when the gas
company tried to spin the results and blame others.
"The gas company is totally responsible for this situation," said Gibbs,
who is now the director of the Center for Health Environment and Justice
in Washington, D.C. "I think Southern Union should pay for it all."
In Gibbs's situation 25 years ago, the neighborhood was made up of
first-time home buyers who just wanted out of the situation. The
contamination was discovered in April of 1978. Women and children were
evacuated four months later. Everyone was relocated by October 1980.
Yet, North Tiverton is different, she said. Many property owners are
here to stay. Some families have been here for decades. It's their home,
she said.
She told ENACT to stay strong because they have a long fight ahead of
them. She also said remediation will take years, much longer than it did
in her situation.
"It's very difficult to tell the children day after day after day that
they can't play outside," said Corvello, who runs a daycare out of her
Bay Street property. It is also contaminated.
Some of her daycare children and other local youngsters held signs
yesterday. As time wore on, the children got restless. Some went to play
on the merry-go-round while others attempted to roll down a grassy hill.
An adult supporter dropped her sign and ran to the children. She quickly
brushed off their winter coats and removed grass and dirt from their
hair. She instructed them not to do that again.
Alisha Pina can be reached by phone at (401) 253-1200 or by e-mail at
apina@projo.com
