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Past and Present Environmental Health Challenges in Southwestern Pennsylvania: Some Comments on the Right to a Clean Environment

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 January 2021

Devra Lee Davis
Affiliation:
Center for Environmental Oncology, University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute; Department of Epidemiology; Heinz School of Public Policy and Management, Carnegie Mellon University
Carrie Forrester
Affiliation:
Duquesne University; Heinz School of Public Policy and Management, Carnegie Mellon University

Extract

The people have a right to clean air, pure water, and to the preservation of the natural, scenic, historic and esthetic values of the environment.

Type
Article
Copyright
Copyright © American Society of Law, Medicine and Ethics and Boston University 2004

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Footnotes

This work was partially supported by a grant from the Heinz Family Foundation to Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz School. Research assistance was provided by Elizabeth Reitano and Maxwell R. Davis, Ellen Dorsey, and Richard Morgenstern provided constructive comments.

References

1 PENN. CONST. art. I, 27.

2 DEVRA DAVIS, WHEN SMOKE RAN LIKE WATER chs. 2-4 (2002).

3 Id.

4 NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL, ENVIRONMENTAL EPIDEMIOLOGY, VOLUME I 32 (1991).

5 Devra, Lee Davis, Changing Policy Roles of Environmental Epidemiology, 3 STATISTICAL SCI. 281, 281-85 (1989)Google Scholar.

6 DAVIS, supra note 2, at ch. 1.

7 Id.

8 The application of the precautionary principle in policy making and for the protection of future worldwide generations can be found in the Conferences on Environment and Health papers. See, e.g., Third Ministerial Conference on Environment and Health (London June 16-18, 1999), available at http://www.euro.who.int/Document/E69046.pdf. A Fourth Ministerial Conference on Environment and Health is scheduled for June of 2004 in Budapest. See WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION, FOURTH MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE ON ENVIRONMENT AND HEALTH, BUDAPEST, HUNGARY, 23-25 JUNE 2004, at http://www.euro.who.int/budapest2004 (last updated July 7, 2004).

9 U.S. CONST. amend. IV.

10 DAVIS, supra note 2, at 7.

11 See id. at 9.

12 Id.

13 Id. at 10.

14 Id.

15 Id.

16 Id. at 11.

17 Id.

18 Id.

19 Id.

20 Id.

21 Id.

22 Id.

23 Id.

24 Id. at 13.

25 Id.

26 Id.

27 Id. at 13-14.

28 Id. at 14.

29 Id. (citation omitted).

30 Id.

31 Id.

32 Id. at 14-15.

33 Id. at 15.

34 Id.

35 Id.

36 BERTON ROUECHE, ELEVEN BLUE MEN 196 (1953).

37 DAVIS, supra note 2, at 16-18.

38 Id. at 18.

39 Id.

40 Id. at 19.

41 Id.

42 Id.

43 Id. at 18-19.

44 ROUECHE, supra note 36, at 215.

45 DAVIS, supra note 2, at 20.

46 Id. (citation omitted).

47 Id. at 20 (citation omitted).

48 Id. at 20-21.

49 See id. at 21-22.

50 Id. at 25. Michael Neale, superintendent of the zinc mill, was also head of Donora's Chamber of Commerce and saw that these reports never surfaced. Id. In addition:

It was revealed that the town council and the Chamber of Commerce had requested advice from the Pennsylvania Department of Forests and Waters the previous March. A reply from Deputy Forester James Cornely was read to a community hearing just after the smog had cleared: It is my belief that Donora could demand that smoke filters could be placed in the smoke stacks of the zinc plant; and if done in the right manner with the suggestions of a possible usable precipitate or residue being produced, the result might be satisfactory.

Id. at 22.

51 Id.

52 H.H. SCHRENK ET AL., PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE, AIR POLLUTION IN DONORA, PA: EPIDEMIOLOGY OF THE UNUSUAL SMOG EPISODE OF OCT. 1948; PRELIMINARY REPORT (1949).

53 DAVIS, supra note 2, at 23.

54 Chris Bryson, The Donora Fluoride Fog: A Secret History of America's Worst Air Pollution Disaster, EARTH ISLAND J. (1998), available at http://www.earthisland.org/eijournal/fall98/fe_fall98donora.html.

55 DAVIS, supra note 2, at 23.

56 Philip, Sadtler, Fluorine Gases in Atmosphere as Industrial Waste Blamed for Death and Chronic Poisoning of Donora and Webster, Pa., Inhabitants, 26 CHEMICAL & ENGINEERING NEWS 3692 (1948)Google Scholar.

57 Id.

58 DAVIS, supra note 2 at 23.

59 SCHRENK ET AL., supra note 52, at 45.

60 DAVIS, supra note 2, at 23-24 (citations omitted).

61 Id. at 24.

62 Clarence, A. Mills, The Donora Episode, 111 SCIENCE 67 (1950)Google Scholar.

63 Id.

64 Id. at 68.

65 DAVIS, supra note 2, at 24.

66 Id. at 25.

67 Id. at 24.

68 Id. at 140, photographic insert. This figure portrays a sketch of Donora made by Charles Shinn for the U.S. Public Health Service in 1949. The crosses indicate the locations of deaths that occurred during the killer smog. The zinc plant is just inside the horseshoe bend in the Monongahela River. Id.

69 Id. at 27.

70 Id. at 29.

71 Id.

72 Id.

73 SCHRENK ET AL., supra note 52, at ii.

74 Pub. L. 84-159, 69 Stat. 322 (1955); see also AMERICAN METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY, A LOOK AT U.S. AIR POLLUTION LAWS AND THEIR AMENDMENTS, at http://www.ametsoc.org/sloan/cleanair/cleanairlegisl.html (last visited July 14, 2004).

75 Pub. L. 84-159, 69 Stat. 322 (1955).

76 See, e.g., Marnie, Riddle, Note, Interpreting the Relevance of Economic Harm in the Clean Air Act: Tennessee Valley Authority v. Environmental Protection Agency, 30 ECOLOGY L.Q. 617, 620 (2003)Google Scholar (noting the limited reach of the Air Pollution Control Act).

77 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq. (2000).

78 Pub. L. 90-148, 81 Stat. 485 (1967).

79 See, e.g., Pub. L. 91-604, 84 Stat. 1678, 1698, 1703, 1075 (1970); see also AMERICAN METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY, supra note 74.

80 See, e.g., Paul, G. Rogers, The Clean Air Act of 1970, 16 EPA J. 21 (1990)Google Scholar (discussing the role of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1970).

81 Lynn Page Snyder, Revisiting Donora, Pennsylvania's 1948 Air Pollution Disaster, in DEVASTATION AND RENEWAL: AN ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY AND ITS REGION 126 (Joel A. Tarr ed., 2003).

82 For a map and description of the geology of Greene County, see PENN STATE UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES, DESCRIPTION OF THE GEOLOGY OF GREENE COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA, at http://www.libraries.psu.edu/emsl/guides/X/greene.htm (last modified May 3, 2001).

83 U.S. CENSUS BUREAU, PENNSYLVANIA QUICK FACTS, GREENE COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA, available at http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/42/42059.html (last revised July 9, 2004).

84 See id.

85 SCORECARD, ENVIRONMENTAL RELEASES FOR GREENE COUNTY, 2001 RANKINGS: MAJOR CHEMICAL RELEASES OF WASTE GENERATION IN GREENE COUNTY, at http://www.scorecard.org/envreleases/county.tcl?fips_county_code=42059major_chemical_releases (last visited July 14, 2004).

86 See SCORECARD, TRI DATA SUMMARY, at http://scorecard.org/env-releases/county.tcl?fips_county_code=42059data_summary (last visited July 14, 2004).

87 This category refers to the bottom 10%. Id.

88 See PENNSYLVANIA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, DRINKING WATER REPORTING SYSTEM, at http://www.drinkingwater.state.pa.us/dwrs/HTM/DEP_frm.html (last modified July 3, 2000) (generating reports on water supply sources for Pennsylvania counties).

89 See id. (generating reports including the populations served by Greene County public water suppliers).

90 Both Hatfield's Ferry and Fort Martin are owned and operated by Allegheny Energy Supply, an Allegheny Energy, Inc. company. See ALLEGHENY ENERGY SUPPLY, GENERATING FACILITIES/FUEL & POWER MARKETS, at http://www.alleghenyenergysupply.com/generating/default.asp (last visited July 14, 2004).

91 For maps of the power plants locations, see CLEAN AIR TASK FORCE, PUBLICATIONS, CHILDREN AT RISK FACT SHEETS, PENNSYLVANIA, at http://www.catf.us/publications/fact_sheets/children_at_risk/Pennsylvania_Kids_Facts%20.pdf (last visited July 14, 2004) and CLEAN AIR TASK FORCE, PUBLICATIONS, CHILDREN AT RISK FACT SHEETS, WEST VIRGINIA, at http://www.catf.us/publications/fact_sheets/children_at_risk/West_Virginia_Kids_Facts.pdf (last visited July 14, 2004).

92 See JONATHAN LEVY ET AL., ESTIMATED PUBLIC HEALTH IMPACTS OF CRITERIA POLLUTANT AIR EMISSIONS FROM THE SALEM HARBOR AND BRAYTON POINT POWER PLANTS (May 2000), available at http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/papers/plant/executive.pdf; see also Press Release, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Public Health Assessment on Agana Power Plant in Guam: Chemical Exposures Evaluated Do Not Pose Health Hazards to Residents (Oct. 22, 2003), available at http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/NEWS/aganagu102203.html.

93 PENNSYLVANIA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, RESIDUAL WASTE REPORT FOR 2000, available at http://www.dep.state.pa.us/wm_apps/residualwaste/default.asp (last visited July 14, 2004) (select Hatfield's Ferry from the generator list to get report) [hereinafter DEP RESIDUAL WASTE REPORT].

94 See UNIVERSITY OF NORTH DAKOTA, ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH CENTER, COAL ASH RESEARCH CENTER, at http://www.undeerc.org/carrc/ (last visited July 14, 2004).

95 UNIVERSITY OF NORTH DAKOTA, ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH CENTER, COAL ASH RESEARCH CENTER, WHAT IS COAL ASH?, at http://www.undeerc.org/carrc/html/WhatisCoalAsh.html (last visited July 14, 2004).

96 Id.

97 Id.

98 Id.

99 Id.

100 See, e.g., HOOSIER ENVIRONMENTAL COUNCIL, at http://www.hecweb.org (last visited July 14, 2004).

101 See U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY, ENVIROFACTS DATA WAREHOUSE, at http://www.epa.gov/enviro/index.html (last visited July 14, 2004).

102 Safe Drinking Water Act, 42 U.S.C. 300f et seq. (2000).

103 Id. (giving definitions of water supplier, section 300f(5), and public water system, section 300f(4)(A)).

104 Id. 300g-1(B)(4)(A) (2000). A maximum contaminant level is the maximum permissible level of a contaminant in water which is delivered to any user of a public water system. Id. 300f(3) (2000).

105 Id. 300g-1(B)(4)(B).

106 See id. 300g-2(a) (2000).

107 For a list of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection's (DEP) maximum contaminant levels for contaminants in drinking water, including inorganic chemicals such as arsenic, see PENNSYLVANIA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, MAXIMUM CONTAMINANT LEVELS, at http://www.dep.state.pa.us/dep/deputate/watermgt/WSM/WSM_DWM/PA-MCLs.pdf (last visited July 20, 2004).

108 Ed Rawski, Transcript of Arsenic, Radon Rules (Nov. 13, 2001), available at http://www.dep.state.pa.us/dep/subject/advcoun/techctr/2002/arsenic_radon_rawski.pdf.

109 U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY, GROUND WATER & DRINKING WATER, ARSENIC IN DRINKING WATER, at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/arsenic.html (last updated July 14, 2003).

110 See id.

111 See id. According to DEP files, in their Annual Drinking Water Quality Reports, East Dunkard Joint Municipal Authority and Dunkard Creek Water Authority both reported arsenic levels of 30 parts per billion in April 1996.

112 For toxic release inventory data for facilities with reported arsenic air releases in 2001, see SCORECARD, at http://www.scorecard.org (last visited July 14, 2004).

113 See RIGHT-TO-KNOW NETWORK, TRI SEARCH, at http://www.rtknet.org/tri/fac.php (last modified Jan. 9, 2004) (Hatfield Power Station, Pennsylvania).

114 See id. (Fort Martin Power Station, Pennsylvania).

115 PA. STAT. ANN. tit. 35, 721.1 (2003).

116 25 PA. CODE 109.301(7)(iii)(D)(2004) ([A]fter three consecutive rounds of quarterly, annual or triennial monitoring indicate the contaminant level for an IOC is below the [maximum contaminant level] in all samples at an entry point, routine monitoring for the remainder of the compliance cycle for that IOC is reduced to one sample per 9-year compliance cycle at that entry point.). This reduced monitoring cycle applies to the emission of other inorganic chemicals as well. Id.

117 See infra Part II.B.

118 Id.

119 Interview with Ed Rawski, Sanitary Engineer in Facilities Section of Waste Management, Southcentral Regional Department of Environmental Protection Office, Harrisburg, PA (Aug. 20, 2002) (on file with author).

120 Id.

121 See 40 C.F.R. 141.23(c) (2003).

122 See Richard, W. Clapp & David, Ozonoff, Environment and Health: Vital Intersection or Contested Territory?, 30 AM. J.L. MED. 189, 204-08 (2004)Google Scholar.

123 See id.

124 See NATURAL RESOURCES DEFENSE COUNCIL, ARSENIC AND OLD LAWS, TABLE 2: LIFETIME RISKS OF DYING OF CANCER FROM ARSENIC IN TAP WATER, at http://www.nrdc.org/water/drinking/arsenic/chap1.asptable2 (last visited July 14, 2004) [hereinafter NRDC TABLE 2].

125 NATURAL RESOURCES DEFENSE COUNCIL, ARSENIC IN DRINKING WATER FAQ, at http://www.nrdc.org/water/drinking/qarsenic.asp (last revised Mar. 21, 2001).

126 See NRDC TABLE 2, supra note 129.

127 See, e.g., Michael, N. Bates et al., Case-Control Study of Bladder Cancer and Exposure to Arsenic in Argentina, 159 AM. J. EPIDEMIOLOGY 381 (2004)Google Scholar; Reina, Hague et al., Arsenic in Drinking Water and Skin Lesions: Dose-Response Data from West Bengal, India, 14 EPIDEMIOLOGY 174 (2003)Google Scholar, available at http://ist-socrates.berkeley.edu/~asrg/03HaqueAsDWSkinLes.pdf; M.F. Paravez et al., The Arsenic Problem and Its Awareness in Bangladesh Populations: Results of a Large Population-based Survey, Presentation Before the Arsenic in Drinking Water: An International Conference (Nov. 26-27, 2001), abstract available at http://superfund.ciesin.org/downloads/102933149417_fparvez_confposter1.doc.

128 Lynda Knobeloch, Project Summary: Health Effects of Arsenic Contaminated Drinking Water, DNR Project Number 158 (Wis. Dept. of Natural Resources 2002), available at http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/water/dwg/arsenic/As-158Sum.pdf.

129 Id.

130 CWA, 33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq. (2000).

131 33 U.S.C. 1311(a) (2000).

132 See 33 U.S.C. 1342(b)-(c) (2000).

133 PENNSYLVANIA BULLETIN, HATFIELD's FERRY POWER STATION NPDES PERMIT PA0002941, at http://www.pabulletin.com/secure/data/vol33/33-38/1847.html (last visited July 21, 2004).

134 Id.

135 Id.

136 Id.

137 Id.

138 PA. STAT. ANN. tit. 35, 6018.101-1003 (West 2003).

139 PENNSYLVANIA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION UPDATE, DEP OKAYS PERMIT MODIFICATION FOR ASH DISPOSAL AT ENERGY PLANTS, at http://www.dep.state.pa.us/newsletter/default.asp?NewsletterID=202&SubjectID= (Apr. 5, 2002) (discussing the granting of permit 300370 to the Hatfield's Ferry plant).

140 DEP RESIDUAL WASTE REPORT, supra note 98.

141 DEP WASTE MANAGEMENT, HATFIELD's FERRY ASH DISPOSAL PERMIT 300370 [hereinafter HATFIELD PERMIT]. Mitchell power station is also owned and operated by Allegheny Energy Supply. See ALLEGHENY ENERGY SUPPLY, supra note 95.

142 See HATFIELD PERMIT, supra note 146. The DEP Waste Management file for Hatfield's Ash Disposal Permit (300370) is available for review by the general public at the DEP Southwest Regional Office in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. For Request for File Review forms, see PENNSYLVANIA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, FILE RECORD REVIEW PROCEDURE, at http://www.dep.state.pa.us/dep/deputate/fieldops/sw/misc/file_review.htm (last modified Dec. 24, 2002) [hereinafter DEP FILE RECORD REVIEW PROCEDURE].

143 See HATFIELD PERMIT, supra note 146; see also DEP FILE RECORD REVIEW PROCEDURE, supra note 147.

144 25 PA. CODE 287.665 (2004).

145 Id. 288.1 (2004).

146 See id. 288.251, 288.254 (2004).

147 See HATFIELD PERMIT, supra note 146; see also DEP FILE RECORD REVIEW PROCEDURE, supra note 147.

148 25 PA. CODE 288.1(b)(2) (2004).

149 Id. 288.241 (2004).

150 Id. 288.252 (2004).

151 Id. 288.253(a)(3) (2004).

152 See supra Part III.A.2.a.

153 See, e.g., Bates et al., supra note 132; Hague et al., supra note 132; Paravez et al., supra note 132.

154 See Clapp & Ozonoff, supra note 127, at 200.

155 Id.

156 See id. at 200-02.

157 See id. at 202.

158 Id. at Part IV.B.

159 Id. at 207.

160 Id. at 209.

161 See id. at 209-10.

162 Id. at 210.

163 Id. 209-11.

164 Id.

165 Id.

166 Id. at 210; see also ABRAHAM M. LILIENFELD & DAVID E. LILIENFELD FOUNDATIONS OF EPIDEMIOLOGY 89 (2d ed. 1980); KENNETH J. ROTHMAN, MODERN EPIDEMIOLOGY 123 (2d ed. 1998); Russellyn S. Carruth & Bernard D. Goldstein, Relative Risk > 2: An Updated Survey of How Courts View Its Significance in the Proof of Causation in Toxic Tort Cases (Dec. 8, 2003) (unpublished manuscript) (on file with Russellyn S. Carruth at carruth@law.pitt.edu).

167 See Clapp & Ozonoff, supra note 127, at 210.

168 ROTHMAN, supra note 171, at 202.

169 Susan, Tiefenbrun, Free Trade and Protectionism: The Semiotics of Seattle, 17 ARIZ. J. INTL & COMP. L. 257, 273-74 (2000)Google Scholar (Protesters claim that the WTO rules generally block countries from acting in response to potential environmental or health risks by requiring a show of probability of harm before governments can move to resolve harms to human health or the environment.).

170 See C. Everett Koop, Introduction, 35 DUQ. L. REV. 1, 2 (1996) (Although not included in the Oath, the promise to do no harm, Primum Non Nocere, is irrevocably bound tot eh Hippocratic principle of the sanctity of human life and proscribes abortion, infanticide and euthanasia for the Hippocratic physician.).

171 See id.

172 See id.

173 The precautionary principle is a principle of international law and appears in the 1992 Rio Declaration as Principle 15:

In order to protect the environment, the precautionary approach shall be widely applied by States according to their capabilities. Where there are threats of serious or irreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as a reason for postponing cost-effective measures to prevent environmental degradation. Rio Declaration on Environment and Development.

Adopted by the U.N. Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) at Rio De Janeiro, 13 June 1992. U.N. Doc. A/CONF.151/26 (vol.I) (1992); reprinted in 31 I.L.M. 874 (1992) & 5 Weston V.B. 16.

174 Nancy Myers & Carolyn Raffensperger, Technology, Who Chooses?: A Precaution Primer, POSITIVES FUTURES NETWORK, at http://www.futurenet.org/19technology/raffensberger.htm (2001).

175 See Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, June 14, 1992, 31 I.L.M. 874 (citing to Principle 15).

176 See Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Dec. 10, 1997, 37 I.L.M. 22 (1998); see generally PROTECTING PUBLIC HEALTH & THE ENVIRONMENT: IMPLEMENTING THE PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE 356-59 (Carolyn Raffensperger & Joel Tickner eds., 1999) (summarizing uses of the precautionary principle in international treaties and agreements and in U.S. legislation) [hereinafter PROTECTING THE PUBLIC HEALTH].

177 See ARIE TROUWBORST, EVOLUTION AND STATUS OF THE PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE IN INTERNATIONAL LAW (2002).

178 See generally PROTECTING PUBLIC HEALTH, supra note 181.

179 SFGOV, SF ENVIRONMENT, SAN FRANCISCO PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE ORDINANCE, at http://temp.sfgov.org/sfenvironment/aboutus/policy/legislation/precaution_principle.htm (last visited July 14, 2004) [hereinafter SF PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE ORDINANCE].

180 See BREAST CANCER ACTION, BERKELEY STOP CANCER WHERE IT STARTS RESOLUTION, NO. 60,797-N.S., available at http://www.bcaction.org/Pages/DoSomething/BerkeleyResolution.html (last updated Apr. 3, 2001) [hereinafter BERKELEY RESOLUTION].

181 SCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH NETWORK, NETWORKER VOL. 3, at http://www.sehn.org/Volume_3-2.html (at VII).

182 See BERKELEY RESOLUTION, supra note 185..

In the Precautionary Principle Policy Statement, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors declares:

Every San Franciscan has an equal right to a healthy and safe environment. This requires that our air, water, earth, and food be of a sufficiently high standard that individuals and communities can live healthy, fulfilling, and dignified lives. The duty to enhance, protect and preserve San Francisco's environment rests on the shoulders of government, residents, citizen groups and businesses alike.

SF PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE ORDINANCE, supra note 184, at ch. 1, 100(A).

183 LAKSHMAN D. GURUSWAMY, INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL LAW AND WORLD ORDER 483 (2d ed. 1999).

184 James, Cameron & Juli, Abouchar, The Precautionary Principle: A Fundamental Principle of Law and Policy for the Protection of the Global Environment, 14 B.C. INTL & COMP. L. REV. 1, 2 (1991)Google Scholar.

185 Michael Pollan, Precautionary Principle, N.Y. TIMES MAG., Dec. 9, 2001, at 92.

186 CARL F. CRANOR, REGULATING TOXIC SUBSTANCES: A PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE AND THE LAW (1993).

187 Id.

188 Id .

189 Why Measurement Matters, in ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT: THE GLOBAL 2001-2002 REPORT 2 (Daniel C. Esty and Peter Cornelius eds., 2002).

190 Id. at 2.

191 Id.

192 Id. at 2-3.

193 Id. at 5.

194 Id. at 5. Esty also makes an interesting suggestion for improved data reaching the household level:

Electric bills in most places, for example, show how much energy was consumed the month before. They may even provide a comparison with the last few months electric use or with the same month last year. But they do not say how much an average household of comparable size in the same geographic locale consumes, or better yet, what the most energy-efficient families are able to achieve under similar circumstances. Such targets, practically determined and easily understood, would provide a real spur to action with society-wide potential for reduced pollution.

Id.

195 DAVIS, supra note 2, at 27. The Public Health Service's Preliminary Report of 1949 was not followed by a final report.

196 See John, R. Goldsmith & Lester, Breslow, Epidemiological Aspects of Air Pollution, 9 J. AIR POLLUTION CONTROL ASSN 129 (1959)Google Scholar; see also Clarence, A. Mills, The Donora Episode, 111 SCIENCE 67 (1950)Google Scholar.

197 See generally DAVIS, supra note 2, at 90-120.

198 Lynn Page Snyder, The Death-Dealing Smog over Donora, Pennsylvania: Industrial Air Pollution, Public Health, and Federal Policy, 1915-1963 71 (1994) (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, University of Pennsylvania) (on file with author).

199 See, e.g., NRDC TABLE 2, supra note 129.

200 The Safe Drinking Water Act undoubtedly intended to provide uniform protection, as a primary drinking water regulation is defined as one which contains criteria and procedures to assure a supply of drinking water which dependably complies with maximum contaminant levels; including accepted methods and testing procedures to insure compliance . 42 U.S.C. 300f(1)(D) (2000).

201 See Bates et al., supra note 132.

202 Letter from Carolyn Raffensperger & Katherine Barrett to Editor, Nature Biotechnology, In Defense of the Precautionary Principle, 19 NATURE BIOTECHNOLOGY 811-12 (2001), available at http://www.sehn.org/naturebiotech.html.

203 PA. CONST. art. I, 27.

204 See generally J.B., Ruhl, Toxic Tort Remedies: The Case Against the Superduper Fund and Other Reform Proposals, 38 BAYLOR L. REV. 597, 610 n.30, (1986)Google Scholar; Melissa, Thorme, Local to Global: Citizen's Legal Rights and Remedies Relating to Toxic Waste Dumps, 5 TUL. ENVTL. L.J. 101, 128 (1991)Google Scholar.

205 David W. Orr, Law of the Land, ORION (Jan./Feb. 2004), available at http://www.oriononline.org/pages/om/index_04-1om.html.

206 See, e.g., Sumudu, Atapattu, The Public Health Impact of Global Environmental Problems and the Role of International Law, 30 AM. J. L. & MED. 283 (2004)Google Scholar.

207 RACHEL CARSON, SILENT SPRING 277-78 (1962).