Today, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell (MI-12) sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 5 Administrator Debra Shore demanding answers on new reports that contaminated groundwater releases from BASF into the Detroit River near Wyandotte’s drinking water intake continue at alarming rates that could seriously risk public health and the environment.
In the letter, Congresswoman Dingell wrote, "Knowing that the City of Wyandotte’s water intake is immediately downstream of the source of these ongoing BASF releases, I urge EPA to escalate enforcement to protect Wyandotte residents immediately. Additionally, we need to be able to assure the citizens of Wyandotte that their drinking water is safe, while also staying focused on completing the important work to remediate the Detroit River and protect the Great Lakes for everyone in the region. EPA should develop a robust community outreach program and a website to better inform the public about the corrective action order, testing results, and timeline of this contamination."
BASF has been under an EPA Corrective Action Order to prevent contaminated groundwater from reaching the Detroit River since 1994. If BASF is not complying with the order and contaminated groundwater continues to enter the Detroit River, swift enforcement actions must be taken by the EPA and the EPA should develop resources to better inform public.
Original source can be found here.
