State Hearings - November 26, 2001
STATEMENT OF MARILENA CHRISTODOULOU,
President, Stuyvesant High School Parents' Association
Stuyvesant High School is located four blocks north of the World Trade Center (WTC). On September 11, the school was evacuated and students did not go back to school until September 20, when they were temporarily relocated to Brooklyn Technical High School. The goal of the Parents' Association (PA) has been to ensure that the return to Stuyvesant would occur only when the streets were safe for walking and the building was safe for occupancy. Our single most important concern is the issue of air quality-both inside and outside the school--specifically, the possible presence of airborne contaminants and related potential adverse health effects.
The Board of Education (BOE) reopened Stuyvesant on October 9. As the inside of the school had tested positive for asbestos, BOE conducted a full asbestos abatement of the building prior to reoccupancy. As a parent, I was somewhat concerned that the return to school may have occurred prematurely, but I was encouraged by the fact that BOE's cleanup should have taken care of not only asbestos, but all other particulate contaminants. As a result of negotiations with the PA, the BOE agreed to a series of measures, which when implemented, should serve to protect the school against further contamination from the outside. BOE also agreed that continuous monitoring for several contaminants be conducted inside and outside the school.
Currently, the vendor hired by the BOE is conducting daily indoor monitoring for asbestos, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, total volatile organic compounds (TVOC), and respirable particulate matter (PM2.5), and, on a weekly basis, fiberglass, lead, silica, dioxin, PCB's, heavy metals, and TVOC including benzene. The latter four contaminants were added recently as a result of the PA's concern following publication of the data obtained from the EPA under the FOIA by environmental activists, and we do not yet have results from such testing. The vendor is also conducting daily outdoor measurements of asbestos and particulate matter. Results are reviewed by H.A. Bader Consultants, Inc., the PA's hired environmental engineers, and by the PA Environmental Health & Safety Committee.
Another factor of great concern to us is the close proximity of the OEM-operated barge facility located immediately north of the school, on Pier 25. We recognize that the debris removal from the WTC site is extremely complex and difficult. We also understand that the amount of asbestos contained in the lower forty floors of the north tower and the lower ten floors of the south tower, and the disposition of such asbestos, is a matter of considerable debate. However, what is not in debate is the fact that not all of this debris has yet been reached or removed. Carting of this material to the barge constitutes an unacceptable risk to our children and to the surrounding community along the truck route. We are in the unique position to observe the truck and barge operation, and we can report to you that, despite assurances from government officials, the trucks are frequently
not covered, debris is not wetted down, and, the few times that it is, the wetting appears
ineffective. Given the government's inability to conduct this operation in an environmentally safe way, we believe that the barge operation should be relocated to a less damaging site.
Since the return to Stuyvesant on October 9, four factors have combined to call into question whether our children are being adequately protected from exposure to airborne contaminants that have potential adverse health effects:
- Incidence of Illness: A number of students and faculty have reported and exhibited clinically diagnosable symptoms of illness, like rashes, nosebleeds, and upper respiratory problems (coughing, sore throats, sinusitis, etc.). Although we have been informed by BOE that an epidemiological study is being conducted by the NYC Department of Health(DOH), to date we have not seen any results of this study, and we believe that the number of students affected is largely underreported to the school medical office, and consequently to the DOH.
- Respirable Particulate Matter Above Regulatory Limits: BOE air monitoring inside the school has indicated, on one occasion, an elevated level of lead, and for several weeks, consistently high readings of respirable particulate matter at levels exceeding regulatory limits. These readings indicate that outside contaminants with the potential for adverse health effects are entering the school in concentrations that are of concern. There has been some question as to the accuracy of the measuring instrument used (TSI dust trak). According to TSI, the manufacturer of the instrument, the primary way in which the accuracy of readings may be affected would be by the presence of combustion and diesel by-products in the air. Therefore, we either have a particulates problem in the school, or a combustion/diesel problem, which would be worse as diesel fumes are carcinogenic.
- Level of Particulate Matter Higher at Stuyvesant Than at Ground Zero: Our environmental engineer, on November 16, measured and compared airborne concentration of particulate matter at ground zero, and on the north side of the Stuyvesant building, and found the particulate matter to be higher at Stuyvesant. As the north side of the school faces away from ground zero and towards the barge operation, the only explanation that makes sense is that we have elevated levels of particulates coming from the barge/truck operation.
- Lack of Appropriate HVAC Filtration: Despite agreements, the BOE has not yet implemented certain protective measures in and around the school. The most important of these measures is to modify or retrofit the school's HVAC system to enable it to utilize HEPA filters and charcoal filters. At the insistence of the PA, BOE recently retained the engineering firm of Burns & Roe to address the filtration problem at the school.
In conclusion, these developments call into question any unequivocal assurances about the safety of our children.
In terms of appropriate actions to be taken with regard to these matters, we would recommend the following:
- Barge Operation: The USEPA, NYCDEP, NYCDOH, or other appropriate government agency (collectively "The Government") should cause the truck/barge operation on Pier 25 to be relocated to an area where there is less residential and educational impact.
- HVAC Protocols and Monitoring Procedures: The Government should immediately issue protocols for proper preventive measures to be taken by schools and other institutions in the area with regard to air filtration and operation of HVAC systems, as well as environmental monitoring procedures.
- Cleaning of Buildings and Enclosed Structures: The Government should mandate regular proper cleaning (i.e., wet-cleaning and HEPA-vacuum) of building interiors and other enclosed structures in the area, including foot-bridges such as the one outside Stuyvesant.
- Cleaning of Streets and Sidewalks: The Department of Sanitation, as well as entities such as Battery Park City Authority, should be required to regularly wet-clean the streets and sidewalks in the area, as is necessary for dust suppression.
- Monitoring of Incidence of Illness-Contingency Plans: The Government should immediately implement a centralized and coordinated effort to monitor and track incidence of illness among students, workers, and residents in the area. In the event that monitoring of either environmental testing or evaluation of incidence of illness indicates that specific buildings or areas are not safe for occupancy for any period of time, contingency plans must be in place for the temporary relocation of the affected people. In the case of Stuyvesant, the BOE has to have an academically acceptable contingency plan (It is the PA's belief that the temporary relocation of the school to Brooklyn Technical High School was of little academic value, because of the drastically reduced instruction periods).
Thank you for this opportunity to address you today.
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