EPA 9/11 Pollution Controversy
In August 2003, the office of Inspector General of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a report claiming that EPA was pressurized by White House into releasing false information regarding the quality of air around Ground Zero after the 9/11 attacks. The reports claim that the White House Council on Environmental Quality had influenced the EPA in its statement on Sept.18 which said that the air was safe, when in actuality not sufficient reliable data was available. EPA administrator had also issued a directive stating that all statements were to be cleared by the National Security Council in White House before being released to the media.
Examples of such changes made to the drafted version of instructions and information provided by the EPA included deliberately altering the language describing the excessive amount of asbestos in the air in order to minimize the danger it posed. Recommendations by the EPA about cleaning up of the houses and businesses near Ground Zero was changed to `citizens follow orders from the NYC officials`. The news of such numerous key differences between the two versions of statement, resulted in backlash against the administration.
Figures show that around 7000 workers fell sick from the smoke and dust till a year after 9/11. Efforts by the government to clean out the area were called inadequate.
Former EPA administrator, Christine Todd Whitman, criticized the NYC officials for not forcing enough workers to wear respirators. She also stood by her claim that the agency had lied about the air quality. However she came under constant cricism in the two day long hearing held by the US House of Representatives Committee of Homeland Security in September 2006. The hearing was held on the issue of the illnesses caused by the post 9/11 air quality.
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