43% of Fifth Ward Families Have a Cancer Diagnosis

I've seen this posted on here, Union Pacific Englewood rail yard is the one next to 5th ward, I wonder why it's just 5th ward being effected because there a 3 or 4 other neighborhoods surrounding that railyard.

 

Could be the direction the groundwater flows

 

They are saying lung cancer is the most common and that creosote is in the air.

 

So it is groundwater pollution and not air pollution? It was stated that the most common cancer is lung, but I guess that's the 2nd most common cancer in America anyways, behind skin cancer (which is rare for black people).

 

Creosotes such as coal tar are liquids. But they are also volatile (like gasoline) meaning they evaporate into the air easily and thus can be breathed in.

 

They'll only show up if you post them. Thanks for bringing this one.

I don't have much faith in TCEQ to bring adequate enforcement here. It's a good thing they're attracting attention because they're going to need some big time lawyers to fight UP.

 

UP didn't contaminate the area, but they bought up the company that did do. Unless it was just an asset transaction, they would have acquired that companies' legal liabilities at the same time. So I'd still fault them.

The "oversight" by the TCEQ probably gives them some cover. I'm sure they fully complied with every requirement from the regulator. And that's what they'll argue in court. But TCEQ is a bit of a sweetheart agency that I would say is overly-concerned about keeping Texas' pro-business reputation. Their bias is to under-react to problems, and it seems to have borne out here as their earlier requirement to inform impacted residents to not use local wells was, in retrospect, grossly insufficient. Maybe it's TCEQ who should be sued.

 

The TCEQ is probably the single most ineffectual agency in the state government, and that's saying something.

 

This actually plays out over and over all over the country. My wife's family is from a little town in Oklahoma called Bartlesville which has a huge cancer center that makes no sense, until you learn thar there was a huge Zinc refinery there for decades called National Zinc that contaminated the groundwater with chemicals and heavy metals.

But only poor people build homes next to rail yards, chemical plants and heavy metal smelters, so nobody gives a F. If the Cuyahoga river hadn't lit on fire, I'm sure Cleveland chemical plants would still be dumping all their s**t into it. The clusters of death are small, and scattered enough that it doesnt pass a threshold for public outrage.

 

Industry will regulate itself far better than the gov't or people! MAGA!

 

Is a diagnosis diagnosis anything like a ride ride?

 

I think it's more mahi mahi?

 

Either way you're going to have to pay for it.

 

Sadly no cure for this type of lung cancer