PCB CONTAMINATION EPA to conduct independent test

Due to growing concerns on the impact of polychlorinated biphenyls on the people’s health and environment, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said it will conduct its own assessment of Tanapag village to determine if the area is free from the contamination of the cancer-causing chemical.

“We hope to make it as expansive as possible and get it done as soon as we can although it could still take a year to process the results,” said Norman Lovelace, manager for Pacific Insular Area Program, U.S. EPA.

The federal agency’s response was based on the clamor of members of the community during a recent public hearing who pressed for an independent testing of the village. Residents doubt whether the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have cleared Tanapag of PCBs.

At the same time, EPA wants the U.S. Army Corps to look into the former U.S. military dumpsite located in Upper Tanapag since this has not been included in the Formerly Used Defense Site.

The environmental problem in Tanapag began when an unknown quantity of ceramic capacitors containing PCBs were shipped to Saipan in the 1960s by the Department of Defense. These contained Arochlor 1254 and PCB oil and were manufactured by Cornell-Dublier Electronics as part of the Defense Department’s Nike-Zeus contract for its ballistic missile early warning system radar installation.

However, the Division of Environmental Quality was only notified about the presence of these capacitors in Tanapag village in 1988. At that time, the electrical capacitors in the village were already being used as barricades, boundary markers, road blocks for driveways, windbreaks for barbecue sites and headstones.

Some capacitors were even found open as their inner phenolic linings were used to decorate rooftops and cemeteries in the village. Immediately, DEQ had the contents of the capacitors analyzed by the Guam Environmental Protection Agency, which revealed that these contained 100 percent PCB oil.

While the U.S. Army Corps claim that the village is already safe because it has been rid of PCB and dioxin contamination, residents have cast doubts on their credibility due to its snail pace clean up of the village.

Based on the findings of the U.S. Army Corps, the Lower Base Cemetery is the only remaining area with high concentration of PCBs.