Erin Brockovich Investigates Florida Toxic Waste
Environmental crusader, Erin Brockovich was in Florida this week to meet with residents and health officials and to host a Town Hall meeting Thursday night to talk about the cancer cluster at the South Florida community known as The Acreage.
Brockovich was played by actress, Julia Roberts in a film about her efforts in uncovering toxic water pollution in California.
These days she has formed a company that investigates corporate wrongdoers and advocates for the truth.
She and a New York City law firm are investigating environmental links to brain cancer cases at The Acreage neighborhood in Palm Beach County and offered residents information and options for legal action.
The cause of the suspected cancer cluster remains a mystery. In the rural suburb of West Palm Beach, the state and county have launched a Level II investigation after the first one found an increased rate of total cancers from 2000 to 2007. Girls in particular, had an increased number of brain cancers with The Acreage reporting 1,369 cases of all types of cancer between 1995 and 2007.
So far, the state has found elevated levels of radiation at ten homes that also have residents with brain tumors or cancer.
The state DEP has found four private wells with drinking water that failed to meet state standards for safety because of elevated levels of radium, a measure of radiation. Some residents have blamed heavy pesticide use on orange groves. Pratt & Whitney, the rocket and jet engine company worked nearby on Beeline Highway and is responsible for leaks and spills on its 7,000 acres dating back 30 years.
In the 1980s the company had its own on-site cancer scare. Some Acreage residents believe contaminant leaks into their wells might have contributed to their brain tumor cases.
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