Erin Brockovich Focuses On Florida Cancer Cluster Case
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Environmental crusader, Erin Brockovich is coming to Florida to speak to 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 with the same name about Brockovich’s 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 will offer residents options for legal action tonight.
The cause of the suspected cancer cluster remains a mystery.
The state health department began an investigation in May into the suspected cluster or unusually high number of children and adults with brain tumors or brain cancer. A second phase of that investigation is underway by the state which has found elevated levels of radiation at ten homes that also have brain tumors or cancer.
The state DEP has also found four private wells with drinking water that didn’t 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 has its own on-site cancer scare.
The company is cleaning up petroleum in groundwater, various metals and volatile organic compounds as well as a chemical solvent the company used which is a likely human carcinogen called 1,4-dioxane, jet fuel, and PCBs.
The parents of Garrett Dunsford soon realized they were not alone when their six-year-old was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Among the community of 50,000 they found others and have rallied them to come forward creating a web site and keeping track of cancer cases in their community. They believe at least 70 families have suffered from brain cancer or tumors.
To see a map of the affected area, click here.
Full disclosure, accountability and a high profile presence might persuade the state to speed up its research and give residents some answers that they desperately need