CHEMTURA SENDS A LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Yes Virginia, corporations do have feelings. Sort of. In the June 14, 2012 Elmira Independent, Josef Olejarz has had his Letter published. The title of his editorial is "Editorial contributes to confusion". Mr. Olejarz was responding to the Editorial published a week earlier in the Independent by Editor, Gail Martin.

Mr. Olejarz unfortunately is less than an unbiased, neutral observer. He is the plant manager of a chemical company with shareholders who demand the best possible return on their investment. This means Josef, in order to keep his job, must consistently present the company in the best possible environmental light in order to minimize their cleanup costs. Josef therefore starts off with a deceitful distraction. He alleges that the week earlier Editorial claimed that dioxins and DDT from the former gravel pits GP-1 and GP-2 were leaking into the groundwater. That is false. Gail Martin's Editorial clearly said that there is evidence that dioxins and DDT were leaking off-site into the downstream Canagagigue Creek which is true.

Josef also brags about Uniroyal/Chemtura's previous creekbank projects. Indeed they were environmentally beneficial as they have lowered the incidence of dioxins/furans and DDT in creek sediments thus aiding benthic organisms and other lifeforms. That said further creek testing since 2012 has made it clear that the former Uniroyal site continues to discharge dioxins/furans, DDT and more downstream even after the on-site creekbank cleanups.

This response as well as others has shown that corporations want their cake and to eat it as well. They don't want to spend money to clean up their own messes but they do want to deceive the public otherwise. For them it's all about public relations and getting away with avoiding cleanup costs. In this they are generally well aided by our governments at all levels. Afterall why would corporations donate to political parties if they weren't going to receive benefits, directly or indirectly, from the taxpayers?