abusesaffiliationarrow-downarrow-leftarrow-rightarrow-upattack-typeburgerchevron-downchevron-leftchevron-rightchevron-upClock iconclosedeletedevelopment-povertydiscriminationdollardownloademailenvironmentexternal-linkfacebookfiltergenderglobegroupshealthC4067174-3DD9-4B9E-AD64-284FDAAE6338@1xinformation-outlineinformationinstagraminvestment-trade-globalisationissueslabourlanguagesShapeCombined Shapeline, chart, up, arrow, graphLinkedInlocationmap-pinminusnewsorganisationotheroverviewpluspreviewArtboard 185profilerefreshIconnewssearchsecurityPathStock downStock steadyStock uptagticktooltiptwitteruniversalityweb
Article

26 Mar 2012

Author:
Michael Virtanen, Associated Press

NY Mohawk: Move toxic GM dump from tribal lands

Larry Thompson sits…on the Mohawk Indians' Akwesasne Reservation…He points to a toxic landfill…30 feet away…Immediately upstream is a shuttered General Motors factory, now a federal Superfund site where tons of toxic waste…remain, including the 12-acre landfill…PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls -- considered probable carcinogens -- are the main contaminant…Studies…documented higher than normal PCB levels in the breast milk of Akwesasne nursing mothers…High levels have been found in…fish...Despite government assurances that immediate health and environmental hazards are gone, anger and fear persist over what some people here see as a long-running attack on their land, their lives and even their sovereignty...GM [had a] cleanup budget established in bankruptcy court last year. The new, post-bankruptcy General Motors is no longer legally liable, but Thompson says the company, which posted 2011 net income of $7.6 billion, should pay for a full cleanup and remove the landfill.