=======================Electronic Edition========================
RACHEL’S HAZARDOUS WASTE NEWS #59
—January 11, 1988—
News and resources for environmental justice.
——
Environmental Research Foundation
P.O. Box 5036, Annapolis, MD 21403
Fax (410) 263-8944; Internet: erf@igc.apc.org
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‘HOW TO DO IT’ BOOK FOR TOXICS FIGHTERS OFFERS ADVICE, SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE, INFORMATION SOURCES.
When you get into your first toxics fight, the hardest thing to
understand is the government. Corporations you can understand.
Corporations only exist to return a profit to their investors.
They are also supposed to obey the law, but no one expects a
corporation to have a conscience or to “do good” if it’s not
required by law and if it’s going to cost real money.
(Corporations sometimes sponsor “meaningful” events, like
concerts on Sunday TV, to give the appearance of doing good, but
most people recognize this as part of a game plan for turning
profit.)
Modern corporations, pursuing profit, are dangerous, at least the
ones playing with hazardous chemicals. To protect themselves,
Americans look to government. The power of government is
supposed to shield us from the stupidity or the malevolence of
corporations. When you get into a toxics fight, the hardest
thing to understand is that the government isn’t protecting you
and doesn’t seem to be interested in protecting you. This is a
rude shock.
Governments develop their own agenda. In some sense, government
is simply an extensions of business. From local zoning boards up
to the President, government can be viewed this way. But there’s
something else at work as well. To some extent, governments have
their own agenda, independent of business–maintain stability,
keep things the way they are, reduce the rate of change. The
indelicate way to phrase this is “CYA–cover your ass” meaning
don’t risk anything, don’t go out on a limb, don’t take
chances–don’t do what’s right, do what’s safe. Bureaucracies
take on a life of their own, serving their own goals, not the
goals of the people they were set up to serve. The main goal of
a bureaucracy is to survive; doing anything is secondary. Once
you understand that the government isn’t going to protect
you–isn’t even trying to protect you but rather is trying to
protect itself against you–you are ready to deal in the real
world. Now you have two alternatives: (1) put on your hip boots,
enter the swamp of electoral politics and try to reform
government from the inside, or (2) become a citizen activist and
work on government not through government.
If you have taken the second route, this book’s for you: The
Citizens Toxics Protection Manual from John O’Connor and friends
at the National Campaign Against Toxic Hazards. This is the best
10 pounds of information you’ll find packed between two covers,
which is why we call it “the ten-pound manual.” Based on years of
experience, this manual distills the essential information that
citizens need to protect themselves against predatory
corporations and do-nothing government. Whether this is your
first fight or you are a seasoned citizen-warrior, you’ll find
this ten-pound manual wonderfully useful.
The good stuff starts in Chapter 3: Organizing to Win–how to get
your group together and keep it together; how to plan and develop
a strategy. In the eloquent phrasing of Ray Salek [Citizens
Organized for Pollution Prevention (COPP) in Bridgewater, NJ]:
how to “Kick derriere.”
Chapter 4 tells how to conduct a corporate campaign, including
how to find out what you need to know about a corporation to
affect its behavior; but it’s Chapter 5 that really delves into
“researching and obtaining information.” Chapter 5 is not as
detailed as you might like, but it’s plenty to get you started.
Chapter 6 is “Cleaning up toxic waste sites” by the country’s
leading expert on Superfund cleanups, Dr. Hank Cole of Clean
Water Action. This chapter is the best thing we’ve seen on
Superfund and how to make it work for you.
Chapter 7 by Richard Youngstrom describes a new tactic that
citizen groups are beginning to use–the on-site inspection of
facilities. Rather than waiting for chemical problems to develop,
some groups are trying to prevent problems by insisting on their
right to inspect local factories. This is not a casual
sight-seeing stroll through the plant after hours; it’s a careful
look at a company’s operations and it’s done with technical
expertise and plenty of preparation.
Chapter 8 is a long (166 single-spaced, typed pages) discussion
of environmental laws and the handles they offer to citizens,
written by a really smart lawyer, Sanford Lewis. Read it
carefully.
Chapter 9, “Using the Media,” shows you how to turn this major
institution against your adversaries. These days, environmental
fights really boil down to your ability to turn one social
institution against another, to whack your adversaries with the
biggest institutional 2×4 you can find. The media is one of the
best 2x4s around, and one that is accessible to you if you
approach it right.
Chapter 10 presents “a new strategy for providing comprehensive
environmental protection in the community”–toxics use reduction.
This is a fundamental approach to environmental protection, one
guaranteed to work if the nation’s environmental movement can
pull it off. It was the National Campaign Against Toxic Hazards
(a coalition of grass roots-oriented groups) that first focused
on toxics use reduction, while others were advocating “waste
reduction.” It is now clear to anyone who thinks about it that
reducing the use of toxics materials is the only way to control
environmental destruction and minimize human exposure to toxics.
Waste reduction does nothing to keep toxics out of municipal
dumps and incinerators, it does nothing to prevent toxic
exposures of workers and their families, it does nothing to
prevent Bhopal-type accidents, it does nothing to prevent indoor
air pollution, which is where most Americans get exposed to
toxics. In short, “waste reduction” is fine as far as it goes,
but it doesn’t go very far. Toxics use reduction is what we must
have.
Chapter 11 discusses community health surveys, how to do them and
how to use them. [Warning: Before you undertake a health survey,
phone the Citizens’ Clearinghouse for Hazardous Waste (Arlington,
VA) at 703/276-7070 and ask them why they think community health
studies may be a tactical error.]
Chapter 12 is “Health Effects of Toxic Wastes in the
Environment,” plus four worthwhile appendices.
All citizens aiming to kick derriere should own a copy of the
ten-pound manual. It’s a steal at $25 from: National Campaign,
20 East Street, Suite 601, Boston, MA 02111; phone (617) 482-1477.
–Peter Montague, Ph.D.
Descriptor terms: information services; federal; citizen groups;
john o’connor; national campaign against toxic hazards; ray
salek; copp; hank cole; clean water action; sara; richard
youngstrom; sanford lewis; legislation; laws; enforcement;
regulations; strategies; source reduction; waste reduction; cchw;
opinion surveys; health; occupational safety and health;