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Technical Advisory Group

Community Advisory Board:

Community Coalition forEnvironmental Justice

The Duwamish Tribe

Environmental CoalitionOf South Seattle

Georgetown CommunityCouncil

IM-A-PAL Foundation

People for Puget Sound

Puget SoundkeeperAlliance

South Park NeighborhoodAssociation

Washington Toxics

Coalition

Waste Action Project_____________________

Working to ensure a

Duwamish River cleanup

that is accepted by and

benefits the community

and protects fish, wildlife

and human health.

_____________________

210 South Hudson St, #332

Seattle, WA 98134

206.954.0218

www.duwamishcleanup.org

contact@duwamishcleanup.org

Date: Wednesday,March 27, 2013Contact: BJ Cummings, bj@duwamishcleanup.org, 206-458-0284

NEWS RELEASE

New report says Duwamish area residents more exposed

to pollution, live shorter lives than rest of Seattle

A new study by two non-profit environmental health organizations

reveals that residents of the Duwamish Valley's 98108 ZIP code and the

neighborhoods of South Park and Georgetown are exposed to more

pollution, have greater vulnerabilities to pollution-caused illness, and live

shorter lives than residents in other areas of Seattle and King County.

TheDuwamish Valley Cumulative Health Impacts Analysis examines

data on disease rates and environmental and socioeconomic indicators of

health in the 98108 ZIP code, which includes South Park, Georgetown

and part of Beacon Hill, and compares these to other areas of Seattle and

King County. The report also provides data from the larger DuwamishValley and smaller census tracts for the riverside neighborhoods of South

Park and Georgetown. "Cumulative" health impacts refer to all combined

pollution exposures, as well as conditions known to make people more

vulnerable to illness, such as poverty and stress.

Findings of the study include:

98108 residents have the greatest cumulative health impacts citywide;

98108 ranks poorest in the city for most environmental health factors;

the ZIP code data masks even greater health disparities in South Park

and Georgetown, including a life expectancy eight years shorter than the

Seattle and King County averages, and a full 13 years shorter than for

residents of Laurelhurst, in the 98105 ZIP code in North Seattle.

"All people deserve a fair opportunity to live up to their full potential,"

says Linn Gould of Just Health Action, lead researcher and author of the

helth report. "This study shows that Duwamish Valley residents are

disproportionately and unfairly burdened by multiple stressors outside of

their control. Decision makers should take action to resolve these

inequities."

Based on the report, DRCC/TAG will make recommendations to EPA

and other agencies about ways to improve community health and

strengthen health protections in the cleanup plan for the Duwamish

River, which was released for public review and comment on February28. DRCC/TAG serves as EPA's Community Advisory Group for the

Duwamish River Superfund Site.

"The Duwamish River is the largest toxic site in the Duwamish Valley,

and one of many influences on health that are burdening local residents,"

according to BJ Cummings of DRCC/TAG. " EPA's cleanup plan is out

for public review, so we have an opportunity to make sure that it reduceshealth risks and optimizes benefits to the greatest extent possible."

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DRCC/TAG's recommendations include:

creating a Community Health Task Force and funding a Community Health Mitigation and Revitalization Fund,

to reduce harmful exposures and take targeted actions to improve community health;

enforcing pollution source controls to ensure that the river cleanup is successful; and

removing more highly contaminated sediment from the river, to prevent future disturbances (such as

earthquakes, floods, or shipping accidents) from re-exposing local residents and fishermen to buried toxic waste.

DRCC/TAG has already kick-started work on the first recommendation, giving five grants to community

organizations to implement environmental health-improvement actions, including increasing tree canopy,

preventing stormwater pollution, and improving food security in South Park and Georgetown. The grants were

given based on a community-led prioritization and selection process, with funding from EPA's CARE

(Community Action for a Renewed Environment) grant program.

Research for the cumulative health impacts study was conducted by Linn Gould, MPH, MS, of Just Health

Action. The project was managed by DRCC/TAG, and funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's

Environmental Justice Program and the University of Washington's School of Public Health and Center for

Ecogenetics and Environmental Health.

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