County leaders need to address pollution now
By George Rubis
Published June 16, 2006
There has been a lot of publicity in the past few months regarding the longstanding problems that have resulted from the pollution at the old Department of Public Works site in south Brooksville. Pam Vasquez, a Department of Environmental Protection official said in April, "Go ahead, test the neighbors' yards. But don't look for any testing to begin soon."
Any of us who have followed this problem and been involved in meetings cannot help but remember at that time what the new county administrator, Gary Kuhl, said, "First, the county must approve paying for testing, etc. Then the neighbors must agree to the testing."
Why wouldn't they agree to have their yards tested?
Does Mr. Kuhl understand how long the residents of south Brooksville have been trying, with the support of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the federal Environmental Protection Agency, to get several sets of Hernando County commissioners to approve the clean-up of this polluted area?
Do the residents of Hernando County realize the seriousness of this pollution? The EPA considers this more than just "an area of concern," as stated by county officials up until now. This is a proven threat not only to the environment, but to people's health.
As far back as 1991, Hernando and other counties (Pasco, Citrus and Sumter included) were found to be polluting. The DEP and the EPA served notice to all these counties to clean up these areas and stop further polluting. All but Hernando County complied.
Why didn't the county comply?
Problem was downplayed
Around 1993, Hernando County supposedly had two different environmental engineering firms retest the area. Both downplayed the seriousness of the pollution. Interestingly enough, both firms were owned by the same man.
I learned about this situation in November 2003 from friends who live in south Brooksville. Several of us went to the DEP in Tampa and looked through their records and the EPA's documentation.
In March 2004, I participated in a walk through the old public works building with officials from Hernando County Parks Department and the Department of Public Works. County Commissioner Diane Rowden and several residents representing south Brooksville also were there. City and county officials encouraged our hopes that this building would be converted into a badly needed community center. However, it was later found to be contaminated with cancer-causing agents from chemicals that had been stored there.
We also walked through the homes along the site's back fence. I talked with the people who lived in these homes and saw where the contaminants flowed not only through their yards, but also through their houses. After this experience and because of the county's procrastination on the clean-up, I agreed to sit in with three different advisory boards addressing these issues in hopes of helping to find a solution. I have not been a principal member of these boards, but the county's inaction compels me to write this commentary based on my first-hand knowledge.
At the May 31 meeting with the neighbors, the DEP's Ms. Vasquez announced that the county has been mandated to extend the testing and report its findings by July 20. A year ago almost to the day, there was a special meeting with representatives from DEP, EPA and Hernando County Emergency Management in south Brooksville. Included was a presentation showing pictures and documentation of the extensive contamination of the old DPW site. All of the county commissioners were invited. Not one commissioner showed up to see and hear the evidence, listen to the victims or discuss a viable and timely solution.
What if it was your home?
Hernando County officials: If you and your family had lived in south Brooksville for the past 20 or more years, seen all the evidence of contamination and been exposed to it in your homes, would you want more talk and more testing, or would you want the county to clean up this mess now?
Those of us who have seen the documentation, talked with the victims and know the history are grateful to the newspapers for helping us bring this to the public's attention.
The Times' editorial staff has long supported the clean-up of this polluted area. Another newspaper also backed the idea of converting the DPW Griffen building to a much-needed community center using volunteer labor of southeast Brooksville residents. This worthwhile project was squelched, however, when the building was found to be too polluted to be refurbished.
The newest development occurred in May when Brooksville Mayor Joe Johnston III presented a proposal to rezone this area, annex it and relocate the residents. Interestingly enough, local resident Richard Howell, proposed a similar idea three years ago. As I understood it then, Mr. Howell's idea of making the area industrial, as a last resort, would make sense only if residents were justly compensated in land values at new industrial zoning prices.
Could it be possible that Mayor Johnston's plan, which someone recently labeled a "scheme," is just a way for the city to raise its tax base and allow developers to profit from the misfortune of others? If the county wants to find industrial property, why not look at other suitable areas in the county? Why haven't they done this? Could it be that other suitable areas are polluted by middle-class people?
I am sure the county government did not intend to make people ill through its polluting. However, many of the Mitchell Heights residents are having health problems that may be linked to this situation. If this is the case, then compensating the people who are suffering medically is the only humane thing to do now. Wouldn't it be better to settle these issues in a way that would be cost-effective for everyone in Hernando County?
Let's look at how this can be done.
Legal battle will be costly
First of all, fire the hotshot private attorney who County Attorney Garth Coller suggested they hire, which caused south Brooksville residents to get their own attorney. If the county commissioners feel they need an attorney, then its only fair that they pay for this attorney and his staff out of their own pockets and not use taxpayers' money. After all, the people in south Brooksville pay taxes, too. What justice is there in using their tax dollars to pay an attorney who is fighting against their cause? Who is the county trying to protect here?
It's already been pointed out that the attorney will cost $325 an hour and that a lawsuit could cost as much as $10-million. Why take the risk of losing this money? If a penny saved is a penny earned, then $10-million saved can go a long way to cleaning up the site and even relocating some of the residents with proper reimbursement, if necessary.
By the same token, I'm in complete support of squelching the idiotic suggestion to build two $4-million swimming pools in Spring Hill where many people own swimming pools or have access to them. We also need to put people's health, their history, their education and their future ahead of mundane projects, such as a park that accommodates dogs.
Then, of course, there is the penny wise and pound-foolish decision of not carrying environmental insurance. When a premium of thousands of dollars protects against the losses of millions of dollars, such an error should never have happened. This is the type of decision that should not have been made by just one person. Don't let it happen again.
Officials, you talk ethics. You expect it from business people and ordinary citizens. It's now time to lead by example. Clean up the old DPW. You have the money if you don't waste it. Would you hire expensive attorneys if it came out of your own pockets instead of taxpayers'?
To learn more about these issues or to offer helpful suggestions, come to the Brooksville Courthouse Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon for the Juneteenth Celebration. Then join us for a barbecue and get to know some of your neighbors.
This is a celebration of the freeing of the slaves and their struggles to enjoy the freedom and the civil rights that was granted to us by the best constitution created by man. Be aware how important this is to your own freedom.
George Rubis lives in Brooksville. Guest columnists write their own views on subjects they choose, which do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.