Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton wrote to EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman, asking the agency to further investigate and clean up the results of the Diaz Chemical contamination in Holley. In her letter, Senator Clinton vowed to continue working with the families and residents in Holley as long as it takes to ensure that their living environment is safe and healthy.

In her letter, Senator Clinton thanked the EPA for their recent decision ordering Diaz Chemicals to take specific actions to correct deficiencies in the way that it operates its facility in Holley. "This is clearly a step forward for the people of Holley and a step in the right direction toward preventing any further incidents of this type. However I believe that more needs to be done to safeguard the health of the Holley community," Senator Clinton wrote.

The senator's letter read in part: "As you are aware, the families and residents of Holley were in close proximity to an explosion and chemical release at the Diaz Chemical Corporation on January 5, 2002. I understand that on that night, the Diaz Chemical Plant explosion and chemical release coated the area in cloud containing chloroflurophenol (CFP), toluene and steam. It is also my understanding that as a result of the explosion between 15 and 20 families were moved from their homes, some of whom have now been displaced from their homes for over a year. Testing by the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) performed for the displaced residents and others in the community found that some of those tested had CFP in their urine.

I thank you for the EPA's decision yesterday ordering Diaz Chemicals to take specific actions to correct deficiencies in the way that it operates its facility in Holley. This is clearly a step forward for the people of Holley and a step in the right direction toward preventing any further incidents of this type. However I believe that more needs to be done to safeguard the health of the Holley community.

According to a letter sent on February 14, 2003 from the New York State Attorney General's Office to the EPA's Office of Regional Counsel, "residents are still reporting the long-term effects of exposure to chemical contamination in their homes. They report various symptoms of throat and eye irritation, headaches, etc. when they return for short visits to their home." Furthermore, a recent study reported that the Holley School System had 40% more learning disabled students than the national average, almost every home in the vicinity of the plant has had at least one victim of cancer, and the miscarriage rate is near double the national average.

I request information and ask for your assistance regarding a number of concerns expressed by the community of Holley. Specifically I urge the EPA to undertake further testing of the Town of Holley and the surrounding areas. I believe that there is a real need for expanding not only the number of chemicals tested but the area in which testing is done. I would urge the EPA to expand the number and type of sites to be tested in the affected area to include homes, soils, playgrounds and the residents themselves. I would also urge that the EPA expand the types of chemicals for which testing is done. I understand that the EPA is currently limited to testing for only one chemical - CFP - which was the identified subject of the January 5, 2002 release, when in fact independent testing by the New York State Attorney General's Office showed that there were many chemicals in one flake from the cloud generated by the explosion and chemical release. We must also consider the reality that there have been numerous spills and releases by Diaz over the past 20 years. In view of the long history of chemical releases and spills at the facility it is imperative that more comprehensive testing is needed in Holley, New York to protect the public's health.

I urge the EPA to begin an immediate and thorough clean up of the affected neighborhoods. According to the Attorney General's letter of February 14, 2003, the source of the residents' discomfort, while not fully identified, is likely to be related to the low levels of 2-chloro-6-fluorophenol in household items and house insulation. I understand that some materials, including urethane foam, are known to absorb chemical vapors and can thereby create residual pockets of chemicals in homes."