From left, Carol Van Strum and her neighbor Kathy clean and pull staples as Peter von Stackelberg, who covered Industrial Bio-Test Laboratories as a reporter for the Regina, Saskatchewan, Leader-Post, operates two scanners simultaneously, May 2017. Photo is taken on Alder Hill Farm in Five Rivers, Oregon.
Dear Friend and Reader:
This resource is intended for journalists and other people who want to efficiently develop a working understanding of the dioxin problem. It’s a thing like no other.
Even if you read this whole presentation, you will have a few pieces to assemble — though it will be much easier knowing the background. I am doing my best to keep it down to a dull roar, and I will note when one entry leads to other resources. If you are looking for something or have questions, please ask in the comments.
First, why dioxin? This trace toxin of astounding potency is created in any environment where chlorine is available where there are burning hydrocarbons (from corn flakes to motor oil). That is what happened with the train wreck in East Palestine, Ohio: both chlorinated chemicals and ordinary cargo burned at the same time, multiplying the effect. The ash pit and the plume of smoke that spread and is gradually settling is certain to contain chlorinated dioxins, and yet these are not being tested for.
The demands are stepping up, though now the next step is making sure that the testing and analysis are honest. This is always a real game, as you will hear from the interviews and read in the articles below.
The whole dioxin issue leads back to two conclusions.
One, there is no safe level of exposure, so therefore, there is no acceptable level of contamination. Dioxin is a multigenerational genetic and hormonal toxin.
Two, public and corporate authorities will deny the problem and engage the public and the press in a complicated game of dissembling the truth, which in the past has included outright deception (including lying in scientific papers, to the press and in court), avoiding any accountability, filing fake lawsuits, burning down people’s homes, and by any other means necessary.
Therefore, those who are engaging public authorities on these issues need the help of experienced players. Those people exist. They are not necessarily attorneys though those will be required. The game of citizens demanding accountability from the government cannot be learned from scratch in time to get a result.
Experience is the only teacher — and time is of the essence. That’s what this resource is about.
Science, Politics, Corporate Interests — and People
The Ohio scenario is not merely about chemicals; it’s about the intersection of science, politics, corporate interests, and human nature. And the situation is always playing out where people, their homes, their families and their livelihoods are under siege. That is not a fair fight: people with little money who are under threat go up against $1000 an hour attorneys and bureaucrats staying in hotels with meal allowances, driving government cars, with nothing to lose.
I am providing this information to help level out the playing field. Please bookmark the web edition of this page, which you can find by clicking the podcast or the headline. I will be updating it and the discussion should be interesting.
This resource is provided by of Chiron Return, the nonprofit investigative team. We are sponsored by your paid subscriptions to this Substack and by direct donations. Every dollar counts. Thank you for your generosity. If you are a philanthropist who wants to support a crucial environmental project that is already getting solid results, please get in touch with me at efc@chironreturn.org. Thank you.
This was the scene at SUNY New Paltz at the first news conference, held Dec. 30, 1991, the day after a 1991 dioxin release on the campus. The man in the gray coat is Peter Haughton, who was the campus physician. It seems that he alone understands the gravity of the problem. Photo by Eric Coppolino / SLNS.
There is an Established Game
There exists an established game that takes place between the government and the public. This game as been played at Love Canal, Times Beach, the Five Rivers area, SUNY New Paltz, between vets and the Veterans Administration, and many other places. It’s the same everywhere; I know of no exceptions. Dioxin means deception.
The same playbook shows up over and over again: minimizing the dangers; testing irregularities including “losing” samples or results; testing for the wrong chemicals; propping up shills to say everything is safe; referring to or creating fraudulent studies; creating endless delays; and a few others you will come to recognize.
Then, sadly, in most instances, the public tends to jump on board and accepts reassurance pretend there is not a problem, as most people cannot wrap their minds around the nature of a substance measured in quadrillionths of a gram (femotograms).
While dioxin can be an acute poison, particularly to babies, fetuses, young children and animals, it is rarely so in adults. Rather, it is a hormonal toxin, an at least three-generation multigenerational toxin, and a cancer inducer and cancer promoter. All of these are related.
I can be reached via the comments below, by email at efc@chironreturn.org, and by phone at (845) 481-5616. That’s not a cell, so please don’t text.
This is a documentary about Times Beach, Missouri, a town which was used as a dioxin dump for many years. The town was eventually decommissioned, torn down, and its waste burned. It was turned into a park. It’s an excellent account of events; I learned many things I didn’t know. However, the health consequences are somewhat understated, especially those associated with hormone effects.
