The Norfolk Southern train derailment in Ohio brought forth the real dangers of toxic chemical transportation via rail in the United States. The EPA and DOT have jurisdiction in these areas as guardians of public safety in transportation and environmental health.
These occurrences happen more than we like to know. Many trains may travel through your city or town with the local population being notified. Transportation routes are governed by the legal right of way granted when the lines are built.
In this particular case, vinyl chloride was being transported in large amounts for industrial purposes. Vinyl chloride, also called vinyl chloride monomer (VCM), is exclusively used as a precursor to PVC.(common use for producing pipes. Due to its hazardous nature, VCM is not found in other products. When burned vinyl chloride produces dioxin.
I emphasize the urgency of testing for dioxin exposure stemming from the East Palestine train catastrophe, and I publicly challenge the EPA, Gov. DeWine, and Sen. JD Vance to carry out dioxin testing across the affected areas. Dioxin residues are persistent, long term and reside in the soil. Senator Vance aptly displayed this 'dipstick test' which revealed the residue in a local creek, after the EPA declared the area as "safe" Safe for what?
According to some sources, the EPA has not done any dioxin testing at all. That's because they know they will find extreme levels of dioxins contaminating tens of thousands of acres of farmland, and Ohio exports over three billion dollars worth of agricultural products each year.
This event is not just local or regional, it has the potential to be a national emergency. Some of these agricultural products (animal and plant) are distributed nationally.
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