EPA Admits Failure on Chemical in Toxic Spill : Environment: An official says the agency did not keep up to date on studies of metam-sodium, which leaked into Sacramento River after train derailment.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency acknowledged Thursday that its failure to scrutinize studies of the health hazards of metam-sodium contributed to the delay in issuing warnings to Northern Californians in July when a derailed Southern Pacific train spilled the toxic chemical into the Sacramento River and killed most wildlife.

“The process which led to this situation needs to be fixed,” Linda J. Fisher, the EPA’s assistant administrator for toxic substances, told a House oversight panel that is investigating the accident. “EPA is extremely concerned about the problems and gaps in regulatory coverage that have been revealed by this incident.”

Rep. Barbara Boxer (D-Greenbrae), head of the House government operations subcommittee conducting the investigation, grilled Southern Pacific officials about the cause of the derailment, the subsequent chemical leak and the company’s safety record during the daylong hearing.

“Why has it taken 21 accidents in this stretch of track in the last 16 years, the last one resulting in needless and preventable human suffering and an environmental tragedy . . . for Southern Pacific to come to the obvious realization that something needs to be done here?” Boxer asked.

Investigators believe the derailment near Dunsmuir was caused by a faulty locomotive that was unable to pull the long line of cars uphill and by an improper sequencing of cars. The July 14 crash spilled as much as 20,000 gallons of the toxic pesticide, wiping out all aquatic life on a 45-mile stretch of the Sacramento River between Dunsmuir and Shasta Lake.

The EPA announced Thursday that it had reached an agreement this week with the maker of metam-sodium to prohibit its use in homes and gardens. Also, farmers will be required to wear respirators, long sleeves and chemical-resistant gloves and boots when using the chemical, Fisher said.

Previously, the EPA did not include metam-sodium on its list of hazardous materials that required special handling in shipment--an oversight that Boxer is seeking to correct through legislation.

Questioning the account of what caused the chemical to spill, Boxer suggested the possibility that Southern Pacific employees punctured the tank car carrying metam-sodium while attempting to move it shortly after the accident.

Mike Mohan, president of Southern Pacific, denied that his crews touched the tank car until it was pulled out of the water two days after the derailment.

But Boxer said House investigators have gathered evidence indicating that the spill may not have occurred until several hours after the derailment.

In other testimony, a state Fish and Game administrator said his agency left Southern Pacific officials alone on the scene within hours of the derailment and did not learn of the chemical spill until the next day.

Howard Sarasohn, Fish and Game deputy director, angered the committee members when he said he was unable to provide any further information about the department’s immediate response because he had not been in contact with anyone at the scene until the day after the derailment.

The spill, said the EPA’s Fisher, “has revealed very serious problems both with the handling of pesticides and pesticide data” by the federal agency.

Before the California spill, EPA officials had received two studies on the effects of metam-sodium, but--as with dozens of other studies on potentially hazardous chemicals--had not reviewed them in depth, Fisher testified.

“We are changing this procedure,” Fisher said. “The EPA is deeply concerned about problems with our program.”

Rep. Mike Synar (D-Okla.) blamed the environmental agency for failing to scrutinize the reports of potentially hazardous chemicals.

“Adverse-effect studies sat in EPA’s files, not for a matter of days, not for a matter of months, but for a matter of years,” Synar said.

Fisher said EPA officials have been working “feverishly” to complete reviews of remaining studies on the potential harmful effects of other chemicals. She said 27 such studies involving 14 chemicals have not been reviewed to date. They will be completed about mid-November, she said.

The EPA’s current system “did not clearly address the potential hazards of this material--or others like it--in the event of accidental release,” Fisher said.

Fisher told lawmakers that earlier review of metam-sodium studies might “have enabled EPA or the state of California to give more timely risk warnings” to the residents of Dunsmuir.

Opinions varied regarding the spill’s effects on residents in the Dunsmuir area.

“There are hundreds of victims who are still sick,” said Kristi Osborn, a member of Concerned Citizens of Dunsmuir, a grass-roots organization. “We didn’t cause this disaster. But we are paying for it in our everyday lives.”

She said some citizens have been duped by Southern Pacific into settling claims for as little as $35.

But Ron Martin, speaking for the Dunsmuir Chamber of Commerce, said the impact of the spill has been exaggerated.

“The majority of the businesses are happy with their settlements,” he said.

Mohan of Southern Pacific said the company so far has paid a total of about $1 million to settle business claims in Dunsmuir.