Weitz & Luxenberg P.C.
WHO: Weitz & Luxenberg P.C., Erin Brockovich, and Dr. Mark Hyman, M.D.
WHAT: Residents from Albany, Greene, Columbia and Rensselaer Counties are invited to attend a special community meeting with environmental advocate Erin Brockovich, lawyers from Weitz & Luxenberg, and Dr. Mark Hyman, M.D, a leader in the field of functional and integrative medicine.
WHEN: Friday, September 11, at 7 p.m.
WHERE: Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk High School Auditorium, 2025 Route 9W in Ravena (approximately 1 mile north of the center of the village).
WHY: Many people living in New York State would be shocked to learn the Lafarge Cement Plant in Ravena was the second-biggest mercury emitter in that state just two years ago, according to the most recent available data.
In response to community concerns, our environmental attorneys, in association with Erin Brockovich and Dr. Mark Hyman, M.D. will address the impact of potentially toxic air pollution from the Lafarge Cement Plant in Ravena in a special town hall meeting. In that gathering, Erin Brockovich and our lawyers will discuss the pollution and what legal recourse residents may have.
“Residents of Ravena and those around it want to know how to protect their children’s health and their neighborhoods from dangerous mercury and other pollution,” said Robin Greenwald, head of the Environmental Toxic Torts unit at Weitz & Luxenberg. “Our goal is to share our knowledge with these area families.”
In 2002, the Lafarge Cement Plant in Ravena, NY reported that it emitted 45 pounds of mercury from its smokestacks, but testing each year from 2003 to 2006 revealed the plant actually released about 400 pounds of mercury into the air, according to the US Environmental Protection Agency’s annual Toxic Release Inventory data. In 2007, the EPA identified the Lafarge Cement Plant in Ravena, NY as the nation’s 4th worst mercury polluter for cement kilns.
The EPA estimates that 1 in 6 women of childbearing age have mercury levels in their blood high enough to harm fetal development. Even at low exposure levels, mercury can cause developmental disorders in utero and during early childhood.
In addition to mercury, EPA data indicates that Lafarge emits many other potentially hazardous substances, including dioxins, particulate matter, ammonia, hydrochloric acid, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide, and heavy metals such as lead, arsenic, and selenium.
“I am constantly inundated with emails from people who live near industry and have acquired cancers and illness,” said Brockovich, who has witnessed such negligence first-hand, bringing a corporate giant to its knees to the tune of a $333 million settlement, and spawning a blockbuster movie about her success.
“Government is often absent when polluters need to be held accountable for poisoning the environment,” Brockovich added. “And, invariably, we the people have to find some way to clean up the mess.”
People who believe they have been harmed by environmental pollutants may contact us for a free environmental lawsuit review via our website, www.weitzlux.com
About Weitz & Luxenberg P.C.:
Weitz & Luxenberg, founded in 1986, is one of the leading plaintiffs' litigation law firms in America. The firm has played leading roles in national and local litigations involving mesothelioma and asbestos-related lung cancer, as well as defective medicines and medical devices such as shoulder pain pumps, Stryker hip implants, Zimmer Durom Hip implants, Heparin, Advanced Bionics cochlear implants, and Hydroxycut, and general negligence and medical malpractice, among others. A forerunner in the legal fight against polluters, Weitz & Luxenberg has worked with clients harmed by the TVA coal ash sludge, PCE/TCE, MTBE, and PERC/PCE in float sink preps.
Contacts:
Weitz & Luxenberg, P.C.
Client Relations department
1-800-476-6070
clientrelations@weitzlux.com
