Tallevast residents want answers

Florida resident voice their concerns on the drinking water, contamination.... But in many other countries in people are not as
open like US or Europe, openly voicing their concern on Drinking Water contaminations...

Tallevast residents want answers
DONNA WRIGHT Herald Staff Writer

Did a past industrial spill put their health at risk?

Are the illnesses, miscarriages and cancers they have experienced during the past 40 years connected to toxins released by the now-defunct Loral American Beryllium Co.?

The questions don't stop at Tallavest's borders.

Former employees of the Tallavest plant want to know if their exposure to beryllium dust during the processing of the exotic metal put them at risk for a rare and sometimes fatal lung disease.

Residents who lived close to the plant are concerned about chronic beryllium disease, too, because of their exposure to dust from the factory.

Finding answers to those long-term health questions could take months, if not years, as scientists and industrial health experts run tests to learn who might have been exposed to what toxins in the air, groundwater and even private, drinking-water wells.

Local and state health officials are scheduled to update residents today on the Tallevast Health Assessment, an official study being conducted by a state team under the supervision of the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.

Participants will also hear an overview of the county's plan to test former workers and residents known to have a past high risk of exposure to beryllium dust, said Dr. Gladys Branic, Manatee County's health department director.

Branic said she will also share her strategy for collecting medical histories by sending health workers door to door to gather data on cancer deaths among Tallevast's 85 households.

That data will then be matched with maps of the contamination area to see if any patterns emerge, Branic said. Read More...
Tallevast residents want answers