State Study on Health Effects of Newtown Creek is a ‘Disgrace’: Activists
(DNAINFO) Gwynn Hogan | April 22, 2016 — Residents near Newtown Creek weren’t more likely to get cancer or have birth defects, a study concluded.
A state study that found no elevated rates of cancer or birth defects among residents near Newtown Creek, angered local activists who’d been pushing for a more comprehensive review of health issues in the area for years, they said.
Laura Hoffman, 58, lifelong Greenpoint resident and activist with the Newtown Creek Alliance pointed to a troubling disclaimer on the first page of the Department of Health report.
“A study of this type cannot prove that a specific environmental exposure caused elevated levels of health problems in a community, nor does it provide information about causes of health problems in individual people,” the report states.
The warning infuriated Greenpoint residents.