Remarks on Clean Water and LCV Endorsement

Statement

I'm here for the same reason my wife and the other parents are here this morning: we all have children in this community and we are deeply concerned about their health and safety. The recent issues we've been reading about in our local papers -- some catalyzed by the awful situation in Flint -- have made one thing crystal clear: When it comes to the safety and security of the water our children drink and bathe in, the facts are shockingly murky.

I speak to parents every day who, like me, want to know what's being done to protect their families and the health of their children. I'm here today because we simply can't afford to sit back and hope for the best, not when are children's health is at stake. When it comes to lead, PFOAs, and other toxic chemicals, we need to figure out what's going on in the school water fountains and in our water wells supplying our homes and businesses -- and we need to do so right now.

First, I'm calling for lead testing immediately in every public school grammar, middle and high school. Here in the 5th District, that would only cost us about $200,000 total, according to recent estimates, about $1,200 a school. And, I call on the EPA to use its emergency funds to help cover these costs through their Emergency Community Water Assistance grants. These are our hard-earned taxpayer dollars that are already in place. We just need a congressman that's willing to go get them back to protect our children.

Why do we need to know how much lead is in our water? Because we know that lead in our drinking water, at elevated levels, can cause decreased IQ, learning disabilities, brain damage, seizures, poor muscle coordination, speech and language problems -- just to name a few frightening effects.

And here's the problem: lead levels in drinking water are tested at the water plant level. Here in New Jersey, our public schools are not required to test the lead levels coming out of their pipes, faucets, and water fountains. And there is no New Jersey law -- or federal law, for that matter -- requiring any school-level testing of lead in our water.

So, as we saw in Flint, and now possibly at schools here in New Jersey, the lead levels standards may be okay when the water leaves the water treatment facility, but it might actually pick up lead by the time the water passes through the school pipes and water fountains and fills up our children's water bottles.

Here in Bergen County, and in Sussex, Warren, and Passaic, whether it's at Hackensack High School, which was built a hundred years ago in 1916, or Peter Cooper Elementary School in Ringwood, or Newton High School, or Sicomac Elementary School, where my daughter goes, we have no idea just how much lead is in the water our children are drinking every day. We just don't know if the lead levels exceed the 15 parts per billion acceptable levels. And that's a gamble I'm not willing to take.

As parents, our hearts sinks when you read that anyone's son or daughter could be exposed to chemicals that could cause cancer or other serious, life-altering illnesses -- simply because of the water they drink, bathe or play in.

As my wife, Marla, said, it would be unacceptable if even one child got sick because a school wouldn't do regular testing or a town didn't have the funds to replace their old pipes.

Second, beyond lead, I call on the EPA to immediately set safety standards for PFOAs and PFOSs -- known carcinogens -- that are increasingly found in the water in many of our communities. PFOAs are the chemical that many companies, like DuPont, started using years ago to coat various products like nonstick pans, running shoes, pizza boxes, water proof jackets, and microwave popcorn bags. Over time, the PFOAs, a particularly durable molecule, have peeled off these products, seeped into the ground, and then into water wells, where most of our drinking water comes from. And although all companies agreed to stop using PFOAs by 2015, the chemical has stuck around in our drinking water.

Researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health suggested in a recent scientific journal that PFOA water standards should be as low as .001 parts per billion, which is 40 times lower than NJ's standard, and 400 times lower than the current federal advisory standard. In short, while it's clear that PFOAs are no good for us and can cause significant health issues, it's unclear what a safe level should be. The EPA needs to step in here and set a clearly defined safety standard, just as they have done for clean water and clean air levels. It's why we can see past that water tower behind me, unlike cities like Beijing where, on many days, you can't see to the next city block.

In 2013, the EPA detected elevated level of PFOAs in 14 drinking water systems including Fair Lawn and Ridgewood Water, which supplies drinking water to 60,000 people in Glen Rock, Midland Park, Ridgewood and Wyckoff.

When Fair Lawn tested their PFOA and PFOS levels, they found levels at .036 -- significantly higher than many accepted scientific standards. Fair Lawn received a state DEP pilot grant, Department of Environmental Protection, to install carbon filters in nine of the town's 16 wells. These carbon filters should help remove PFOAs and PFOSs from the water.

In the end, the EPA needs to set clear safety standards and explain to communities like ours the best steps to get rid of PFOAs from the water our families are drinking and showering in.

As Ed made clear, when it comes to dangerous chemicals in our air and water, we need smart testing and strong protections. We can't afford to look the other way and leave it to hope and chance, as my opponent Scott Garrett, has done for the 13 years he has spent in Washington representing the Tea Party, not our children and families here in northern New Jersey. And, frankly, when it comes to protecting our children and families from lead and other chemicals in our drinking water, Garrett's record is nothing but toxic.

Simply put, Scott Garrett has the distinction of holding one of the worst environmental records in all of Congress. It's not just that he denies the existence of climate change and global warming, when he said, "I think the science is still out on that." It's literally vote after vote.

Here's a sampling of Garrett's Tea Party record, which has been remarkably consistent, year after year:

1. In January 2016, Garrett voted for a resolution to permanently block the EPA and Army Corps' Clean Water Rule.

2. In 2015, Garrett voted against legislation to help prevent contamination of groundwater that would have helped protect our water sources.

3. In July 2015, he voted against requiring hazardous waste sites to follow groundwater monitoring standards. And then he voted against protections for America's waterways that would ensure safe drinking water.

4. In 2011, a banner anti-environment year for him, Garrett voted for a bill which undermined the Clean Water Act by removing the EPA's ability to actually enforce the law.

5. And then, Garrett voted to block standards to reduce emissions of pollutants from coal-fired power plants by the Environment Protection Agency.

6. In 2011, Garrett also voted to discontinue the EPA's authority to regulate pollutants in our drinking water.

7. In 2005, Garrett voted against a measure to prevent the producers of the gasoline additive MTBE, another carcinogen, from being held accountable for contaminated drinking water sources. I think you see my point.

8. After 13 years in Washington, Scott Garrett has earned a remarkable lifetime score of 9 percent from the League of Conservation Voters.

He got a big zero percent lifetime score from Clean Water Action for his consistent record opposing safeguards for the water we drink. Environment America also gave him a zero. The Sierra Club also gave him a zero on his clean water record.

Zero after zero. Incredible.

So, this time around, I hope that Scott Garrett will change his mind, stop fighting for the Tea Party, and start standing up for us. A zero for protecting our children just isn't acceptable. It's time to bring back some of our taxpayer dollars to the district to help fund clean air and clean water here in northern New Jersey.

Despite all the tax dollars we send to Washington, Garrett refuses to bring any of it back for our communities. From failing to fix our crumbling roads or failing to fight for our firefighters, Scott Garrett has not been fighting for us. The Garrett Tax has been crushing our communities.

These aren't frivolous requests. This is about doing what is necessary to protect the safety, security and health of our communities. Yet, Scott Garrett would rather put our families at risk so that he can earn perfect marks on his Tea Party scorecard.

His record on clean water is no different. From clean water to clean air, Scott Garrett consistently hangs our families out to dry.

So, I hope Scott will join me in calling for immediate testing for lead levels in all of our school drinking water. For less than the cost of one of Garrett's taxpayer-funded pieces of propaganda mail he sends to our homes, we can test all of the schools in our district.

And I hope Scott will join me in calling on the EPA to set clear safety standards for PFOAs and PFOSs -- chemicals that are causing cancer, kidney disease, pregnancy induced hypertension and low birth weights, and thyroid disease. Together, we can grow our economy, grow the environment, and protect our children. To me, any other path is simple nonnegotiable.

When I'm in Congress, I will be a problem solver and reach across the aisle to get things done for New Jersey families. I will be on the front lines fighting to protect the health and safety of our children.

Thank you.

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