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If you are a parent whose children play ball or soccer at the relocated facility in a highly polluted area next to a runway at TF Green Airport, I highly urge you to do your own research on the pollutants your children are being exposed to. Studies have shown that very small sized particle pollutants, called ultra-fine particulate matter less than point one microns or UFP, cause increased risk for premature cardiovascular disease and learning disabilities in children.

The RI Department of Health is not telling you all they know. UFP's are so small, they "permanently" loge inside lung and heart tissue. If one loged particle metastasizes, a person is more likely to become terminally ill, and time will determine their prognosis. The impacts may take years to show up in a person, however when they do, the damage is not reversible, So why would you expose your children to even one particle and let them play next to a runway?

In Mr. Hartley's above article, he refers to a state air quality law called “The Permanent Air Quality Monitoring Act”. The Act was intended to be and is called permanent because there is a health risk that needs to be monitored if one cares about public health and warning the public on associated health risks. It’s no different than a long term requirement that a fossil fuel power plant is required to monitor what comes out of its smoke stacks and report that on an ongoing basis to the State of Rhode Island. The RI State Law requiring testing of concentrations of UFPs near the airport, contains what is called a sunset clause, which makes the Act one that is not permanent. The sunset clause is in the law because a former attorney for RIAC insisted that it be included when the law was updated in 2007.

The law referred to in the above Beacon article, has two main components: 1) Sampling and Testing for Concentration of known Hazardous Air Pollutants known to emanate from jet exhaust, and 2) A related health study to determine increased health risks from exposure to the Hazardous Air Pollutants near the airport. The RI Department of Health never completed a health study as was intended by the law. There was a very limited health study done after the law updated to include testing for UFPs. At that time, a health department official stated that there was now conclusive evidence of increased cardiovascular risk near the airport. The health department official repeated the words “conclusive” several times to me. Then DOH went underground and transparency disappeared.

Under the referenced law, the testing for hazardous air pollutant concentrations and related health studies was to be managed and directed independently from government agencies like DOH and the Rhode Island Airport Corporation which manages airport operations at TF Green Airport. Instead, Representative McNamara had the law changed in 2017 which gave control of the testing plans back to RIDOH and RIAC, excluding the public as intended by law, and gave more control to RIAC to, who has an interest contrary to the public’s. The state law, which is RIGL 1-7, requires the establishment of an “Air Quality Public Advisory Committee”. The intent was to ensure that the studies to determine health risk are steered by the public, not an agency that operates TF Green Airport and is the polluter. Contrary to the law, we have the fox watching the hen house, and not telling you the truth. The law requires a public advisory committee to have advisors from environmental advocacy organizations, health advocacy organizations, neighborhood organizations, and academic institutions. That never happened.

The article mentions Mr. Joseph Wendelken, public affairs officer for the Department of Health, despite these studies indicating the possible harm of particles produced by airport activities, there is currently no cause for concern to the people living around T.F. Green. He is PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICER, and went behind the scene where DOH met with the governor to control their carefully worked press release, rather than to promote having the study steered independently by the public, as described above. Do you sense a cover up? They want you to believe that what are called Hazardous Air Pollutants by EPA, and are present in relatively high concentrations, that there is no cause for concern. Well, Mr. Wendelken, there is public concern, and that is why the law was updated in 2007, yet thwarted by those who don’t want the public to know the truth. So my advice is for the public to research this on their own.

Go to Google and do a search for [ ultra fine particle health risk children ] You will quickly learn what the RI DOH is not telling you.

Separately, with your web browser, navigate to the following web site or type the following URL into your web browser:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3014059/

At the above URL, you should find an article entitled “Ambient Particulate Pollutants in the Ultrafine Range Promote Early Atherosclerosis and Systemic Oxidative Stress” One of the authors is an environmental cardiologist at UCLA. DO YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO A WELL RESPECTED ENVIRONMENTAL CARDIOLOGIST AND MD. OR BELIEVE A PUBLIC RELATIONS PERSON FOR A STATE AGENCY WHICH REPORTS TO A PRO AIRPORT GOVERNOR?

The airport operator, over the years, has taken intentional steps to interfere with data collection. I would discuss this at the referred to meeting for February 28th, however again the State of Rhode Island has moved to minimize the public steering the studies and refused repeated requests to have a panel with public members as was done in prior years. Yes, they have gone underground and are not telling you the whole truth,

So what do you do? Do your own research as suggested above. There is now conclusive evidence of increased risk for premature cardiovascular disease and learning disabilities in children exposed to UFP’s. In previous steering committees, there were plans discussed to notify and disclose those risks to the public, then DOH went underground and failed to follow up with its plan to develop a system to warn the public.

People are free to contact me with what they would like to see happen by contacting me at 401-742-5769.

Michael Zarum, Warwick resident and former RIDEM / TF Green Airport Air Quality Monitoring Committee Member