Concerns that a Site is Affecting People

Herman Toolie from Savoonga noted, "A couple of years back there was a lot of dead birds all over the beach, like seals and fish - we wonder why this is happening. For example, before the Northeast Cape airport site, elders said there never used to be cancer, but now they are getting cancer. They think maybe from this Northeast Cape site."

William Takaak from Shaktoolik noted, "Why hasn't this sort of thing happened before? Starting with the White Alice sites, the federal government has known that there are hazardous wastes associated with these sites. It makes us angry that it has taken so long to look at it. Elim has higher rates of cancer than in Shaktoolik and Koyuk ."

Enoch Sheidt from Kotzebue noted, "People who go camping by old dump sites. Relatives dying of stomach cancer and they had been camping by this old dump site. I don't know."

Guy Martin from Nome noted, "When you get Ph.D.'s who study this stuff and they say benzene or something causes cancer in rats - and people are camping near this stuff. Brevig, NE Cape and elsewhere, Davidson's Landing by Mary' Igloo, Moses Point near Elim. These areas tested positive for carcinogens. I'm not saying that' s the answer."

Please go to the next step, possible causes of these concerns.