For Immediate Release:

April 11, 2001

For Information, Contact:

Jeff Jones: 518-462-5526 ext. 233

Cell: 518-265-0719

National Wildlife Federation Backs Hudson River PCB Cleanup

(Albany, N.Y.) - Environmental Advocates, the New York state affiliate of the National Wildlife Federation (NWF), today announced the national group's support for removing toxic PCBs from the Hudson River. A formal resolution calling for "the most aggressive remediation" of the Hudson was adopted last week by a vote of affiliate representatives at the Federation's annual meeting in Washington, D.C.

"The National Wildlife Federation takes its conservation resolutions very seriously," said Environmental Advocates spokesman Jeff Jones. "Obviously the delegates - on behalf of four million NWF members nationwide - want to send a strong message to federal officials about the need to clean up the Hudson's PCB pollution."

Since 1937, NWF, the nation's largest member-supported conservation group, has, through its 46 state affiliates, adopted resolutions that form the core of its conservation work throughout the year. The NWF vote came as new data was released by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation showing unacceptable levels of PCBs in mammals that live along the river and in floodplain soils along the upper river. "The recent release of data concerning PCB contamination of river valley mammals and the upper Hudson floodplains is particularly alarming to conservationists in New York and around the nation." Jones said. "Analysis of the data by public health experts tells us the mammal population, particularly fish-eaters living along the Hudson is dropping, which is consistent with the pattern of PCBs causing reproductive problems."

Regarding the announcement by American Rivers that the Hudson has again been named one of the nation's most endangered rivers, Jones added: "GE says this designation is a 'joke.' That is an outrageous and unacceptable response, especially to people living along the Hudson who are threatened by PCB contamination. What is really happening here is the failure of GE's campaign to limited the debate about the future of the River to just those of us in this part of the state. In fact, GE's pollution of the Hudson and it's attempts to destroy the federal Superfund law through legal action, has turned this into one of the defining national environmental issues of our day."

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