Washington Legal Foundation: LEAD-WRAPPED TELECOM CABLES: A Case Study in Media Sensationalism vs. Credible Scientific Review

By Nancy B. Beck, PhD, BABT and Eric J. Murdock, Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP | wlf.org Nancy B. Beck, PhD, DABT is a toxicologist and the Director of Regulatory Science in the Washington, D.C. office of Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP. She has over twenty years of applied public health experience, sixteen of which were from her…

Poughkeepsie Journal: State taking no further action on lead levels in Wappingers Falls playground

Poughkeepsie Journal – By Saba Ali – January 26, 2024 The New York State Department of Health will not be taking any further action regarding a playground in the Village of Wappingers that was found to have lead in the soil. Temple Park was temporarily closed last summer due to a report claiming old cable…

Reuters: US EPA says no immediate lead health threats from telecom cables

WASHINGTON, Sept 21 (Reuters) – The U.S. environmental regulator said Thursday soil sampling for lead in two Pennsylvania towns near telecommunications cables indicate “no threats to the health of people nearby that would warrant” an immediate government response, despite some findings of the pollutant. The Environmental Protection Agency testing was prompted by an investigation by the Wall…

Fierce Telecom: Verizon says its lead tests found no ‘public health risk’ at WSJ sites

Verizon last week announced it conducted lead cable testing in three sites mentioned in the Wall Street Journal’s July 9 investigative report, finding none of the locations had lead-contaminated soil. The locations in question are Wappinger Falls, New York, Coal Center, Pennsylvania and West Orange, New Jersey. Verizon said it hired “third-party experts” to collect and…

New York Law Journal: The Wall Street Journal Investigative Series on Lead Cables: A Surprising Swing and Miss, and a Cautionary Tale for the Plaintiffs’ Bar

Faithful readers of the Wall Street Journal should be forgiven if they believed that its recent multi-part series “Lead Legacy – A Wall Street Journal Investigation” revealed a significant new environmental problem that might become the next environmental crisis and start the next wave of tort litigation. After the recent, well-publicized drinking water crises in Flint, Michigan, and…

Telecompetitor: Verizon: No Lead Contamination at Questioned Sites

Verizon has told Representative Pat Ryan (D–NY-18) that three sites with allegedly dangerous decades-old telecom cabling encased with lead are safe. In July, The Wall Street Journal reported that Verizon, AT&T and other telcos controlled old lead-sheathed cables on poles, underwater or in the earth that can decay and which, according to the WSJ, may pose a…

Reuters: AT&T says tests at some lead cable sites show no public health risk

Sept 6 (Reuters) – AT&T’s CEO said on Wednesday tests conducted at several sites where the telecom operator abandoned lead-clad cables decades ago have shown no risks of a public health crisis. The company and Verizon have faced questions about the cables since the Wall Street Journal reported in July that the telecom firms left behind a…

CNBC: First on CNBC: CNBC Transcript: AT&T CEO John Stankey Speaks with CNBC’s David Faber on “Squawk on the Street” Today

Following is the unofficial transcript of a CNBC interview with AT&T CEO John Stankey on CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street” (M-F, 9AM-12PM ET) today, Wednesday, September 6 from the GS Communacopia + Technology Conference in San Francisco. Following is a link to video on CNBC.com: https://www.cnbc.com/video/2023/09/06/atts-price-increases-bring-value-to-customers-through-free-added-benefits-says-att-ceo.html. All references must be sourced to CNBC. DAVID FABER: We’re…

Times Union: State says Wappingers Falls park can reopen after finding no health risk from lead cables

WAPPINGERS FALLS — The state gave the go-ahead for a Wappingers Falls park to reopen after it was temporarily closed for environmental tests based on reports that lead contained in nearby telecommunications cables could pose public health risks. Last week, Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office announced the results of soil analysis by experts with the state’s health…

CNBC: The existence of lead-sheathed cables does not equate to a public health risk, says US Telecom CEO

Jonathan Spalter, U.S. Telecom CEO, a national trade association representing big carriers and other tech companies, joins ‘Squawk Box’ to discuss the fallout from The Wall Street Journal’s investigation into evidence of decades old lead-clad cables potentially contaminating waters across the U.S., and more. Read more from CNBC

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