John F. Kennedy High School finally opens its doors to students on Monday, August 24, 2009. The first day of class for the JFK islanders will begin with Green Day (periods 1,3,5) and the first bell will be ringing at 7:05am. The two week delay was caused by concerns from the superintendent’s office regarding the high levels of Chlordane and the ongoing construction by Coretech on a few classrooms. There were last minute changes made by DOE to divide classrooms, addition of sinks, and Coretech was trying their best to address the changes.
“It’s my responsibility to ensure that nothing happens to you 20 years down the line, so if there’s any indication that you might be harmed by something you can’t see right now, but may be present, that’s my responsibility,” Nerissa Underwood explained.
The flexible make-up days within GDOE’s schedule found on www.gdoe.net might be used to make up lost education time. The 14 Points of an Adequate Education Law mandates that the Education Department must provide for 180 days of instruction. However, the flexible make-up days are reserved for natural disasters only. Seeing how this event is not a natural disaster, I am sure this will cost the government some money, cost the teachers their vacation, or cost the students their education time.
Interim JFK High School
In late July 2009, Guam health officials were notified that chlordane was detected in surface soils near building foundations at the Interim JFK High School at concentrations that warranted further investigation. Surface soil chlordane concentrations ranged from non-detected to 205 mg/kg. Guam EPA noted the chlordane at the Interim JFK High School was applied in accordance with the common practice at the time for its intended purpose as a termiticide. Based on the soil concentrations, the Guam EPA has concluded that the relative risk of chlordane at the school is similar to the risk from exposures at any school or building that was constructed prior to 1989. AMEC concurs with this statement. Exposures and risk to chlordane detected at the school would result from directly touching, eating or inhaling soil with chlordane in it. Due to the length of time between application of chlordane and the present day, chlordane is highly unlikely to be present in air. To eliminate the possibility of direct contact with soils and to eliminate potential health risk to students, a 4-foot wide concrete walkway was constructed near building foundations over soils with elevated levels of chlordane. Soil sampling conducted in August 2009 beyond the boundary of the walkway indicates that the 4-foot walkway has removed exposures to soils with higher concentrations of chlordane. Chlordane concentrations in soils immediately beyond the walkway ranged from non-detected to 4.8 mg/kg.
What is Chlordane?
Chlordane is a complex man-made chemical mixture that was used as a pesticide in the United States from 1948 to 1988. It is a thick liquid whose color ranges from colorless to amber, depending on its purity. It may have no smell or a mild, irritating smell. Before 1978, chlordane was also used as a pesticide on agricultural crops, lawns and gardens and as a fumigating agent. USEPA canceled the use of chlordane on food crops and phased out other above-ground uses over the next 5 years. In 1988, when the USEPA canceled chlordane’s use for controlling termites, all approved uses of chlordane in the United States stopped. In soil, chlordane attaches strongly to particles and is unlikely to pose a threat to groundwater. Half of the chlordane applied to soil surface may evaporate in 2 to 3 days. Evaporation is much slower after chlordane penetrates into the soil as it is bound very tightly.
What Harmful Effects Can Chlordane Have on Us?
Most health effects in humans from chlordane exposure are on the nervous system, the digestive system, and the liver. Chlordane is considered a possible human carcinogen (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Toxicological Profile for Chlordane).