By Karl Sigurd Leipnik - Anderson Valley Advertiser, May 10, 1989
To: John Van De Kamp,
Attorney General, State of California
Susan Massini,
District Attorney, Mendocino County,
Tom Lonergan,
City Attorney, Fort Bragg
Dear Sirs/Madame:
In accordance with Section 25249.7 (d) (1) of the Health and Safety Code of the State of California, the undersigned hereby gives notice to you of violation of Section 25249.6 of said Code, and of alleged and/or suspected violations of other sections of said code and other codes.
The primary violation complained, consists of the knowing and intentional exposure, by act or omission to act on the part of responsible managing agents, officials, and representatives of the Georgia Pacific Corporation, of both employees of said corporation at its Fort Bragg lumber mill and residents of the town of Fort Bragg, California, to chemicals known to the State of California and to said Corporation and its responsible managing agents, officials, and representatives to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity without first giving clear and reasonable warning to such exposed individuals.
The violations complained of began on or about February 11, 1989, and have continued to the present date. The chemicals involved included in particular polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), which was listed by the State of California as known to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity on January 1, 1988. Other chemicals involved in the aforesaid exposure were breakdown products of the burning of PCB, which burning was done in knowing, willful, deliberate, and calculated violation of all applicable State and Federal regulations with respect to disposal of PCB.
Your attention is also called to the apparent fact that one or more violations of Section 25180.7 of the Health and Safety Code may have occurred in connection with this incident.
Your attention is also called to the fact that it has been alleged that the same persons, or some of the persons, referred to above, have knowingly and intentionally exposed individuals to toxic chemicals:
Your attention is also called to the fact that it has been alleged that in an effort to conceal the nature and extent of the PCB exposure to its combustion breakdown products referred to above, responsible managing agents, officials, and representatives of the Georgia Pacific Corporation have willfully and deliberately caused toxic waste to be collected, and buried in pits upon property owned by said corporation in violation of applicable State and Federal laws and regulations with respect to the disposal of such toxic waste. In particular, it is alleged that Georgia Pacific Corporation did not obtain permits for such dumping, that the pits were not prepared so as to prevent toxic chemicals from contaminating ground water, that the persons who collected and dumped such toxic waste were not protected from exposure to chemicals known to the state to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity, and that the persons so exposed during the dumping process were not given clear and reasonable warning prior to such exposure.
Your attention is also called to the fact that it has been alleged that disposal of toxic wastes of various kinds by burning, especially during night-time hours when the resulting pall of smoke, ash, and toxic chemicals is less noticeable; is a practice of long standing engaged in by the said Georgia Pacific Corporation and its responsible managing agents, officials, and. representatives at its Fort Bragg, California mill. It is alleged that these toxic wastes include lubricating oils, motor oils, solvents, metal cutting oils, insecticides, fungicides, pesticides, plastics, paints and varnishes, and other materials and chemicals subject to special regulation and control with respect to disposal by dumping or burning. It is also alleged and believed that as a result, the land, air, and water, including drinking water, in the vicinity of Fort Bragg, California has been contaminated with toxic waste. Such disposal is believed to be for the purpose of concealing evidence of wrongful and possibly criminal acts and of increasing corporate profits by avoiding the cost of safe and legal disposal in an approved toxic disposal site.
You are hereby requested, with respect to the actions and omissions of Georgia Pacific Corporation and its responsible managing agents, officials, and representatives, to investigate and diligently prosecute possible violations of the following Sections of the Health and Safety Code of the State of California 25189.5, 25189.6, 25189.7, 25190, 25191, 25249.5, 25249.6, 25249.7, and 25180.7, among others, as well as any other violations of law discovered in the course of your investigation.
You are hereby requested, with respect to the actions and omissions any “designated employee” of any government agency as defined in Section 82019 of the Government Code, to investigate and diligently prosecute possible violations of the following Sections of the Health and Safety Code of the State of California: 25180.7, 25190, 25191, and any other violation of law discovered in the course of your investigation.
You are hereby requested to investigate, and if appropriate to diligently prosecute, possible conspiracy to commit the aforementioned violations and to conceal evidence of the same.
Please inform me at your earliest convenience as to your intentions with respect to this request.
Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Very Truly Yours,
Karl Sigurd Leipnik,
Healdsburg