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Tags: Erin Brockovich | Investigate | Water Pollution | Hoosick Falls | New York

Erin Brockovich to Investigate Water Pollution in Hoosick Falls

Erin Brockovich to Investigate Water Pollution in Hoosick Falls
Consumer advocate Erin Brockovich addresses a rally against the federal government's support for what they say is a known polluter on Capitol Hill April 23, 2014 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

By    |   Friday, 29 January 2016 10:34 AM EST

Erin Brockovich — the famed environmental activist portrayed by Julia Roberts in a hit movie — is headed to upstate New York to probe a string of rare cancer deaths and illnesses residents fear were caused by a contaminated water supply.

The Albany Times Union says over decades, a toxic chemical called perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) may have seeped into the underground wells of Hoosick Falls, when workers at a plastics plant cleaned smokestacks and other equipment and dumped the byproducts in a storm drain.

PFOA, used in non-stick coatings and heat-resistant wiring, has been linked to kidney and testicular cancer, as well as thyroid diseases, The Times reports.

New York State has named the area a Superfund site and recently revealed a plan to stop any water pollution, but some residents of Hoosick Falls — a community of 3,500 in Rensselaer County — believe cleanup plans are not moving fast enough.

The Times says a nationally known tort firm, Weitz & Luxenberg, has hired environmental activist Erin Brockovich to investigate.

She was the subject of the popular 2000 biopic, "Erin Brockovich," which chronicled her probe of a utility company's alleged contamination of drinking water with the chemical hexavalent chromium, known as a human carcinogen.

A lawsuit followed and a settlement of $333 million was reached.

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Erin Brockovich - the famed environmental activist portrayed by Julia Roberts in a hit movie - is headed to upstate New York to probe a string of rare cancer deaths and illnesses residents fear were caused by a contaminated water supply.
Erin Brockovich, Investigate, Water Pollution, Hoosick Falls, New York
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2016-34-29
Friday, 29 January 2016 10:34 AM
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