Victim Of Accident 
Remains In Coma

Allean Colarossi 
Dec. 18, 1993 
Allean Cq Colarossi, Cq Of Ruane Avenue, Scranton, Died Saturday In Community 
Medical Center, Scranton.

Tuesday, December 21, 1993 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 





WESTSIDE-16A FOR PAGE 16A &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Consultants claim Philly-based company loaded landfill with illegal
industrial waste &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; By JIM VAN NOSTRAND &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Times Leader Staff Writer &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 WILKES-BARRE -- Two consultants hired by West Pittston attorney Michael
Cefalo have evidence that a Philadelphia-area company was among the biggest
dumpers of illegal industrial waste in the West Side Landfill, they said
Tuesday. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Dr. David Rigle and environmental consultant William Sawyer declined,
however, to name the company in a news conference Tuesday at the Luzerne
County Courthouse. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The company illegally dumped large quantities of methylene chloride -- a
"probable" carcinogen associated with cancer -- in the landfill, Rigle and
Sawyer said. Methylene chloride, a colorless, volatile liquid, is used chiefly
as a solvent, a refrigerant and as a local anesthetic in dentistry, according
to Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Levels of methylene chloride 100,000 to 200,000 times higher than federal
safe drinking water standards have been measured in leachate from the dump,
and Rigle and Sawyer are concerned it's entering the water table, they said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They haven't tested homes downhill for it, they said. Even homes uphill may
be threatened because their well shafts extend 200 to 300 feet down into the
water table. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 A previous government report suggested the presence of methylene chloride,
but didn't categorically say whether the liner underneath the landfill is
breached, they said. They contend it is. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They also found traces of acetone -- a relatively harmless landfill
pollutant -- in Wadham Creek, which runs through the center of Plymouth, they
said. Acetone, a colorless, volatile, water-soluble, flammable liquid, is used
chiefly in paints and varnishes and as a general solvent, according to the
dictionary. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Blythe Evans, the landfill authority's solicitor, was at the news
conference. He asked whether rising river water that occasionally floods
Plymouth homeowners' basements would carry methylene chloride with it. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The chemical would be a cancer threat if breathed constantly over an
extended period of time, Sawyer replied. It isn't a threat to downstream
communities because the river would dilute it to non-threatening levels. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Rigle and Sawyer held up a finished report on their landfill tests, which
were underwritten by Cefalo in conjunction with a class-action lawsuit against
the West Side Landfill Authority. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But they can't distribute the report publicly because it names the
Philadelphia-area company and there's a chance of litigation, they said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Cefalo, reached at his West Pittston office, wouldn't say Tuesday whether
his firm will sue the Philadelphia company. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "At this point in time, we're looking at every piece of available
information," Cefalo said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Rigle and Sawyer also have been contacted anonymously by truckers, who gave
details of the illegal dumping, they said. But the pair doesn't have enough
evidence to pursue charges against the hauling companies. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They praised Cefalo for paying for the study, and recommended that
government agencies conduct an in-depth toxicology study of 15 reported cancer
cases in the area of the landfill. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "It's amazing that this type of work has not been done by any government
agency," Rigle said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 A previous investigation by state Attorney General Ernest Preate's agents
found "red bag" medical wastes, including syringes. But contaminated soils and
industrial wastes dumped illegally are a much bigger concern, Rigle and Sawyer
said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "They're avoiding the atomic bomb and complaining about a .22-caliber rifle
they found," Rigle said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 William Sawyer

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