Letters to the Editor in the Globe
The Boston Globe published an article, “Harvard study backs bottle concern,” on a new study that shows notable amounts of bisphenol-A (BPA) leaching out of polycarbonate water bottles. This study is the first to definitively show that drinking from polycarbonate water bottles does increase levels of BPA in urine. Thus, polycarbonate water bottles are an important contributor to the amount of BPA in people’s bodies.
The last time the Globe published a story on BPA, we were successful at getting letters to the editor published. Therefore, we decided to try again this time, especially since we knew that industry groups would try to discredit the study with letters of their own.
Fortunately, we managed to get two letters to the editor published on Thursday, May 28th by Elizabeth Saunders, Environmental Legislative Director for Clean Water Action and Susie Davidson from the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life (COEJL).
And yet, we still have not heard a reply from the Governor’s office or the Department of Public Health (DPH). It looks as if we are going to have to keep applying the pressure until we get what we want. Two other states with Republican Governors, Minnesota and Connecticut, have managed to pass bills on BPA, while here in Massachusetts we lag woefully behind even with a Democratic Governor. So stay tuned for our next action.As Elizabeth Saunders, so succinctly stated, “The public has spoken, science has spoken. Why is the DPH staying silent?”
