CONGRESSMAN RYAN LEADS ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS AND LOCAL ELECTED OFFICIALS IN DEMANDING VERIZON AND AT&T PUBLICLY DISCLOSE LOCATIONS OF ALL TOXIC CABLES IN NEW YORK
Congressman Ryan Leads Environmental Groups and Local Elected Officials in Demanding Verizon and AT&T Publicly Disclose Locations of ALL Toxic Cables in New York
Ryan says that transparency is needed after constituents found hundreds of feet of abandoned lead-sheathed cables in Cornwall, potentially leaching toxins into soil and drinking water; constituents have also found lead cables in Kingston, Middletown, New Windsor, Poughkeepsie, and Wappingers Falls
Ryan sends letter to CEOs of Verizon and AT&T calling on them to stop the stonewalling and finally tell the public the truth
CORNWALL, NY – Today, Congressman Pat Ryan gathered local elected officials, environmental groups, and concerned constituents to highlight the increasing threat of toxic lead-sheathed cables left abandoned across the Hudson Valley. The group called on Verizon and AT&T to publicly disclose the locations of all toxic cables in New York after finding hundreds of feet of abandoned cables in Cornwall, in addition to lead sheathed cables in Kingston and Wappingers Falls. No amount of lead is safe for human exposure, and the neurotoxin is particularly damaging to children. A full video of today’s press conference is available here.
“We have Hudson Valley families quite literally stumbling over abandoned toxic cables, and these mega-corporations are turning a blind eye to the environmental threat they’ve created. It’s absolutely unacceptable that even in the face of growing evidence of abandoned cables across the Hudson Valley, Verizon and AT&T continue to claim this isn’t their problem to deal with,” said Congressman Pat Ryan. “Our demand is straightforward: you’re making billions of dollars on the backs of hard-working families, the least you can do is be honest about where the toxic cables are located. And if Verizon and AT&T won’t clean up their mess on their own, we will compel them to.”
“Dating back to our monumental victory over Con Edison in 1962, Cornwall-on-Hudson proudly acknowledges its status as the birthplace of the modern environmental movement. But no matter how many small victories achieved, we must remain forever vigilant in safeguarding and protecting the precious Hudson Valley environment and ensure our beautiful Orange County mountain, river, and open space vistas will be enjoyed by generations to come,” said Cornwall-on-Hudson Mayor James A. Gagliano. “I salute Congressman Pat Ryan for tackling an issue that has plagued our community for decades – the overabundance of toxic lead cables that contribute to polluting our community. We stand together in calling for AT&T and Verizon to remove these noxious, lead-sheathed cables to avoid further poisoning of our soil and groundwater reservoirs.”
“When it comes to public safety, protecting our residents from environmental hazards and revitalizing our community, we need billionaire telecom companies to take responsibility for removing their dangerous and unsightly lead covered telecom lines that hang over our heads in various states of neglect,” said Cornwall Town Supervisor Josh Wojehowski. “It’s absolutely shameful that local community volunteers like the Cornwall Cleanup Crew are inadvertently picking up fallen and discarded lead covered telecom debris while these same companies fight proper community disclosure to protect shareholders and the C-Suite from their misguided decision making. We demand a list of all abandoned lead covered lines and the immediate cleanup and removal.”
"In the Hudson Valley, the presence of abandoned lead-sheathed cables not only jeopardizes water quality but also poses risks to human health due to the toxic nature of lead,” said Jeremy Cherson, Senior Manager of Government Affairs at Riverkeeper. “The environmental repercussions of lead contamination are profound, with potential long-term impacts on the Hudson River’s ecosystem and public health. AT&T and Verizon must prioritize transparency by disclosing the locations of these hazardous cables to mitigate any further harm to our environment and communities."
“We are thrilled to have agencies and community leaders join us in our continual efforts in cleaning up the Hudson Valley,” said Tracey Andrews, President, Cornwall Cleanup Crew. “Preventing illegal dumping is at the top of our list of priorities – along with creating awareness, increasing community involvement and helping to keep our town and county clean now and into the future.”
“As the environmental advisory body to the Town of Cornwall Town Board, the Cornwall Conservation Advisory Council shares Congressman Pat Ryan’s concerns regarding obsolete lead-sheathed telecom and power cables,” said Carla Castillo, Chair of the Cornwall Conservation Advisory Council. “Many of these cables are very old and have been abandoned but left in place. Corrosion of these cables can release lead into the surrounding environment posing a hazard to the public. Lead is particularly harmful to children, and exposure to the metal can result in permanent neurological damage. Cables that run underground or that have fallen to the ground from utility poles are of special concern because the lead that is released from corroding cables can contaminate soil and surface water, as well as leach into groundwater and drinking water supplies. Steps should be put in place to remediate the public threat from this toxic substance.”
In July 2023, The Wall Street Journal found that there are more than 2,000 lead-sheathed cables across the United States, both aerial and underwater, that have been allowed to corrode and shed toxic lead into their surrounding environment. This included cables at Temple Park in Wappingers Falls.
In response to the July report, Congressman Ryan wrote to Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg, AT&T CEO John Stankey, and U.S. Telecom CEO Jonathan Spalter demanding additional information on the cables, including their locations and the corporations’ plans to conduct a full, safe clean up of the cables and their contamination.
U.S. Telecom’s response, linked here, did not address either of these concerns. Ryan then met with representatives of Verizon at his office in Washington D.C. This meeting did not lead to any further answers. To date, Verizon has refused to disclose the locations of these dangerous lead cables. Verizon is currently in litigation with the New York Department of Health as part of their effort to keep the locations of these dangerous lead cables hidden.
Due to the lack of response, Congressman Ryan’s team took it upon themselves to work with local linesmen to locate lead cables in the Hudson Valley. Ryan’s team and lead experts found lead cables across the Hudson Valley, including in Middletown, New Windsor and Poughkeepsie.
In January, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a landmark decision to crackdown on the sources of toxic lead exposures, the first time that the EPA lowered the acceptable screening levels for lead in decades. Congressman Ryan renewed his call for Verizon and AT&T to disclose the locations of the cables and commit to robust lead soil testing in the contaminated locations.
The corrosion of aging and outdated lead infrastructure, from cables to pipes, can cause toxic lead to leach into the environment, placing humans at risk for exposure. Lead exposure can cause severe health complications in humans, including neurological damage in children and cardiovascular, kidney, and reproductive health issues in adults. No amount of lead exposure is safe and the toxin can be stored in bones and teeth and accumulate in the body over time.
Congressman Ryan is a member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the Water Resources Subcommittee, which has jurisdiction over the Clean Water Act and the EPA. Congressman Ryan has prioritized fighting for clean water, air, and soil for Hudson Valley families. In 2023, he brought EPA leadership to Poughkeepsie to assist the city in addressing its lead pipe crisis. Congressman Ryan has also taken on big corporations that have polluted the Hudson Valley and River, including demanding that GE conduct a full clean up of its PCB pollution in the Hudson River and calling on Holtec to cease its plan to dump radioactive waste into the Hudson River. Ryan led the charge to prevent the Coast Guard from allowing polluting oil barges from anchoring in the Hudson River, introducing the Hudson River Protection Act to permanently ban barges from anchoring on the River. He has repeatedly called for a PFAS clean up at Stewart Air National Guard Base in Newburgh and recently passed legislation requiring the Department of Defense to investigate PFAS contamination on military bases as part of the National Defense Authorization Act. He recently introduced the PFAS Action Act, the most comprehensive crackdown on “forever chemicals” to date.
A copy of Ryan’s original letter to Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg and AT&T CEO John Stankey appears below:
I write to share my continued concern over the extensive network of toxic lead-sheathed telecommunications cables strewn about the country, including in my Congressional District in New York. I have constituents writing in from across the Hudson Valley after quite literally running into these cables; your inability to share even the most basic information as to the location of these cables is patently unacceptable. These abandoned cables threaten public and environmental health, and must be remediated as soon as possible. And as it is my understanding that you have given information to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, I am now requesting that you share the locations of all lead-sheathed cables with my office as well.
In July 2023, the Wall Street Journal published a bombshell report that warned degraded lead from the sheathing has leached into our soil and water all around the nation. Our communities have since undergone rounds of lead-related testing by state departments of health and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In New York, a children’s park was even closed for lead-cable testing. Research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention demonstrates that there is no safe level of lead for children. Even trace amounts of lead in a child’s system can pose severe risks to physical and mental development. It is deeply concerning that both Verizon and AT&T were well aware that abandoned lead-sheathed telecommunications cables are toxic to public health, and yet no effort was made by the companies to remediate them.
It is my understanding that Verizon and AT&T are communicating with the EPA as the EPA investigates the impacts of these lead-sheathed telecommunications cables. While we recognize and appreciate this cooperation, I implore you to share all relevant information–including testing data and location information–that you have turned over and plan to turn over to the EPA as part of this investigation. Sharing this information is a crucial next step in a years-long process of identifying, testing, and remediating toxic lead-sheathed cables across the country. Anything less is simply unacceptable and threatens public health.
AT&T and Verizon own these toxic cables, and as such, AT&T and Verizon should take ownership of this crisis. In the interest of public health and safety, my office must be made aware of all probable locations where these cables remain. To this end, I respectfully urge Verizon and AT&T to share all relevant information with my office. I look forward to hearing from you and encourage you to join us in the fight to ensure lead-free soil and water for our communities.
###