A Perfect Storm: When tropical storms meet toxic waste

As “National Hurricane Preparedness Week” kicks off, many communities across the country are still dealing with the devastating effects of last year’s record-shattering hurricane season. To help prepare for this year, USPIRG Education Fund and Environment America Research & Policy Center released a report Thursday highlighting the serious threat posed by toxic “Superfund” waste sites in the paths of hurricanes and tropical storms during the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season. 

The report, entitled A Perfect Storm: When tropical storms meet toxic waste, pulls together data from the National Hurricane Center (NHC) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to show that 810 sites were in areas affected by hurricanes and tropical storms during the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season, including 34 in Massachusetts. Additionally, the report made recommendations to the EPA for improving and expediting cleanup at these sites.

 

The 2020 Atlantic hurricane season was the most active Atlantic hurricane season in recorded history. With a record-breaking 30 named storms, 11 of which made landfall in the United States, the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season put on a destructive display of what we may come to expect as a new normal due to climate change. 

MASSPIRG

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