The entire debate, however, is an illusion, based on several false premises. Neither can it be restored to its original condition. There is no turning back from PCB contamination, neither in a college dormitory, nor once it has been allowed to flow unchecked for close to a century and has infiltrated every living cell of every animal, and attached itself to the very water, earth and air of which the river environment is made. Tiny amounts of the chemicals in an aquatic environment transform into concentrations thousands or millions of times higher, within the living creatures that live there. Over 300,000 pounds remain concentrated in bottom sediments of the river today, according to the organization Clearwater, which monitors the issue.
Cost is a factor, true.
GE, which used PCBs in the manufacture electrical equipment, and Monsanto, which created the PCB fluids, maintained that the chemicals were perfectly safe while they were freely pouring them into the earth and water, even though their internal documents going back to 1936 indicate they were fully aware the compounds were deadly to humans and laboratory animals. Over the years their knowledge increased steadily. By the 1950s, GE was internally circulating a 46-entry bibliography listing all of its references to PCB toxicity. Yet to this day, both companies fail to admit that there are any adverse effects on human health, though studies showing tragic effects continue to pour out of laboratories worldwide. In a 1993 statement to me, GE compared PCB toxicity to table salt and alcohol.