Charles G. Brown, Attorney and Counselor
316 F St., N.E., Suite 210
Washington DC 20002
Ph. 202.884-0315; fax 544-6331
July 25, 2007
Dear citizens of greater Philadelphia:
Freya Koss and I, working with Sean Jacobs of the Clean Air Council and Philadelphia area dentist Dr. Don Robbins, believe it valuable to show the City Council the breadth of support for the proposed ordinance to mandate a fact sheet on mercury fillings and mandate separators to catch the mercury before it goes into Philadelphia’s water. After a frank set of discussions with Councilwoman Reynolds-Brown’s staff, we have re-written our letter, constructing a positive message that reinforced support for a bill that passed unanimously in committee. We believe the Councilwoman is working to pass this bill, and we need to show her and the rest of Council how important this issue really is.
So we invite both individual folks and organizations to join in the letter below.
Charlie Brown
Charles G. Brown, Attorney and Counselor
316 F St., N.E., Suite 210
Washington DC 20002
Ph. 202.884-0315; fax 544-6331
August 2007
The Honorable Blondell Reynolds Brown
City Hall
Philadelphia PA 19107
Dear Councilwoman Reynolds Brown:
In May, we applauded your leadership in sponsoring a bill to mandate dentists (a) to tell parents and patients that “silver” fillings are really mercury, that mercury is a toxic substance, and that alternatives are available; and (b) to install separators to catch the mercury instead of burdening taxpayers with an unnecessary clean-up bill.
We are pleased the bill passed unanimously in committee, drawing support from the Committee Chair, Councilman Rizzo, and Councilman Kelly, as well as yourself.
We support the bill without weakening amendments. Consumers must be told in plain language that “silver” amalgam exposes patients to mercury, that mercury exposure can have a horrid potential impact on the developing brains of children and the unborn, and that nontoxic alternatives are available to fill any cavity. Indeed, many of the undersigned support giving the provision teeth by mandating that dentists have patients sign for the form, showing they got it (though we recognize that provision is not currently in the bill).
Second, the requirement that dentists install separators ends the practice of the largest source of mercury in the wastewater, dental offices, passing this cost onto Philadelphia taxpayers. For a de minimis fee, dentists must install equipment to catch the mercury and ensure it is treated like the hazardous waste it really has. Children benefit by having water without the risk of mercury, and taxpayers benefit by having the pollution source bear the cost.
Sincerely,
Charles G. Brown, on behalf of
Pennsylvania Coalition for Mercury-free Dentistry (Freya Koss)
Clean Air Council (Sean Jacobs)
Donald Robbins, DMD, F.A.G.D.
Scott Rossi, National Mercury Awareness (-Philadelphia)
Carol J. Ward, Vice President- DAMS- Dental Amalgam Mercury Syndrome
Cynthia Stolten, Critical Decisions Count
Karen Burns, injured dental assistant
Karen Palmer, injured dental assistant
Ellen Sue Spicer-Jacobson
Steve Markus, D.M.D., F.A.C.E, Director, The Centre for Dentistry at Haddon
Susan Kreider, MSIT, RN, CPC
Richard P. Kaufman, DMD
Teresa Mendez-Quigley, Director, Environmental Stewardship
Women’s Health & Environmental Network (WHEN)
Carol McFarland