Every day, since the Feb. 3, 2023 rail derailment in East Palestine, Ohio the media has extensively covered this environmental calamity, including the plight of the local residents caught up in the spread of the chemical contamination and the apparent malfeasance of responsible entities responsible for cleanup actions. And while the media attention is rightfully on East Palestine, the ultimate impact could be more global, including to those here in New England, albeit to a much lesser extent!

We all remember the past decades of acid rain and the impact on New England trees and lakes, especially at higher elevations. The root cause for that damage was a direct result of long term chemical airborne pollution, discharging from mid-east USA coal burning plants, whose stacks were not equipped with adequate filtration.

With that in mind, one wonders what the full range of pollution from the East Palestine plume could be? Because the burn was of a short duration (compared to past coal burning plants), the spread of contamination would be limited, with concentrations diminishing with distance from the burn site. Using meteorological data, coupled with pollution source data, scientists can determine the full downwind range and extent of the plume if asked.

Robert A. DiNapoli

Old Lyme