The Toxies Make News in the San Gabriel Valley

The Toxies made a splash on March 22nd at a community event hosted by Congresswoman Grace Napolitano to discuss the status of the Baldwin Park Superfund site, as well as drinking water quality issues in the San Gabriel Valley.

It was the perfect venue for the Toxies to appear. Created by PSR-LA and Californians for a Healthy and Green Economy (CHANGE), The Toxies features actors who personify toxic chemicals as part of a multi-media campaign to keep communities safe from toxic chemicals and pollutants. Since 2010, the campaign has produced several Toxies award shows and last year launched a series of webisodes, “The Toxies: Exposed.”

Decades of industrial activity and improper handling of chemicals has left the San Gabriel Valley highly contaminated with chemicals such as trichloroethylene (TCE), perchloroethylene (PCE), perchlorate, NDMA, 14 Dioxin, and nitrates. While special water treatment systems have been put into place, the remediation is ongoing.

Toxies TCE, Perchlorate, and PCE entertained and educated the audience by “crashing” the community meeting to talk about their toxic qualities and effects on health.

Both the event and the Toxies were featured in the April 17 Pasadena Weekly cover story, “Toxic Avengers: Actors educate the public about hazardous chemicals as The Toxies.” and EnviroReporter.com’s “Toxies Play a Starring Role in San Gabriel Valley.”

To learn more and view photographs from the event, visit The Toxies website.