On 'Poisoned Ground': Director Jamila Ephron takes a deep dive into tragedy at Love Canal
Apr. 20—Jamila Ephron has worked on historical documentaries for most of her career.
When it came time to begin work on "Poisoned Ground: The Tragedy at Love Canal," there was something different about it.
"It's rare to talk to witnesses who are still alive," Ephron says. "It was really exciting to put people in the moment and see the events through the eyes of the women on the ground."
"Poisoned Ground" is part of the American Experience series. It will premiere at 8 p.m. Monday, April 22, on New Mexico PBS, channel 5.1. It will also be available to stream on the PBS app.
"Poisoned Ground: The Tragedy at Love Canal" tells the dramatic and inspiring story of the ordinary women who fought against overwhelming odds for the health and safety of their families.
Ephron began working on the project at the end of 2022 and it took a year to complete.
In the late 1970s, residents of Love Canal, a working-class neighborhood in Niagara Falls, New York, discovered that their homes, schools and playgrounds were built on top of a former chemical waste dump, which was now leaking toxic substances and wreaking havoc on their health.
Through interviews with many of the extraordinary housewives turned activists, the film shows how they effectively challenged those in power, forced America to reckon with the human cost of unregulated industry, and created a grassroots movement that galvanized the landmark Superfund Bill.
The story of Love Canal began in the late 19th century, when William T. Love, hoping to harness the power of Niagara Falls, began to dig, but later abandoned, an enormous canal. Decades later, in the late 1940s, local company Hooker Chemical decided that Love's Canal was the perfect site for a waste dump.
For nearly a decade, Hooker dumped roughly 22,000 tons of dangerous chemical waste into the defunct waterway, a common disposal practice and one largely unregulated by the local government.
During the post-war baby boom, young families seeking job opportunities in the chemical industry flocked to the area, creating a demand for land for new homes and schools. Hooker Chemical sold its waste dump land to the Board of Education for $1, with a clause exempting them from all future liability. Over the next few decades, a suburban community blossomed around the Love Canal site, with an elementary school and hundreds of homes built on top of the former canal.
By the late 1970s, the persistent smell of chemicals filled the air, and residents noticed sludge seeping into basements, corroded sump pumps and oily backyard puddles. Children playing in the schoolyard reported chemical burns and rocks that would catch fire when skipped on the water. Most alarming, residents noted troubling health maladies ranging from skin rashes and seizures to miscarriages and birth defects.
After air and soil tests revealed the presence of dozens of chemicals, panic spread as federal and state agencies scrambled for solutions. The newly-minted Environmental Protection Agency had never dealt with a catastrophe of this scale, and President Jimmy Carter declared a federal state of emergency — the first ever for a man-made disaster. Residents closest to the dumpsite were evacuated, but those farther removed were stuck, with renters unable to afford to leave and homeowners unable to sell their homes.
Those left behind were also suffering terrible health effects from the chemicals and banded together. Led by a 27-year-old homemaker named Lois Gibbs, the women advocated for government-funded relocation and medical testing. By the summer of 1978, Love Canal became a full-blown media sensation.
Ephron says the lessons of Love Canal are evergreen.
"Without regulations and without us asking questions, we are really vulnerable to these things happening today," she says. "It's a lesson that we can't learn enough. Out of sight doesn't mean out of mind. There's a cost to our need for convenience."
SEND ME YOUR TIPS: If you know of a movie filming in the state, or are curious about one, email film@ABQjournal.com. Follow me on Twitter @agomezART.
