environmental working group 2008 annual report

8/14/2019 Environmental Working Group 2008 Annual Report

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EnvironmentalWorking Group

annualreport2008


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We have only so much fresh water.Just water hold the lead, hold

the arsenic, hold the industrial andagricultural chemicals, radioactive

isotopes, pharmaceuticals and other

impurities is even harder to come

by. EWG has been working hard to

conserve and protect our water supply.

Our August 2008 report, The

Unintended Environmental Impacts

of the Renewable Fuels Standard:

Time to Change Direction in Biofuel

Policy, transformed the debate on

corn ethanol by showing that the 2007

energy bills biofuels mandate would

cost billions of gallons of water and

worsen the Gulf of Mexicos Dead Zone.

Our October 2008 report Bottled

Water Quality Investigation: 10

Major Brands, 38 Pollutants wasfeatured in more than two dozen

newspapers, including a New York

Times editorial and broadcasts

reaching 12 million people.

Our 7-year campaign for a nationwide

cleanup of perchlorate, a rocket fuel

component and thyroid toxin, neared the

tipping point. The Bush administrations

refusal to regulate perchlorate as a

water pollutant outraged and mobilizedenvironmentalists, consumers, health

professionals and scientists including

two EPA science advisory panels, who

issued rare public letters of protest.

Our May 2008 analysis, Without

a Paddle: U.S. Law Powerless to

Protect Colorado River From Mining,

generated an outpouring of news and

commentary by unearthing a surge

in mining claims for uranium, gold

and other metals along the banks of

the Colorado River, the drinking water

source for 25 million Americans.

After we documented dozens of

mining claims staked within five

miles of the Grand Canyon, the

House Natural Resources Committeeinvoked emergency authority to ban

new mining claims on more than 1

million acres around the Canyon.

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We have focused on ridding food

of chemicals that present subtlebut serious threats to publichealth. EWG research helpedgalvanize a nationwide movementto ban bisphenol A (BPA), a plasticcomponent and synthetic estrogen, inbaby bottles and foodpackaging.

Our expos of conflicts of interest withinthe National Toxicology Program (NTP)strengthened the hand of scientists

and led to a groundbreaking September2008 NTP declaration that BPA maybe toxic at current human exposures.Canada banned BPA in baby bottles,U.S. retailers pulled BPA-based babybottles from their shelves, majorsports bottle manufacturers switchedto BPA-free bottles, and federal, stateand local lawmakers drafted measuresto restrict the chemicals use.

The federal Food and DrugAdministration (FDA) still hasntregulated BPA as a food contaminant,but that may change. In October 2008,based on testimony from EWG andother scientists and health advocates,FDAs outside Science Board issued ascathing critique of the agencys stance,prompting FDA scientists to launch a newBPA review. The new assessment is using,among other evidence, EWGs pioneeringstudy of BPA adulteration of canned food.

On December 12, EWG made public

internal government documentsdescribing a secret FDA plan to waterdown federal warnings that tunacontains mercury, a potent neurotoxinespecially dangerous to pregnantwomen and young children. Sen.Patrick Leahy, D-VT, denounced FDAfor disregarding sound science. TheFDA appears to have shelved the plan.

EWGs June 2008 analysis,Americas

Food-to-Fuel Gamble, correctly forecastthat bad weather and supply shortagesdue to diversion of corn to ethanoldistilleries would inflate food and feedprices. Two weeks after the reportappeared, Iowa flooded, and grainprices spiked causing national debateover biofuels to intensify and EWG toemerge as a thoughtful and effectiveauthority on U.S. biofuels policy.

Americans have a right to pure, safe food.

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Most of us think we know a thing or two about pollution.Weve fought long and hard to stop

industries from spewing filth into the air,groundwater and soil. Yet biomonitoringtests by EWG and other scientific bodiesthat are mapping the human toxome haveidentified hundreds of industrial chemicals,pesticides and other pollutants in thebodies of most Americans. The truth is,our stuff is permeated with powerful toxinsand endocrine-disrupting chemicals.

Carpeting, foam furniture padding,

upholstery, baby seats, pizza boxes,butter cartons, cosmetics, fragrances,baby shampoo and lotion, bath foam,tooth paste, sunscreens, pots and pans,cleaners the list of household goods andpersonal care products impregnated withdangerous chemicals goes on and on.

Until the federal government regulatescosmetics ingredients, countlessconsumers rely on Skin Deep, EWGscosmetics safety database, withevaluations of more than 50,000 products,2,300 brands and 1,500 companies. In 2008,Skin Deep generated 4.8 million uniquevisits and more than 83 million page views.

EWG biomonitoring tests released inSeptember 2008 found 11 differenttoxic fire retardant chemicals, calledpolybrominated diphenyl ethers

(PBDEs), in the blood of 20 toddlers

and preschoolers. The childrens

PBDE levels were 3 times higher thantheir mothers. EWGs study generatedextensive media coverage of toxicfire retardants, found in consumerelectronics and older foam products.

EWG made public governmentdocuments showing that the chemicalindustry successfully pressured theEnvironmental Protection Agency toremove the chair of an expert advisory

panel setting safe exposure levelsfor DECA, a neurotoxic PBDE bannedin Europe and four U.S. states.

An EWG biomonitoring report publishedin September 2008 found that 20 teenagegirls tested positive for 16 chemicalscommon in personal care products. Theseincluded phthalates, triclosan, parabens,and musks, all linked to health problemsincluding cancer and hormone disruption.

In August 2008, EWG advocacy helpedmove the California state legislature toban fast-food sandwich wrappers, french-fry bags, pizza boxes and other foodpackaging containing two Teflon-relatedchemicals perfluorooctane sulfonate(PFOS) and perfluoroctanic acid (PFOA)

linked to cancer and developmentalproblems in children. Governor Arnold

Schwarzenegger vetoed the bill.

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thank you$250,000 or moreAnonymous

Beldon Fund

Breast Cancer Fund

Richard & RhodaGoldman Fund

William & Flora HewlettFoundation

Joyce Foundation

McKnight Foundation

David & Lucile PackardFoundation

Popplestone Foundation

$100,000 -$249,999

Anonymous

Jacob & Hilda BlausteinFoundation

California WellnessFoundation

California Endowment

Campbell Foundation

Park Foundation

Alice & Fred Stanback

$25,000 - $99,999Heroes

Agua Fund

Anonymous

Aria Foundation

Jan & Larry Birenbaum

HKH Foundation

John Merck Fund

Johnson FamilyFoundation

Naomi Flack*Layton Family Fund

Miffl in Memor ial Fund

Oak Foundation*

PEW EnvironmentGroup

PhilanthropicCollaborative

Rachels Network

Starry Night Fund

Town Creek Foundation

Turner Foundation

Dr. Lucy Waletzky

Wallace Genetic Fund

$10,000 - $24,999Watchdogs

Anonymous

Bellwether Foundation

Dorothy & Russell Budd

Dianne Christensen

Environment Now

Fledgling Fund

Organic Valley

Stonyfield Farm

Barbara StreisandFoundation

Stacy & Peter Sullivan

The Totic Family

Kelsey Wirth & Dr. SamMyers*

$5,000 - $9,999Muckrakers

Anonymous

Amy Domini & MichaelThornton

King Tree Service

Klean Kanteen

Fa & Roger Liddell

Sandy Lerner

Liza & Drummond Pike*

Nora Pouillon & StevenDamato

Wendy & LarryRockefeller*

$1,000 - $4,999Investigators

Anonymous

Annette Bacola &Robert Cummings

Lisa Baron*

Elizabeth Barratt-Brown & BosworthDewey

James Bredt

Bufka Foundation

Roger Burt

Kim Butler

Rebecca Carter &Demetris Giannoulias

Morrow Cater

Victor Cheng*

Janna & Bob Crist

Vanessa Crosbie

Andrew Crowley*

Crummy Brothers

Thomas Damato

Davis Food Co-op

Laura DeBonis & ScottNathan

Deitzler Foundation

Patricia Dinner

Linda & John Donovan

Earthbound Farm

Ecoconscious

Cindy Emminger

Enviro-Tote

Linda & Peter Formuzis

The Henry J. Fox Trust

Fred Gellert FamilyFoundation

Randy Goldstein

Greatmats.com

Pamela & Tom Green

Dr. Sally Goodwin &Kurt Hoelting

Karen Guberman &Craig Kennedy

The Guide FoundationJessica & Erik Haugsjaa

Heimbinder FamilyFoundation

Mary & EricHetherington*

Jenny Hoffman & DanielLarson

Laura & Kurt Hudson

Heidi & Arthur Huguley

hundreth monkeyfoundation

Kellogg Collaborative

Kingfisher Foundation

Jerry & Terri KohlFamily Foundation

Janine Lariviere & RogerGural

Merloyd LudingtonLawrence & John Myers

Benjamin Lynch*

Maxon FamilyFoundation

Linda Mediate*

Melissa & StephenMurdoch

Ashley & Scott Pease*

Puget Consumers Co-op

Gail Raywid

Restaurant Nora

The RobidouxFoundation

John Rodgers

Fannie & GilbertRosenthal

Ritchie Scaife

Schregardus FamilyFoundation

Milton ShoongFoundation

Bonnie Nelson Schwartz& Arlie Schardt

Judith Shampaine

Susan Shane

Laura & CliffordSimpkins

Harriet Stein*

Connie & Kevin Sutton

Swig Foundation

Elizabeth & David Thede

Stephanie & EricTilenius

Thomas Tudor

Noelle Tutunjian &Michael Ference

Brenda Watson

Alicia & Mark Wittink

Madge Woods*

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working for you

Bill AllayaudDirector of

Government Affairs,California

Dave AndrewsSenior Scientist

Claudia ArangoAdministrativeAssistant

Kathryn BozarthBookkeeper

Leeann BrownPress Associate

Nils BruzeliusExecutive Editor

Chris CampbellVice Presidentfor InformationTechnology

Donald CarrPress Secretary

Dean ClarkWeb Developer

Ken CookPresident and Co-Founder

Craig CoxMidwest VicePresident

Alex FormuzisDirector ofCommunications

Lisa Frack, MPPOnline Organizer

Sean GraySenior AnalystKari Hamerschlag,MASenior Analyst

Dusty Horwitt, Esq.Senior Counsel

Andrew HugAnalyst

Jane Houlihan, PE,MSCESenior Vice Presidentfor Research

Colleen HutchingsEmail MarketingManager

Anila Jacob, MD,MPHSenior Scientist

Nneka Leiba, MPHEnvironmentalHealth Researcher

Sonya Lunder, MPHSenior Analyst

Jocelyn LyleDirector ofDevelopment

Scott MallanVice President forFinance & ChiefOperating Offi cer

Bobbie Manning

EnvironmentalHealth Outreach

Coordinator

Olga Naidenko, PhDSenior Scientist

Dee PearlsteinAdministrativeAssistant

Michelle PerezSenior AnalystJason Rano, MPPLegislative Analyst

Amy RosenthalDevelopmentAssociate

Elaine ShannonEditor-in-chief

Rene Sharp, MSDirector, CaliforniaOffi ce

Rebecca Sutton, PhDSenior Scientist

Katherine WatierDirector of OnlineMarketing

Heather White, Esq.Chief of Staff &General Counsel

Richard WilesSenior Vice Presidentfor Policy &Communications

Tolga YalnizWeb Designer

EWG BoardMembers

David BakerCommunity AgainstPollution

The Rev. Canon SallyBinghamThe RegenerationProject

Sandy BuchananSECRETARYOhio Citizen Action

Ken CookEWG President & Co-Founder

Steven DamatoTREASURERChanging Seas

Pete Myers, PhDEnvironmentalHealth Sciences

Drummond Pike

CHAIRTides Foundation

Cari Rudd

Perry Wallace, JDAmerican University

Meredith WingateCenter for ResourceSolutions

Alicia Wittink

EWG Action FundBoard Members

Jeff Blattner, JDLegal PolicySolutions LLC

Carlton CarlThe Texas Observer

Mark Childress, JDFoley Hoag LLP

Steven DamatoTREASURER

Changing SeasRobyn OBrienAllergyKids

Sally Paxton, JDThe Paxton Group

Cari RuddCHAIR

Ricki Seidman, JDTSD, Inc.

Richard WilesSECRETARYEWG Co-Founder

Carrie Wofford, JDWilmerHale

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1M

2M

3M

4M

5M

6M

7M

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

expenses$4,827,119

Toxics - 53.3%

Natural Resources - 9.5%

Sustainable Agriculture - 22.8%

Administrative - 6.6%

Fundraising - 7.9%

revenue$6,570,003

Grant Revenue -Foundations - 70.2%

Consulting - 3.3%

Test Kit Sales - .3%

Interest Income - .9%

In-Kind Donations - 5.1%

Individuals - 19.2%

Corporations -1%

EWG has received the top rating of 4

stars from CharityNavigator.org for

five consecutive years: 2003-2007.

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Watching a toddler take command ofhis world is magical. And humbling. AsI observe my 17-month-old scrambleand squeal through his daily agenda, Irealize Cal is teaching me a lot morethan Im ever going to teach him.

Yank pots and pans out of kitchencabinet with a clamor: check!

Grab dirt out of houseplant andsprinkle over rug: on it!

Chase a panicked Bennie the Catscampering down the hallway: done!

In tough times, our kids remind usto take stock, keep what matters andforget about the rest. They dont needa lot of complicated or expensive stuff.Is there really anything better thanleaping into a pile of leaves or watchinga bug or making a cave out of a big box?

They expect us to take care of thebasics. Clean air and water, healthyfood, safe homes, schools andplaygrounds and an unclouded future.

Our responsibilities are straightforward but hardly simple. Only by workingvery hard and working togethercan we hope to rid our water and

food of pesticides, pollutants and

industrial chemicals, find householdgoods free of invisible syntheticsand conserve our countryside, riversand streams and energy sources.

Im proud to say that with your support,despite political adversity and leaneconomic times, EnvironmentalWorking Group has made great stridestowards those goals in 2008. In 2009and the years to come, were compilingeven more impressive accomplishments.

When youre looking for a good valueand some serious game-changingstrategies, I hope youll think aboutEWG. Were staying lean, playingsmart and aim to do nothing less thanamazing work in the public interest.

Best,

Ken CookPresident and Co-FounderEnvironmental Working Group

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environmental working group 2008 annual report

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