Martha
Stewart, CEO
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia
20 West
43rd Street,
New
York, New York 10036
Dear Ms.
Stewart,
We are
writing to update you to the escalating environmental concerns with PVC
(polyvinyl chloride or vinyl) plastic, to alert you to upcoming activities that
will spotlight this issue and to once again request a meeting to discuss how
your products and product packaging can be PVC-free.
We first
alerted you in March to the serious human health and environmental impacts caused
by the plastic PVC and urged you to remove it from your Everyday product line and packaging. Later in April, we made a similar
request that was deferred from your office to Kmart for consideration. We are
now writing as a larger coalition to ask that you reconsider that
position. We are still prepared to
begin a productive dialogue with you.
Recently, some damaging new information has come to light with regard to PVC production. Dow Chemical, a major manufacturer of PVC, is being investigated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and a grand jury in Louisiana for illegally dumping the main ingredient for PVC, vinyl chloride for decades near its plant in Plaquemine. Vinyl chloride is a known human carcinogen.
This information comes only
months after the Myrtle Grove community near Plaquemine, Louisiana filed suit
against Dow for polluting their drinking water supply. The Louisiana Dept. of Health and
Hospitals knew for five years that the drinking water was contaminated before
it informed the predominantly low-income African-American community.
Environmental
injustices such as this one and the release of the HBO film, Blue Vinyl, has inspired Americans to join
in our efforts. As you know from
the over 12,000 emails and faxes that have been sent to your headquarters since
May, we have the support of an ever-expanding group of consumers. We continue to field a number of
requests for postcards addressed to you from shoppers who are saying ÒnoÓ to vinyl. To date, close to 10,000 postcards have
already been distributed. We
expect that our already strong support will rise over the coming weeks since we
are gearing up to take our message about your use of vinyl to a much larger
audience.
Throughout
the month of July, a number of public activities are planned across the country
to spread the word about the environmental concerns associated with vinyl
products in the Martha Stewart Everyday line.
We will follow up these activities in the coming months with more
outreach to consumers.
As
stated in our previous letters (enclosed), our purpose is to discuss a plan for
your company to join champions such as Nike and Ikea to become PVC-free. A meeting could begin a good faith
discussion on this strategy that could result in our willingness to cancel our
planned activities while carrying on productive dialogue.
Activities
begin on July 11 so we would need a response no later than the 9th
of July. After that time, we will assume that your position has not changed.
Enclosed
are examples of decisions of companies that have eliminated PVC or are in the
process of doing so. We hope you
find it thought provoking.
Sincerely,
X