The Poison Detectives

By: Canada's National Observer
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  • Summary

  • A firefighter’s wife and a corporate lawyer in different parts of the U.S. get pulled into solving separate mysteries. Something was making cows die and deer haemorrhage to death in West Virginia. That same something could also be giving firefighters cancer – all over the country. When the lawyer and the firefighter’s wife met, they found out they were working on the same mystery. The mystery was caused by a man-made chemical that environmental regulators should have known about but didn’t. A chemical that is said to be so toxic it is unclear if any contact with it is safe. The chemical was created by a corporate giant, and then another corporate giant began using it to provide the world with so-called revolutionary products. Products, it turns out, come with a very steep price. This is a fascinating story of two people unravelling a ball of yarn that would reveal the poisoning of the world.

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    Canada's National Observer
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Episodes
  • Trailer

    Trailer
    Feb 15 2024
    A firefighter’s wife and a corporate lawyer in different parts of the U.S. get pulled into solving separate mysteries. Something was making cows die and deer haemorrhage to death in West Virginia. That same something could also be giving firefighters cancer – all over the country. When the lawyer and the firefighter’s wife met, they found out they were working on the same mystery. The mystery was caused by a man-made chemical that environmental regulators should have known about but didn’t. A chemical that is said to be so toxic it is unclear if any contact with it is safe. The chemical was created by a corporate giant, and then another corporate giant began using it to provide the world with so-called revolutionary products. Products, it turns out, come with a very steep price. This is a fascinating story of two people unravelling a ball of yarn that would reveal the poisoning of the world.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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    5 mins
  • Secret Ingredient

    Secret Ingredient
    Feb 20 2024

    It begins with an unlikely detective. Diane Cotter wasn’t a researcher, a scientist, a journalist or a sleuth. But she became all of that after her firefighting husband got cancer. Then, dozens of his firefighting colleagues also got cancer. Diane suspected it was more than just occupational risk that caused these cancers.


    She set out to answer questions of how and why and found herself pulled into a rabbit hole where the world appeared upside down. She discovered that the protective suits firefighters wear are contaminated with chemicals – called PFAS – that can kill. She found a scientist to test the gear for the chemicals and the results are shocking. But it wasn’t enough to convince the union and the agency that approves the equipment.



    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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    39 mins
  • Who's Minding the Store?

    Who's Minding the Store?
    Feb 27 2024

    It begins with a memorial ceremony in Colorado for fallen firefighters. It used to be that firefighters died in fires or from inhaling toxic smoke. Today the majority die from cancer.


    We meet a firefighter from Newfoundland who attended the ceremony. We meet a union rep whose job is to reduce or eliminate the new risks, and a former union rep who points out how the top union brass failed firefighters by believing manufacturers that the turnout gear was safe.


    Meanwhile Diane Cotter is gathering turnout gear and raising money for a formal study. And 1300 km away a lawyer is grappling with questions about toxic chemicals in water that is killing a rancher’s cattle. Federal and provincial regulators aren’t interested in investigating the problem so the lawyer sues Dupont. He suspects chemicals from the plant are to blame and suing is the only way to get the internal documents to prove it.


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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    43 mins

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