Peter Montague

Peter Montague argues in the following viewpoint that escaping landfill gases and liquids contaminate areas around most landfill sites. According to Montague, this contamination causes abnormally high incidences of cancer in people living near landfills. Other health risks associated with landfills affect children, Montague contends, including high rates of birth defects, low birth weights, and small size. Peter Montague is editor of Rachel’s Environment and Health News, a publication of the Environmental Research Foundation.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to the 1990 study cited by Montague, what percentage of California’s landfills emitted one or more toxic solvents?
2. What cancers are the most commonly reported among populations living near landfills, according to the author?
3. In the author’s opinion, why are solid waste landfills just as dangerous to human health as hazardous waste...