(ATLANTA) The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), a public health agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, will hold a community meeting on November 16, 1999, in Corinna, Maine.

At the meeting, ATSDR will discuss its plans for a public health assessment of the Eastland Woolen Mill Superfund Site and will listen to concerns that residents of Corinna may have about the site's impact on their health. In addition, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will give residents an update on clean-up activities at the Eastland Woolen Mill Superfund Site.

The community meeting will be held on Tuesday, November 16, 1999, at 7:00 p.m. at the American Legion Hall on Maple Street in Corinna.

The meeting will be preceded by a public availability session which will take place from 2:00 p.m. until 4:00 p.m at the American Legion Hall. Residents are invited to stop by at any time during the sessionto talk to ATSDR staff one-on-one about their health concerns related to the Eastland Woolen Mill Superfund Site.

Information gathered from ATSDR's meetings with the Corinna community will be used in developing a public health assessment for the site. An ATSDR public health assessment reviews information about hazardous substances at a site and evaluates whether exposure to those substances in the past, present, or future could harm people in the area. It identifies health studies or other public health actions - such as community environmental health education - that might be needed and advises federal, state, and local agencies on actions to prevent or reduce people's exposure to hazardous substances.

In preparing public health assessments, ATSDR looks at three primary sources of information: (1) environmental data, which detail the levels of contaminants at a site and indicate how people could be exposed to them; (2) health data, including available information on the rates of illness, disease, or death in the community; and (3) community concerns, such as reports from the public about how the site affects their health or quality of life.

For more information about ATSDR's public health assessments or upcoming meetings in Corinna, please contact PerStephanie Thompson, toll free, at 1-888-42-ATSDR (1-888-422-8737).