- I'm Lea Woodford,
founder and CEO of SmartFem Magazine.
I'm on a quest to meet some of the most influential people
in today's world.
I'll be talking to women in companies that understand
the fierce brand loyalty
of the female consumer.
We'll get a behind-the-scenes look
at some of the risks, challenges, and successes
of today's most influential people.
(vibrant dance music)
Hi, this is Lea Woodford of SmartFem TV
and today, I'm talking to consumer advocate,
Erin Brockovich.
Erin, I so excited to talk to you
but before we get started,
you had a movie named after you,
with Julia Roberts,
and you changed the fate of an entire town.
Can you tell us about that?
- Well, first of all,
I didn't change the fate of the entire town, they did.
- Okay.
- The people did.
I came out and made them aware of what was happening.
I, kind of, was on the learning curve with them as well,
but I be out at agencies and provide them information,
and leave them,
and talk to them,
and get them together.
And when they became united,
they became an amazing movement in and of themselves.
I'm always uncomfortable taking any credit
that I changed their fate.
- What was it like having, well, first of all,
Julia Roberts won an Academy Award for portraying you,
in a movie that was named after you.
How does that make you feel?
- You know, it's really funny,
people ask me these questions
and, you know, that was Julia's performance.
That was her honor.
I'm proud of the work that she did.
I'm proud of the work that we did.
I'm proud of the people in Hinkley.
I never thought that it'd turn into a film,
a film that continues to live on.
It's things that we never really expected.
I feel very proud.
I'm very happy with the result.
It's a double-edged sword
because, you know, when we were doing work out there
with people being poisoned,
and people getting sick,
and people passing away,
and then to have a great movie,
it was an amazing platform to create further awareness.
- Explain what you do as a consumer advocate.
(laughter)
Loaded question.
- It is a loaded question.
I began my work in water.
Born and raised in Lawrence, Kansas.
My dad's the one that taught me the value of water.
He promised me, in my lifetime, it'd be a commodity.
I think he's gonna be right.
And I care about people's health and welfare.
I've always been interested in medicine and science.
When I started my work in Hinkley,
all of that was, kind of, around me,
and I wasn't really sure what was going.
Once we found out what was going on,
I became super focused on what had happened to the water
and to these people.
And my consumer advocacy over the years
has grown from being known as an environmentalist,
and working in the environment
and what happens to communities,
to all kinds of women's issues.
(stammers) Sometimes I'm like, myself.
All the emails that come in and all of the issues.
So, I'm an advocate for people,
I'm an advocate for the consumer,
and that touches a lot of things other than the environment.
From medicines, to water, to air,
to all kinds of consumer products
that people have issues with.
- What is it that's keeping you up at night right now?
- (sighs) A lot.
Frustration over the scores and the number.
It's hard to even have a conversation anymore
because it's so daunting.
I think that people just don't listen,
and we have such a water crisis in this country,
and I think people don't know it.
And all night long,
me, my partners, my close coworkers,
it's overwhelming.
It's everywhere.
Hinkley taught us that water pollution is a real issue.
In Flint, Michigan, it taught us about lead in the water
and agency cover-up.
And there's not one Hinkley
and there's not one Flint.
What people don't realize
is that it's in everyone's backyard.
- Where is Hinkley now?
- Gone.
Everything's gone.
After the film came out,
PG&E had been trying to clean up the plume
by sucking it all to a location and then aerating it out.
Well, they were releasing way above the state's level
of hexavalent chromium in the air.
When the stopped that, the plume broke through,
and so, over the years, PG&E's had to buy up
all the property out there.
The post office is gone,
the grocery store is gone,
everybody's gone
because the entire aquaphor system is heavily polluted
and it will be, by their estimation, for the next 200 years.
So, it's gone, it's a ghost town, nothing.
- That's terrifying.
- It is terrifying,
and I'm seeing that happen in a lot of places
around this country.
- What are your thoughts on corporate responsibility?
What can companies do
to ensure that another Hinkley doesn't happen.
- Don't hide it.
That's amazing to me.
That's the one thing that just gets my goat,
is the lack of transparency.
Listen, people, generally, are pretty understanding.
They cooperate with you,
but when you lie to 'em, when you deceive 'em,
that's when it becomes a different scenario.
We can talk about Flint, Michigan.
Are you kidding me?
You know, you know there's lead in the water?
You know children are drinking it?
And you make a clear decision to say nothing?
That's the problem,
and I do believe that there is room for
companies in corporate America and industry
to stand out and be a hero,
and be a good neighbor.
Tell the truth, if you have a problem, fix it.
It's not that hard.
- Are there any companies that you think
are doing a great job in being responsible
with the environment or other human health issues?
- There are, I mean, universities do wonderful things,
researchers are doing wonderful things.
I haven't, when it comes to the fracking issues
we're dealing on,
and corporate oil stepping up
and having discussions with communities,
or coming in and trying to fix things,
or do it the right way.
They'll always do it the wrong way to save a buck,
and that's one thing we gotta stop doing.
You can't put the almighty dollar
over the health and the welfare
of countless numbers of people.
That's something, that I'm not sure that
corporate America's looking at yet.
There are some, of the top of my head,
I couldn't give you one--
- What about Elon Musk? Elon Musk in Tesla,
and finding cleaner fuel resources,
what are your thoughts on him
and the way he's running his company,
and bringing solar more forefront?
- Any company that is gonna look at
new energy, and less ways to destroy the environment,
I'll always be a fan of,
but I'm in such a different position,
and it's really getting frustrating for me.
You asked earlier why I stay awake at night,
because I see what no one else does.
And so, I still see a lot of this bad behavior.
It's hard for me to pick out anybody
that I think is making that effort.
Listen, we're not at bat, or against, any company.
I'm about bridging here, okay, together.
We all have so much in common
and the division is driving me crazy.
We have good water in common.
We all need water, right?
We all appreciate our health, right?
There's so much we have in common
that we continue to be divisive on.
We're not asking them to go away.
I'm just asking companies to be forthwith, transparent.
When you have an issue, when you've created a mess,
clean it up and don't deceive the people.
It's really that simple.
- How do you think the current administration, (chuckles)
I know, I know this is a big question,
but it feels like there's a war on the EPA right now,
and I would like to know your thoughts.
- This is a very delicate conversation.
My father, I was born and raised in Kansas,
you know that, always said,
if you wanna get along with people,
don't talk about politics (laughs),
so I had to laugh,
but that's, kind of, something we can't get away from.
The war on EPA, as you've said,
didn't just happen in this administration,
and I'm not gonna lie,
they've had problems for a really long time.
I've been out there for 20 years,
and I've seen them absent over, and over, and over again.
That didn't just start because we have a new administration.
These problems have existed
within this agency for a long time.
Having said that, I don't like to beat up on the EPA.
There are incredible people within that agency,
that mean well, that want to do well,
but it's, kind of, stuck in this political problem
where they're understaffed,
they're underfunded,
and they're over burdened.
So, there gonna always, kind of, be on the attack.
I don't think we need to get rid of the EPA,
but somebody needs to,
whoever's above them,
come in and give them
the funding that they need
to go out and do their job.
People will say all the time,
EPA is here and it's gonna be okay,
and I tell people, see, Superman's not coming.
And if you're looking for the EPA to be that,
you're going to be disappointed.
Often times, their hands are tied.
I can tell you, we have, safely,
over 20,000 superfund sites now
that they can't even get to.
What does that say?
- Oh my goodness.
- So, I worry about the EPA.
I support the EPA.
Part of the problem is all this political division
that goes on within them,
because somebody doesn't want them to do their job,
and come out and see this mess,
and find out the truth.
And somewhere, I feel like, their hands get tied,
but that isn't what's the current administration's doing,
it's just been a long time coming.
And now the frustration is so great,
that, I think, we're seeing issues within the EPA
and I know people are frustrated
with Scott Pruitt's appointment.
I know they wanna blame the current administration,
but it's just not that easy.
It's just not that simple,
and it's really complicated.
I think it would be a tragedy if they get further funding.
I think it'd a tragedy to cut funding
to National Institute of Health.
Those things clearly concern me.
They're under enough assault
and you're just gonna put more pressure on them,
and that means less response, less clean up,
and more problems that the environment,
and the people, are probably going to have to endure.
- Erin, how can we, as consumers, get involved?
- You know, I'm so glad you asked that
because I've seen some amazing things
going on in the environment, in the communities.
I'm gonna give you an example of Hannibal, Missouri.
We all know of that town.
I would think we would because of Mark Twain,
and it would take me too long to talk about
the use of chloramines in our water supply,
which is what's causing most of, a great deal of lead issues
within our municipal systems across the country.
But in Hannibal, Missouri a group of women came to me,
and when something starts in a community,
they email Erin Brockovich.
I'm like (laughs) so,
but they had very high lead levels in their water.
Some of the testing was higher than Flint.
So, we went into town and we educated,
and made them aware,
and informed them of what was causing this.
And so, the women, mostly, were going, oh no.
I don't want this.
What could we do?
We said, well, a lot of things happen
right at your own local council.
So, they decided to run for council,
and one of them won,
and they made it their job to educated the entire town
on the use of chloramines,
which is what was causing their lead issues,
why they shouldn't have it,
they got a referendum on the ballet,
they put it to vote.
58% of the town, who was now informed, aware, and active
made a vote.
No more chloramines used in our water
and the municipal system now must comply with that
because it's law.
That's the power of the people.
That's the power of awareness.
That's the power of getting involved.
Imagine if every town, every council,
in every little community,
in every single state across America did that.
- That's amazing.
- Isn't it?
I sometimes think I'm weird 'cause I'm like, yeah go!
(laughter)
- No, I think it's awesome.
- But it's the people,
and going back to what you said in the beginning,
how I feel about it is
nothing.
This isn't about Erin Brockovich.
This is about every one of us,
and had the people in Hinkley not made that movement,
it wouldn't have turned out the way it did,
anymore than in Hannibal,
and so, I think, for me is getting people unstuck
and believing you can actually learn something
and be informed.
It's okay, 'cause a lot of times,
people are like, I already know.
Okay, let that guard down
and let's have a look at maybe something else
that was going on that you don't know.
To get them talking,
and to get them united,
and to get them on the same page.
We all think we're so different
but you know what?
In my line of work, at the end of the day,
when it comes to water and our environment,
and the future health and welfare of yourself,
your family, your children, and your neighbor,
we all have a lot in common.
I think that moment is really starting to surface again,
where we're gonna do that.
For me, that's what's exciting and that's what it's about.
So, that's why when someone will ask me something
about the film Erin Brockovich, (squirms)
'cause it was, it's the people.
It was all of us.
- But you showed that one person
can make a difference,
(laughter)
and that your voice could be heard,
and I find, especially today,
with a country as divided as it is right now,
I think that's really encouraging and really important.
One person can make a difference,
and you bring a whole community together,
you can make a really big difference.
So, tell me, Erin,
about some of the things that you saw in Hinkley
when you were out there.
- When I got out to Hinkley,
I can remember so clearly,
almost from day one,
and people being out there,
experts or other people looking into the situation,
looking at green water, first of all.
Hexavalent chromium in water,
around one ppm,
will start to take on a green, specifically, green tone,
and I saw this green water coming out,
and two headed frogs in people's yards!
I mean, I'd been out there standing, and observing,
and walking around, and going, this is bizarre.
I mean, animals are sick.
Animals are covered in tumors.
Trees are dying.
People are sick.
I'm looking at green water and two headed frogs,
and I actually have experts, or people,
or people from the company saying,
that's the standard around here.
And I, (laughs)
I'm like, I'm not sure about that,
but I was always told, well, are you a doctor?
Are you a scientist?
Are you an attorney?
And I'm like, okay, so if I'm not?
Well, you just don't understand this then.
I'm like, I don't have to be any of that
to be a human being and to tell you what I see,
right here, right now, is not right.
A lot of times, in communities, people will say things
but there comes that little push-back.
Well, are you this?
Are you that?
Do you know your science?
Well, we don't have a peer reviewed study.
I had some scientist say to me on the phone,
or somebody from the other side in an interview,
well, Erin, when you have a peer reviewed study,
then we'll listen to you,
and I'm like, you bring up a really valid point,
'cause I'm never afraid to tell you
I don't have all the data.
I have enough to tell ya that I think
we need to take a further look into this situation,
but here's something you didn't think of.
You don't have the data, either.
That's what's scary.
That information exists within the communities,
within our observation,
within our agencies,
within our documents,
and learning, and listening, and watching,
actually, what the people are going through,
because for me, in Hinkley, it made no sense.
People just don't go around for shits and giggles,
excuse me, making up outlandish things
about two headed frogs,
green water, and that their health is deteriorating,
or that the tumors that they have,
or they've been diagnosed with a disease,
and then start making the connection
that we've got a polluted water supply,
and environment,
that, in fact, could be affecting us.
We just don't do that.
So, often times, they see things,
they know things in communities
and they don't say anything
'cause the other side's pushing back,
you don't know what you're talking about.
You're not this and you're not that,
and therefore, you just accept the green water
and the two headed frogs.
Not on my watch, nope.
(laughs)
Time out! Foul!
I'm not buying it.
- Erin, we've run out of time,
and I could talk to you forever,
but can you tell our viewing audience about your foundation,
and where you're at with that,
and how they can get involved?
- We've started the Erin Brockovich Foundation
and we're just about ready to, kind of, come out,
so stay tuned.
We have a website up, Erin Brockovich Foundation,
but what we want that foundation to be and do is,
we learn so much from the communities,
is we would like to go in
and be able to provide them
the tools where they can fundraise themselves,
put together their own committees,
own ways to run for city council,
so that they can begin, right in their own backyard,
the process.
We think everything comes from the top, down.
It's born from here and it's gonna go up,
and often times, they don't have the tool,
and funding, to get started.
So, that's what we want to foundation to be able to do.
Also, to be able to begin to look at,
when we get in these communities,
where we can effectively change policy,
and begin to work towards that.
We're there!
Erin Brockovich Foundation.
We're just about ready to fire it up,
so stay tuned,
but we're not ready just yet.
- Not yet, but I'm gonna call you when it's up and running.
- You can call me when it's up and running,
but really, we want the foundation to be
assistance and tools provided to the community.
Like I said, every one of us is an Erin Brockovich,
and what makes me so sad is almost every town
has become a Hinkley, or a Flint.
I never expected that,
but I will tell you, from the bottom of heart,
I will never lose my hope or faith
in the people, ever.
- Erin, thank you so much for coming today.
- It's a pleasure to be here.
- This was really amazing.
- Thank you.
- This has been Lea Woodford of SmartFem TV,
thanks for watching.
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