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Environmentalists, mill manger discuss emissions, dioxin in fish by Abbey Cas‡s Rice RUMFORD -- Meadwestvaco paper mill has completed the fourth and final phase of its odor and emissions reduction program, mill Environmental Manager Scott Reed said last Thursday at a meeting of the River Valley Healthy Communities Coalition. Reed had met with the group annually for several years now to report on the mill's efforts to reduce pollution. Some who attended the meeting questioned the mill's environmental record, however, challenging Reed on issues ranging from dioxin levels found in fish near the mill to procedures for notfying residents when the mill exceeds its legal limits for emissions. Terry Martin and Anne Morin of Western Maine Citizens for Clean Air and Water came prepared with questions, studies and charts. Martin focused her comments on concerns over times when the mill exceeded limits for emissions. She cited an incident in December of 2003 when a steam stripper in the mill broke, releasing foul-smelling methyl mercaptan into the air. The December incident was a non-reportable incident, though the mill did notify the Maine Department of Environmental Protection and a small number of individuals in the area, including the Rumford fire chief and the mill's Community Advisory Panel. Although Reed asserted that the levels of methyl mercaptan released that day did not pose a threat to the health of the area citizens, Martin was unconvinced, stating that the chemical is a neurotoxin. She also questioned how the general public was to know when these exceedences occured. "Who warned the people that day?" asked Martin. "Who warned them?" "I worry about that," she said later. "You are an important business in our community, but you are not the only thing that drives our community," said Martin. "I think your business has to function on a way that's responsible." Morin, a retired medical school professor, questioned Reed on a Maine DEP study released in February of 2004 that noted the levels of dioxin found in fish in rivers near various paper mills in Maine. Morin said that the study indicated that levels of dioxin found in fish in the Androscoggin River were "way, way higher than the Kennebec and Penobscot rivers, and Rumford is taking the lead." Morin noted that other paper mills provided precise measurements of dioxin levels in their local fish, such as 2.9 or 3.4, parts per quadrillion, whereas Meadwestvaco only indicated "less than 10" parts per quadrillion. "I think you should give us your data," said Morin. Reed said that testing couldn't accurately determine dioxin levels lower than 10 parts per quadrillion, but Morin disputed that. Reed cautioned that the numbers weren't telling the full story of the mill's environmental situation, and also said that dioxin monitoring is "incredibly complicated science" that couldn't be explained by comparing numbers. Dioxin can be very damaging to the endocrine system. Prior to Martin and Morin's questioning, Reed shared with the gathered group progress that had been made at the mill to further reduce odor and emissions. The fourth and final phase of the mill's effort to reduce the odor and emissions was completed in May of this year. This last improvement redirects all of the collection systems from the power boilers to the cogen boilers, allowing for the power boilers to shut down in the summer, reducing emissions. All told, the mill has spent $24 million over the last 14 years to reduce odor and emissions. It is fully in compliance with all regulations, said Reed, and is above the state average in reduction of emissions. Also present and filming at the meeting was Eric Metzger, a filmmaker from New York who is working on a film about Maine's environment. Wednesday, June 30, 2004 front |
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