PVC incineration disinformation

[ttweed@wildrockies.org (Tony Tweedale)]

_Amer. Scientist_ 86:354 (Jul-Aug 98) is an artiicle by Bruce Piasecki,
Dave Rainey & Ken Fletcher promoting inceineration of plastics.  According
to the author affiliation statement, the 1st 2 authors are affiliated with
Rensselear Polytechnic Inst. and a consultantancy named the AHC Group
(Fletcher is manag. editor of _Corporate Env Strategy_ magazine, which is
associated w/ RPI.

The article is a real piece of apologists crap.  On the chlorine question,
the only data they use is c. 20 year old studies from a govt. agency with
the mission to promote incineration (N.Y. ERDA (Econ? Energy? (I forget)
Research Development Agency and the US Office Techn. Assmnt.  They use
these studies to make the tired and false claim that levels of PVC input do
not affect dioxin output.  I have seen the ERDA study, and it is
*extremely* skimpy.  They do not cite their data.  In any case,Thomas &
Spiro's meta study on this question ['An Estimation of Dioxin Emissions in
the U.S.', _Tox. & Env Chem_ 30:1-37 ('95)] settled the question
definitively.  someone with a copy of Piasecki et al's piece of
disinformation should write _Amer. Sci._, a peer reviewed general science
magazine aimed at the academic scientific community, a sharp ltr-to-the-ed.

Tony Tweedale

Causality is a concept not subject to empirical demonstration. -David Hume
(1711-'76)