Carolina Solite

["Sam McClintock" <scmcclintock@ipass.net>]

  I think you'll find me one the harshest critics of the current level of
  information environmental groups use on dioxin issues, e.g. many groups
  tend to ignore the regulatory officials and administrators that do
  serious work on these issues and a lot of information is overblown (I
  could spend twenty pages for the critique of Greenpeace's  "Dioxin
  Factories Exposed" which is hair's width from out and out libel).  I'll
  be curious to see the reactions to the USEPA's Dioxin source and
  contribution list due out in a week or two . . .
  
  That being said, I do support many initiatives within the various
  organizations and I thought many could stand some brief but good news. 
  Carolina Solite, an aggregate expansion kiln and BIF haz waste
  incinerator, was order to shut down all operations  July 22.  This shut
  down was one that came about because of the survey of land enclosed in
  the original permit.  It appears that the facility had claimed twice as
  much distance between the stacks and the property line than there
  actually was, which for those of you who don't know, throws off the air
  dispersion modeling results considerably, which predicts the exposure
  to the local populace to toxics.  Why wasn't this caught earlier? 
  Though some enforcement officials will check the location of sources,
  many (most?) will not check the accuracy of the land survey for the
  actual property lines, which was the fault here.  Most activists and
  consultants won't check either.  Given this mistake, something new to
  add to the checklist of permit reviews by both regulators, activists,
  and consultants.
  
  Bad news: Solite was given 60 days to appeal the decision, and current
  operations are below their permitted level (so a permit reapplication
  may solve the whole thing for Solite).  Though Solite has cleaned up
  their act considerably with regards to operations over the last five
  years, they have not paid anywhere near the fines a more stringent and
  dedicated enforcement office would have required for their level of
  violations.  I had personally written an affidavit against this
  facility some years ago (at that time, they had no business burning
  natural gas let alone haz waste), and was dismayed at the lack of
  action the state brought to bear on a facility with proven violations. 
  
  
  For Joann Almond, a local resident and hero who has been fighting this
  plant for years, it is a brief victory and she will continue to need
  any help any group can give her.
  
  Sam McClintock
  scmcclintock@ipass.net