Op Ed:
Demand Management
Can Draw Dioxin Danger
To Brooks Burner NOW

Thirty-to-One Increase Under New Permit Plainly Provocative

A public hearing is set for 6:00 PM Wednesday (2/7) at the Salem Public Library View on community calendar

(SALEM) - The Marion County trash burner must win renewal of its operating license from ODEQ to permit continuance of its Brooks operations. That new permit reduces the limits on particulate matter and acid gases, and increase the limits on nitrogen oxides and carbon monoxide.

BUT the new permit --NOT YET APPROVED-- multiplies the limits for DIOXIN by THIRTY TIMES for the most dangerous of emissions: From “one nanogram per cubic meter of air released” to a truly awesome “30 nanograms per cubic meter of air released.”

DIOXIN IS A KNOWN CARCINOGEN. With mercury, it is perhaps the most deadly-dangerous emission encountered especially during incineration of INFECTIOUS medical waste. WHY such a HUGE JUMP For PROVEN POISON??

The county has set a cap of 1,500 tons of medical waste per year for the Brooks operation: AFTER STRUGGLE over past years.

Only the 2006 total --732 tons-- is cited in information so far available on actual incineration and emission measurements.

What is missing --raising immediate question WHY? -- is the several-years/prior record which could establish a rising demand for convenient disposal at Brooks of imported medical waste; OR SHOW NO SUCH RISING DEMAND.

IF demand IS RISING, what is encouraging that action --and what does County administration NOW intend to DO? SEEK MORE, made possible by the 30-times multiplier-action sought?

“Demand management” is a principle often cited in such cases, stating in effect that “if the opportunity for lower-cost disposal of sensitive waste is made available, the demand for that service will rise and continue to rise” to meet the new capacity available. (Paraphrased; documentation available.)

I.E. if “no market exists” --then BUILD ONE by making easy access and cheap disposal available and seeking out those needing the service, now in heavy demand as incinerators vanish and wastes multiply.

The Brooks burner is owned by Covanta, operated under contract to Marion County, and will revert to Covanta in 2014 or earlier under some circumstances, With abolition of med-waste incineration in surrounding states, the pressure rises for med-waste disposal at those few still operational --and lucrative contracts may well result.

Jeff Bickford, Marion County environmental engineer, is on record as advocating county efforts to promote and procure import contracts for incineration of such “damnable stuff” at Brooks.

That was “the heart of the matter” in damaging dialog revealing a County controversy last year --ending in a three-citizen appeal to Governor Kulongoski, rapid and prolonged feet-shuffling, and half-hearted promises not to pursue the provision for huge increases in the flow of dangerous medical wastes into our County.

Bickford is responsible for the renewal application now under examination by the Oregon Dept. of Environmental Quality.

We’ve asked Bickford directly whether the 30-times/multiplier was included in this renewal request by his action. No response has been received. If and when one arrives, we will share it rapidly with full comment, critical or otherwise as deserved.

If, indeed, this massive multiplier (30 times!) came from him, we have sought any possible justification for such a flaring fling-open of this whole dangerous-import program --once again!!; surely large enough and encouraging enough to bring about rising demand from healthcare facilities desperately seeking some way and some place to dispose of “this damnable stuff”.

(I repeat that phrase because one hears it constantly in any discussion with experts --and with good reason.)

In other large-city situations, where such facility for disposal of medical waste known to generate dioxins has been encouraged by uncapping new capacity, the demand has shown a constant rising trend.

The inevitable growth is driven by rapidly expanding healthcare situations inevitably creating huge new problems for disposal by safe means --and thus making it economically feasible to export such dangerous stuff to wherever regulation permits it to be incinerated.

Another problem obscured by export is that the also very-dangerous resulting incineration ash must be stored, at high costs, for many years on end.

It is a fact that Marion County already owns all such ash-created, at rising costs for containment. WHY seek much more of THAT “damnable stuff” left over, too?

Salem residents opposed to the new multiplication of possible incineration for dangerous waste here seek the full statement of prior-year demands for the years since Brooks has been operated.

Without such steadily and strongly rising demand, the County administration is, again, is simply seeking dollar-payments for processing into Marion County air absolutely proven poisons --in thirty-times larger emissions than now capped by regulation.

Is that good public policy? Many citizens are known to be in opposition within the County AND the State, also a victim here.

The very least those seeking this new approval should do is to explain what one well-informed resident --Susann Kaltwasser, Citizens Forum founder and supervisor-- has termed “opening the Pandora’s box for them to be able to import more medical waste or other kinds of waste that might have a greater amount of toxins produced from burning it.”

Residents of Salem fought a tough battle over past years to make sure particularly sensitive and sensible limits were set for incineration of medical waste at Brooks. The County found it necessary to set the now-minimum/regarded limitation of 1500 tons --never yet reached, it appears.

These same residents will seek further and more complete information on this astounding jump in the limit set for such dangerous dioxins, at a public hearing set for 6:00 PM Wednesday (2/7) at the Salem Public Library.

Obviously many now see this THIRTY-TIMES multiplier as the opening shot to allow heavy and increasing --and known-dangerous--med/waste importation from wherever needs to get rid of it.

Every Marion County resident has personal --and very essential-- reason to demand full information and continuing open and rigorous examination of all issues involved in renewing this permit for the Brooks operation.

Eventual fate of the Brooks operation is surely in some doubt, with owner Covanta bankrupt, other states abolishing their operations, and the heavy-cost and threatening-presence of the ultimate product --dangerous ash-- a continuing costly problem in itself.