http://heraldnet.com/article/20080313/NEWS01/737861644
Mill's fine to reduce pollution
By David Chircop
Herald Writer
EVERETT -- Tissue giant Kimberly-Clark Corp. has agreed to spend
$125,000 on projects in Everett to reduce wood smoke and pollution
from diesel- burning vehicles as part of a penalty for allowing a
fire to smolder for half a year.
The pile of shredded wood waste near the Riverside neighborhood
burned six months in 2007, from July to December.
The state took action after receiving complaints from residents about
smoke and odor from the burning pile.
The settlement money will be used to help Everett residents buy
cleaner-burning wood stoves and to retrofit city-owned diesel trucks
with emissions-reducing equipment. The company also agreed to pay the
state environmental agency $40,000.
It's the second largest air quality settlement with a pulp mill in
state history. It was reduced from an initial fine of $235,000.
"This is a good solution," said Larry Altose, a spokesman for the
Department of Ecology. "It provides long-term benefits and it goes
after the types of emissions that came off the pile fire."
Altose said a similar deal was struck in the mid-'90s after Fort
James pulp mill in Camas agreed to buy an air pollution warning
system for the community after a series of air quality violations.
That $196,400 is the most a mill in Washington has been fined by the
state for violating air quality rules.
The Puget Sound Clean Air Agency plans to use $20,000 to expand its
wood-stove replacement program to Everett and $105,000 to install
pollution-reduction equipment on city-owned diesel vehicles.
A spokeswoman with the Clean Air Agency said it is too early to say
how much of a rebate Everett residents might qualify for. In
Marysville, people can get up to $750 from the state for swapping out
old wood stoves for cleaner gas, propane and electric inserts and
furnaces.
The seven-page settlement agreement was made public Wednesday.
The company does not admit fault for air quality violations, but
agreed not to appeal the settlement or challenge the merits of
accusations against it.
Mill manager Chris Isenberg called the situation "unusual" and said
in a press release that the company has new management in place to
prevent a future flare up.
Kimberly-Clark burns wood scraps to generate steam used to make
electricity. It uses the electricity to make paper products and sells
some of the power to Snohomish County PUD.
The mill is located on the Everett waterfront at Port Gardner, but
the wood chips are stored across town along the Snohomish River just
east of E. Grand Avenue.
The boiler that burns the chips at the waterfront mill broke down in
June, but the flow of wood chips to the riverfront site did not slow,
creating an unusually large pile.
Huge wood chip piles can ignite spontaneously from the heat created
by their decomposition.
Earth movers are used to turn over piles to prevent wood waste from
overheating and catching fire. Piles also are sometimes dowsed with
water.
However, water was not available at the Everett site last summer when
the pile became too large for Kimberly-Clark to manage.
The nearest fire hydrant to the company's stockpile was not working
when the pile caught fire, according to the settlement agreement.
Kimberly-Clark offered to pay the settlement within 30 days. It also
said it would not use the payments to receive tax credits.
The company was fined $16,000 last year by the state for a mishap at
its waterfront mill that violated air-quality laws and covered much
of the city with a potent rotten-egg smell for two days in April.
Kimberly-Clark has about 850 employees in Everett and produces about
a million rolls of toilet paper and other paper products a day.
Reporter David Chircop: 425-339-3429 or dchircop@....
Recent Kimberly-Clark air quality fines
Recent Kimberly-Clark air quality violations and penalties:
2008: $164,000 for violating air quality rules after a pile of wood
chips was allowed to burn for six months.
2007: $16,000 for excessive hydrogen sulfide, ammonia and sulfur-
dioxide gas emissions that produced strong odors.
2005: $3,000 for exceeding allowable levels of sulfur-dioxide
emissions.
2004: $3,000 for exceeding allowable levels of sulfur-dioxide
emissions.
2003: $1,000 for exceeding allowable levels of sulfur-dioxide
emissions.
http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSL13906074
Russian prosecutors open probe on Baikal pulp mill
Thu Mar 13, 2008 4:46pm EDT Email | Print | Share| Reprints | Single
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Learn to Trade with a FREE Guide.By Guy Faulconbridge
MOSCOW, March 13 (Reuters) - Russia's Prosecutor-General said on
Thursday it had opened a probe into a pulp mill on the shore of Lake
Baikal after a state environmental watchdog found it had polluted the
world's largest freshwater lake.
The Soviet-era plant has long been attacked by environmental groups
who say it threatens the crescent-shaped Siberian lake, some 3,100
miles (5,000 km) east of Moscow.
"The Prosecutor-General has ordered the (local) Irkutsk region
prosecutor to hold a probe into the legality of the Baikalsk Pulp and
Paper Combine's operations," the Prosecutor-General's press office
said in a statement.
"The said enterprise has been carrying out the illegal issuance of
industrial waste with levels of pollutants higher than permitted
levels," it said, adding that the plant was using water from Baikal
without official permission.
Baikal is a treasure of nature which harbours 1,500 species of
animals and plants, including a unique type of freshwater seal, and
is surrounded by virgin forest and nature reserves.
The pulp plant was built in the 1960s on the southern tip of the
lake, which holds one fifth of the world's total surface fresh water.
The plant is controlled by LPK Continental Management, part of
billionaire Oleg Deripaska's Basic Element industrial group. The
other 49 percent is owned by the state.
A spokesman for Continental Management said the plant had a new
closed water system ready that would stop waste from flowing into the
lake.
But he said the new system could not be started up until the local
town of Baikalsk dealt with its own waste, as the mill currently
treats the town's pollution too and the system would not be able to
cope with all of it.
"If we stop the enterprise then Baikal awaits an environmental
catastrophe, as all the waste from the local town would go directly
into the lake," the spokesman said.
"We are fully ready to launch a closed water loop system that would
stop waste from going into Baikal but need the town to build its own
system," he said.
President Vladimir Putin in 2006 ordered a giant new oil pipeline to
be routed away from Lake Baikal, saying the risk to the lake was too
great.
The U.S. Geological Survey says Baikal is the world's biggest
freshwater lake, with 23,000 cubic kilometres of water, and is also
the deepest and oldest lake in the world. (Reporting by Guy
Faulconbridge; Editing by Catherine Evans)
Blog post by "North Coast Journal Blogthing"
David Hillman, an independent pulp and paper consultant, wonders if
the sale of American pulp mills to foreign investors — mostly
Chinese — is good or bad. The analysis is published on-line by the
Gerson Lehrman Group (GLG), which, according their website, manages
the world's leading network of experts.
The major implication is that major North American assets are coming
under the complete control of Asian (mostly Chinese) companies and
there is no secret that 100% of these mills' production will be going
straight back to China. Current global customers of these mills are
already scrambling to find alternative suppliers - and, in a tight
market, this is not easy! Will the new Chinese owners be willing to
keep the mills updated with new technology and environmental
regulations or will they be run into the ground until they literally
fall apart? How many more market pulp mills will China seek to
purchase to feed their enormous appetite - estimated this year to be
8.5 million mt of virgin market pulp? Several mills have reported
huge losses for 2007 with little remaining cash reserves. Will the
Chinese pounce on these mills like hungry vultures - buying them at
greatly distressed prices and far below their replacement costs? [Go
to the article]
http://ncjournal.wordpress.com/2008/03/14/pulp-mills-the-chinese-and-
a-pinch-of-xenophobia/
I didnt see any damage done... hmm
Gunns accuses protesters of damage
Posted Mon Mar 17, 2008 7:06am AEDT
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/03/17/2190971.htm
The Tasmanian timber giant Gunns has accused anti-pulp mill
protesters of vandalism and is threatening to seek compensation.
About 250 people gathered outside Gunns' Launceston headquarters on
Friday, marking the anniversary of the company's withdrawal from the
Resource Planning and Development Commission process.
Gunns' chairman, John Gay, has issued a statement alleging company
signage was damaged and he'll seek an explanation from the group,
Tasmanians Against the Pulp Mill.
But TAP's spokesman, Bob McMahon, denies the claim.
"Mr Gay, as far as I'm concerned by these sorts of accusations, is
destroying the very foundations for dialogue. We're peaceful people.
We don't do things like that. It's a beat up," said Mr McMahon.
Pulp mill protesters mark anniversary
http://www.greenleft.org.au/2008/744/38513
Launceston
15 March 2008
One year has passed since Gunns Ltd pulled their Tamar Valley pulp
mill project out of the independent assessment process, claiming the
process was taking too long. On March 14 this anniversary was marked
by 300 protesters, who met outside Gunns' head office in Launceston.
The rally was addressed by Dr Warwick Raverty, a scientist who was on
the assessment panel for the pulp mill but resigned because of
government interference. He encouraged the crowd to keep campaigning
against the pulp mill, explaining: "It's not just a giant pulp mill
in the Tamar. It's global warming, it's climate change, it's water
shortages, it's the giant challenge of developing ways of living that
are really sustainable and helping those less fortunate than
ourselves."
Hi Jo,
Yeah i think photos or visual images are good to send to pollies...
Thanks for the reminder- yeah- i'll print some pic's today and post
tmw.
Pictures and personal stories of the effect of pulp mill on ppl,
community, ecosystems etc etc - how it affects lives- might be
another good angle of attack.. rather than always sending letters
quoting stat's and expert viewpoints.
Yeah- how could we represent communal anger in a letter? interesting
idea!
I'll email a letter to the PM in 30mins. I wonder will i run out of
things to complain about over the next 2 weeks... probably not!
take care,
michelle
--- In tapvision@..., "Joanna McRae" <jo.mcrae@...>
wrote:
>
> highmichelle,
> Will you send your slide show from today, to Mr Rudd in your next
letter?
> I agree with all the sentiments expressed in those photos. But it
is the
> communal anger that is providing the energy, and that is hard to
put on
> paper.
> Why are we doing letters every day for a fortnight? A month would be
> impressive. Till the mill is stopped would be even better. Have a
roster, so
> the names change.
>
> --
> Jo McRae
>
Paul is a good puppy and will not bite
that the hand that feeds him.
Just be sure you have had your
tetanus shot, he is choosy whose
hand he eats from.
--- In tapvision@..., "Joanna McRae" <jo.mcrae@...>
wrote:
>
> Only if Paul is rechirstened Puppy Paul - he looks ready to sit up
and beg!
> Is that his "new image"?
> --
> Jo McRae
>
highmichelle, Will you send your slide show from today, to Mr Rudd in your next letter? I agree with all the sentiments expressed in those photos. But it is the communal anger that is providing the energy, and that is hard to put on paper.
Why are we doing letters every day for a fortnight? A month would be impressive. Till the mill is stopped would be even better. Have a roster, so the names change.
I like the sad greenie girl ,
standing by her placard.
looks a bit biblical,
appropriate for the season
pic number 27 of 100
The one of the indigenous
group was good too.
Back to the browsing ....
--- In tapvision@..., "Michelle Grattan"
<highmichelle@...> wrote:
>
> Photos from today's protest have been uploaded- click on 'Photos'
link
> on left of Tap vision yahoo group site.
>
is the other Michelle on side?
if so an invite to her to join the group might be an idea?
--- In tapvision@..., Michelle <highmichelle@...>
wrote:
>
> Hi Terry :)
>
> thanks for saying hello! ... the high is there in place of
himichelle when setting up my yahoo email address:)
>
> i think- we are all trying to answer the question u posed!! What
can we do?! Of course TAP and other groups and people have alot of
ideas and strategies--- so working with them- as well as
contributing our own ideas- is a good start!
>
> ... there is another Michelle Grattan about- she's a political
journalist- ... so just to confirm u aren't talking to her!
>
> ciao,
> michelle
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----
> From: Terry <modelpower2006@...>
> To: tapvision@...
> Sent: Thursday, 13 March, 2008 9:27:07 PM
> Subject: [TAP] Re: welcome to this yahoo group
>
> Hi high Michelle,
>
> not sure what the high ,means,but anyway,
>
> I am Terry in Launceston.
>
> What I would like to know is what can we really do
> about stopping the mill?
>
> We have a Federal Minister for the Environment, who is making a
show
> of doing the approvals, when we all know he has made up his mind
> already.He is more of an Anti - Environment minister and an
> opportunist like other so called environmentalists ,who are for
sale
> to the highest bidder.
>
> Did I hear someone say Harry Butler?
>
> We have a State Premier, who does not do anything without
> consulting you know who.
>
> We have a Large Company riding rough shod over everybody, in much
> the same way as a school yard bully gets the lunch money off
younger
> studdents.
>
> Will the Pulp Mill be another Lake Pedder or will it be more like
> the campaign to save the Franklin?
>
> P.S. I looked at your Yahoo Profile and your real name.
> Seems I know that name from somewhere.
>
> --- In tapvision@yahoogrou ps.com.au, Michelle <highmichelle@ ...>
> wrote:
> >
> > Hi all,
> >
> > Just thought i'd say welcome to this yahoo group and thanks for
> joining. Not as many people have joined, as i thought might have-
> but thats okay!
> >
> > I'm Michelle, i live in NW Tas. I moved here from Sydney approx
> 8mths ago. i studied anthropology- and am always learning
something
> new- currently a bit about Tas politics, plantations, pulp mills,
> pollution etc.
> >
> > I think you have all done a great job at TAP - what an
interesting
> group! The website is great and really informative. The meetings
> have been informative and fun. The people diverse and passionate!
> >
> > I have an interest in computers and am doing some basic research
> into online activism. I am a member of a few other yahoo groups...
i
> love the organic nature of these groups- its about people
interested
> in a topic speaking to each other and helping each other resolve
> issues related to the topic.
> >
> > Thanks to those for writing so far- and we'll see how it goes-
if
> it lives or dies- so be it :)
> >
> > ... otherwise please feel free to write anything--- if people
get
> sick of reading the group emails- they can always leave the group-
> and those left can keep on talking!
> >
> > Feel free to intoduce yourself...anything goes.
> >
> >
> > Take care,
> > michelle
>
>
>
>
>
> Get the name you always wanted with the new y7mail email
address.
> www.yahoo7.com.au/y7mail
>
Rowdy protest over Gunns pulp mill
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/03/14/2189594.htm
Posted 2 hours 34 minutes ago
Updated 2 hours 25 minutes ago
Anti-pulp mill protesters outside Gunns headquarters in Launceston,
Friday March 14, 2008 (ABC News: Chook Brooks)
Map: Launceston 7250
250 protesters have gathered outside the Launceston headquarters of
the Tasmanian timber company, Gunns Limited, to mark the anniversary
of Gunns' withdrawal of the pulp mill from the state's planning
process.
The protest's key speaker Dr Warwick Raverty is a scientist who was
on the Resource Planning and Development Commission (RPDC) assessment
panel.
Many of the protesters mourned Gunns withdrawal from the RPDC as a
death, wearing black and carrying coffins.
Police are present and say they have encountered no violence so far.
thanks for saying hello! ... the high is there in place of himichelle when setting up my yahoo email address:)
i think- we are all trying to answer the question u posed!! What can we do?! Of course TAP and other groups and people have alot of ideas and strategies--- so working with them- as well as contributing our own ideas- is a good start!
... there is another Michelle Grattan about- she's a political journalist- ... so just to confirm u aren't talking to her!
ciao,
michelle
----- Original Message ---- From: Terry <modelpower2006@...> To: tapvision@... Sent: Thursday, 13 March, 2008 9:27:07 PM Subject: [TAP] Re: welcome to this yahoo group
Hi high Michelle,
not sure what the high ,means,but anyway,
I am Terry in Launceston.
What I would like to know is what can we really do about stopping the mill?
We have a Federal Minister for the Environment, who is making a show of doing the approvals, when we all know he has made up his mind already.He is more of an Anti - Environment minister and an opportunist like other so called environmentalists ,who are for sale to the highest bidder.
Did I hear someone say Harry Butler?
We have a State Premier, who does not do anything without consulting you know who.
We have a Large Company riding rough shod over everybody, in much the same way as a school yard bully gets the lunch money off younger studdents.
Will the Pulp Mill be another Lake Pedder or will it be more like the campaign to save the Franklin?
P.S. I looked at your Yahoo Profile and your real
name. Seems I know that name from somewhere.
--- In tapvision@yahoogrou ps.com.au, Michelle <highmichelle@ ...> wrote: > > Hi all, > > Just thought i'd say welcome to this yahoo group and thanks for joining. Not as many people have joined, as i thought might have- but thats okay! > > I'm Michelle, i live in NW Tas. I moved here from Sydney approx 8mths ago. i studied anthropology- and am always learning something new- currently a bit about Tas politics, plantations, pulp mills, pollution etc. > > I think you have all done a great job at TAP - what an interesting group! The website is great and really informative. The meetings have been informative and fun. The people diverse and passionate! > > I have an interest in
computers and am doing some basic research into online activism. I am a member of a few other yahoo groups... i love the organic nature of these groups- its about people interested in a topic speaking to each other and helping each other resolve issues related to the topic. > > Thanks to those for writing so far- and we'll see how it goes- if it lives or dies- so be it :) > > ... otherwise please feel free to write anything--- if people get sick of reading the group emails- they can always leave the group- and those left can keep on talking! > > Feel free to intoduce yourself...anything goes. > > > Take care, > michelle
Hi Thomas,if the group owner granted members the right to make
polls , you have the right,regardless of which island you live on.
Not sure about you referring to the North Island as the Mainland
though.
To people in Tasmania,Tasmania is the Mainland, have not you seen
the postcards putting Tasmania into the correct perspective, lol.
Perhaps for people on Flinders Island ,Flinders is the mainland?
--- In tapvision@..., "Thomas Suters" <tsuters@...>
wrote:
>
> I don't know if I have a right to setup a Poll being a mainlander,
but
> I set one up anyway. It relates to Peter Garratt reconsidering his
> stance on the Paper Mill. When the Labor stance was made public
BEFORE
> the federal election, it was probably designed to win over votes,
> though I don't HOW?
>
> Now that Labor is fully entrenched it can start to consider real
issues
> such as effects on the environment, effect on peoples livelhood
and if
> the Minister for the Environment should be influenced by companies
who
> have a lot of political clout, or at least high profile business
men on
> backing Gunns proposal for a Pulp Mill
>
Hi high Michelle,
not sure what the high ,means,but anyway,
I am Terry in Launceston.
What I would like to know is what can we really do
about stopping the mill?
We have a Federal Minister for the Environment, who is making a show
of doing the approvals, when we all know he has made up his mind
already.He is more of an Anti - Environment minister and an
opportunist like other so called environmentalists ,who are for sale
to the highest bidder.
Did I hear someone say Harry Butler?
We have a State Premier, who does not do anything without
consulting you know who.
We have a Large Company riding rough shod over everybody, in much
the same way as a school yard bully gets the lunch money off younger
studdents.
Will the Pulp Mill be another Lake Pedder or will it be more like
the campaign to save the Franklin?
P.S. I looked at your Yahoo Profile and your real name.
Seems I know that name from somewhere.
--- In tapvision@..., Michelle <highmichelle@...>
wrote:
>
> Hi all,
>
> Just thought i'd say welcome to this yahoo group and thanks for
joining. Not as many people have joined, as i thought might have-
but thats okay!
>
> I'm Michelle, i live in NW Tas. I moved here from Sydney approx
8mths ago. i studied anthropology- and am always learning something
new- currently a bit about Tas politics, plantations, pulp mills,
pollution etc.
>
> I think you have all done a great job at TAP - what an interesting
group! The website is great and really informative. The meetings
have been informative and fun. The people diverse and passionate!
>
> I have an interest in computers and am doing some basic research
into online activism. I am a member of a few other yahoo groups... i
love the organic nature of these groups- its about people interested
in a topic speaking to each other and helping each other resolve
issues related to the topic.
>
> Thanks to those for writing so far- and we'll see how it goes- if
it lives or dies- so be it :)
>
> ... otherwise please feel free to write anything--- if people get
sick of reading the group emails- they can always leave the group-
and those left can keep on talking!
>
> Feel free to intoduce yourself...anything goes.
>
>
> Take care,
> michelle
----- Original Message ---- From: Thomas Suters <tsuters@...> To: tapvision@... Sent: Thursday, 13 March, 2008 4:37:06 PM Subject: [TAP] Re: welcome to this yahoo group
I don't know if I have a right to setup a Poll being a mainlander, but I set one up anyway. It relates to Peter Garratt reconsidering his stance on the Paper Mill. When the Labor stance was made public BEFORE the federal election, it was probably designed to win over votes, though I don't HOW?
Now that Labor is fully entrenched it can start to consider real issues such as effects on the environment, effect on peoples livelhood and if the Minister for the Environment should be influenced by companies who have a lot of political clout, or at least high profile business men on backing Gunns proposal for a Pulp Mill
I don't know if I have a right to setup a Poll being a mainlander, but
I set one up anyway. It relates to Peter Garratt reconsidering his
stance on the Paper Mill. When the Labor stance was made public BEFORE
the federal election, it was probably designed to win over votes,
though I don't HOW?
Now that Labor is fully entrenched it can start to consider real issues
such as effects on the environment, effect on peoples livelhood and if
the Minister for the Environment should be influenced by companies who
have a lot of political clout, or at least high profile business men on
backing Gunns proposal for a Pulp Mill
Enter your vote today! A new poll has been created for the
tapvision group:
Should Peter Garrett reconsider its stance on the Paper Mill?
o Take affirmative action on the environment
o Stop meddling in State politics
o Don't be influenced by Gunns propaganda
o Continue with the protest
o Do we really need more paper
To vote, please visit the following web page:
http://au.groups.yahoo.com/group/tapvision/surveys?id=12733670
Note: Please do not reply to this message. Poll votes are
not collected via email. To vote, you must go to the Yahoo!7 Groups
web site listed above.
Thanks!
Just thought i'd say welcome to this yahoo group and thanks for joining. Not as many people have joined, as i thought might have- but thats okay!
I'm Michelle, i live in NW Tas. I moved here from Sydney approx 8mths ago. i studied anthropology- and am always learning something new- currently a bit about Tas politics, plantations, pulp mills, pollution etc.
I think you have all done a great job at TAP - what an interesting group! The website is great and really informative. The meetings have been informative and fun. The people diverse and passionate!
I have an interest in computers and am doing some basic research into online activism. I am a member of a few other yahoo groups... i love the organic nature of these groups- its about people interested in a topic speaking to each other and helping each other resolve issues related to the topic.
Thanks to those for writing so far- and we'll see how it goes- if it lives or dies- so be it :)
... otherwise please feel free to write anything--- if people get sick of reading the group emails- they can always leave the group- and those left can keep on talking!
Feel free to intoduce yourself...anything goes.
Take care,
michelle
Send instant messages to your online friends http://au.messenger.yahoo.com
I posted this into Aus Community News
as well with a link back to Tapvision.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Aus_Community_News/
>
> A reminder of the protest at Gunns - Launceston
>
> Friday Morning
>
> To mark the anniversary of Gunns Withdrawal
> from the RFDC assessment process.
>
> It is hoped that former RFDC panel member,
> Warwick Raverty will be speaking at the protest.
>
> Any further updates on this?
>
A reminder of the protest at Gunns - Launceston
Friday Morning
To mark the anniversary of Gunns Withdrawal
from the RFDC assessment process.
It is hoped that former RFDC panel member,
Warwick Raverty will be speaking at the protest.
Any further updates on this?
10 Mar TAC denies mill concerns are political
http://cossacks.org.uk/money/tac-denies-mill-concerns-are-political-4/
The Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre is upset about claims that its
concerns about the proposed pulp mill are `political'.
The centre's field officer ,Trudy Maluga, says there are genuine
cultural and heritage worries about the location of the mill.
She says the concerns were detailed in a submission to the Resource
Planning and Development Commission last year.
Ms Maluga has accused Gunns and FIAT of making no effort to discuss
the concerns.
"We were stating that there is a lot of Aboriginal history and relics
at Longreach," Ms Maluga said.
"We were saying that it would be detrimental to our heritage and
culture if the mill was built there.
"We are not giving them permission and we want that mill to be built
somewhere else … leave it alone."
FIAT says there has been considerable discussion between Gunns and
the aboriginal community.
Argentines battle pulp mill they say is poisoning them
By Jack Chang | McClatchy Newspapers
Posted on Sunday, March 2, 2008
http://www.envirolink.org/external.html?itemid=200803032116080.90712
GUALEGUAYCHU, Argentina — Every afternoon, Roberto Marchesini drives
up the San Martin Bridge that overlooks the flat, humid plains of
central Argentina and looks at the enormous pulp mill that opened
recently on the opposite side of the Uruguay River.
Sometimes, the 49-year-old brings along instruments to measure the
level of harmful particulates he thinks the factory is emitting from
its 400-foot smokestack. Other times, he accompanies visitors who've
come from all over Argentina to learn about the long battle that
Marchesini and his neighbors have waged against the mill.
"I feel outrage, impotence that this plant is here," Marchesini said
on a recent afternoon while the mill's lights twinkled. "But over
all, I feel we can't give up the just fight."
Residents in Gualeguaychu, on the Argentine side of the river, say
they've already felt symptoms of the plant's pollution, with some
reporting irritated lungs and burned skin.
"The wind blows southeast from the plant and comes straight over to
Gualeguaychu," said activist Nelly Pivas, who said she's experienced
skin irritation she blames on the pulp mill. "We're fighting for our
lives here."
Florencia Herrera, a spokeswoman for the Finnish company Botnia that
built and operates the mill, said that ongoing tests have showed
minimal contamination, but an independent study of the plant has yet
to be completed.
Botnia officials insisted that the company has used state-of-the-art
environmental controls that have proved safe in its mills in
environmentally conscious Finland. Those include water treatment
facilities that process and recycle 80 percent of the 23 million
gallons of river water the plant uses every day.
"We think once the plant functions fully, all the questions that
different communities have will be answered," said Herrera. "People
will see that all the controls we've promised are working."
The battle over the mill began nearly three years ago when tens of
thousands of Argentines marched up the bridge to protest plans to
build the $1.2 billion plant across the river in Uruguay, the biggest
capital investment ever in that tiny, 3.5 million-person country.
Then came months-long roadblocks, naval showdowns between Uruguayan
police and Argentine activists trying to cross the river and a
diplomatic cold war between Argentina and Uruguay, which historically
have been allies. Tensions peaked when the two countries took each
other to the World Court in The Hague to settle the mill and
roadblock dispute.
Despite the protests, Botnia opened the mammoth mill in November and
is turning locally grown eucalyptus and other wood into 2,600 tons of
paper pulp every day. Most of the pulp will be made into paper at its
mills in China and Europe. The remainder will be sold.
Botnia began investing in Uruguay after the tiny country pushed its
forestry sector in the late-1980s, covering thousands of acres with
eucalyptus, pine and other trees. Company officials said the mill,
which is now operating at 80 percent capacity, has created nearly
7,000 jobs and accounts for 1.7 percent of Uruguay's gross domestic
product.
Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, who took office
in December, has shown little appetite for the protracted dispute,
and she told activists earlier this month she opposes their 15-month
blockade of the bridge, the main land link between the two countries.
Visitors now ask Marchesini if the fight has been worth it, but he
and his fellow activists say they aren't giving up. As long as the
factory is there, they say, they'll be camped out amid the soybean
fields, blocking the most important highway for hundreds of miles.
"The way they put the plant in here showed they underestimated the
response of the people," said local activist Luis Correa. "We're not
giving up until the plant leaves."
Such determination may win the people of Gualeguaychu accolades
across their 40 million-person country, but it looks like
stubbornness to the residents of Fray Bentos, the sleepy town at the
Uruguayan end of the bridge.
Because of the blockade, many in Fray Bentos haven't seen friends and
family across the river for more than a year, and hardly any
Argentine tourists come to bathe at the town's river beaches anymore.
On a recent summer afternoon, the main plaza was deserted, and
vacation homes that used to vibrate with visitors sported for-sale
signs.
"The people who started this aren't looking for a way out of this
problem," said clothing vendor Carlos Sosa of his Argentine
neighbors. "There are no reasons they give and no arguments. There's
just resentment on their side."
Fray Bentos Mayor Omar Lafluf said the dispute has damaged what long
had been a close-knit, cross-border community, with some Uruguayans
even on the lookout for Argentine sabotage.
"Before, crossing the bridge wasn't like crossing from one country to
another," Lafluf said. "It was like going to another neighborhood to
see friends. I think it's going to be very difficult to go back to
that again."
Because the plant sits on a river shared by both countries, Uruguay
is required by a bilateral treaty to consult with its much larger
neighbor about any project that could pollute the river. The
Argentine lawsuit in the World Court accuses Uruguay of failing to
share such information about the pulp mill.
Uruguayan officials insist that they complied with the treaty and
alerted the Argentine government, which didn't speak up until the
mill was under construction. Uruguay also has sued Argentina for not
clearing the roadblock, which has snarled traffic throughout the
region.
President Fernandez de Kirchner reportedly told activists that the
World Court decision, which is expected late this year, would put the
matter to rest as far as she's concerned.
"The government is trying to bring this conflict to a close, even as
the activists get more radical," said Argentine political analyst
Carlos Fara. "But if the plant shows any signs of contamination, it's
a whole other game, and the government will be forced to act."
Even some Argentines, however, are tiring of the fight, and
especially of the intermittent roadblocks that have been shutting
down the only three cross-border bridges between the two countries
for about three years.
On a popular Argentine beach facing the mill, several visitors said
the residents of Gualeguaychu would ultimately lose their battle.
"It's not going to be easy to settle this," said Claudio Norana, a
resident of the Argentine capital of Buenos Aires. "There's a lot of
money involved, and money always wins."
The activists countered that their protests stopped the Spanish
company ENCE from opening a similar mill nearby and will in the end
force Botnia to leave.
So the activists of Gualeguaychu are digging in. Some of them have
even built cabins alongside the roadblock, while others sleep in
trailers and tents.
On one trip up San Martin bridge, visitor Luis Rolero studied the
giant mill in the distance and then turned around and rested his
hands on Marchesini's shoulders.
Looking the activist in the eyes, Rolero said: "Here's the 10 million
dollar question. The plant, it's already there. It's operating.
What's the alternative?"
Marchesini didn't miss a beat.
"The plant goes away," he said. "There is no plan B."
ON THE WEB
Botnia's description of the pulp plant
McClatchy Newspapers 2008
Rang the offices of Rudd, Garrett and Turnbull, plus
any pollies here I could think of and referred them to
the article in Tas Times: They arrest angels in
Tasania", published in Vanity Fair in UK. Told them it
portrays Tassie in a terrible light with our corrupt
Government etc. Gave copy to Albert Van Zetten who was
very concerned. Made appointment to see local member,
Jodie Campbell on April 3rd. She's in Canberra for 2
wks so that was one of the earliest dates should
anyone want to fill that day up and make her day!
Glennis Sleurink
Get the name you always wanted with the new y7mail email address.
www.yahoo7.com.au/y7mail
Thank you michelle for establishing all the other links
I have added a couple more.
1 A link to The Pulp Mill Info web site, this has a massive collection
of mill related data.
2. A link to the Gunns approvals and conditions page (A well hidden
part of Gunns website) well hidden no more!
WE WILL STOP THIS OUTRAGEOUS MILL
Cheers Ross
Dams designed to leak
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/03/07/2183014.htm
A leading engineer says all dams are designed to leak to a certain
extent.
The Primary Industries and Water Minister, David Llewellyn, has
denied the Meander Dam has sprung a major leak, after a nearby
resident reported water gushing near the dam wall.
Chris Letchford, Head of the School of Engineering at the University
of Tasmania, told ABC Local Radio, all dams are designed so they can
be monitored for safety.
"Especially a new dam, as it's filling, will develop leaks," says
Professor Letchford.
"There's lots of instrumentation inside of dams to monitor the
passage of water through the porous media that makes a rock-filled
dam, or an earthern dam or in fact a roller compacted concrete dam,
such as the Meander."
Outrage over Tas Govt pipe plan
Source: 7.30 Report
Published: Wednesday, March 5, 2008 6:55 AEDT
Expires: Wednesday, April 2, 2008 6:55 AEDT
The Tasmanian Government is considering picking up the tab for two key
pieces of the Gunns Pulp Mill's infrastructure and the bill could end
up costing the Tasmanian taxpayer well over $60 million.
View Video:
http://www.abc.net.au/news/video/2008/03/05/2181273.htm
TAP is holding a huge rally outside Gunns head office in Launceston to
mark the 1st anniversary of Gunns withdrawal from the RPDC.
Please set-aside Friday March 14 to be part of this historic event.
We will meet on the lawns outside Gunns at 11am with banners and black
armbands to commemorate the collusion of big business and government in
Tasmania. We have a high-profile guest speaker and media coverage.
Its up to you to bring your friends and tell everybody you know about
this event. There will be no parking in Lindsay St so get there early.
It will go ahead regardless of the weather, so come along and make your
voices heard.
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