Vote for clean air

To the editor,

It should be disturbing upon reading last week's issue of the Hungry Horse News regarding the stack emissions of the Plum Creek fiber plant in Columbia Falls. Some 710,000 pounds, in the aggregate, of formaldehyde, ammonia and methanol was expelled during one year.

It brings back memories of the Anaconda Aluminum Co. plant of the 1960s and 1970s with their similarly emitted 10,000 pounds of hydrogen fluoride to the detriment of the normal tree growth in the national forest estimated at $1 billion dollars at that time—the company steadfastly denying the damage.

Lately, the W.R. Grace Co., in Libby, with the death dealing asbestos fiber problem, had shown little inclination to alert their workers and the public of the danger until it became blatantly obvious. The Grace Co. largely dodged their responsibility by way of scattering their assets and then declaring bankruptcy.

Surprisingly, however, the present situation at Plum Creek is quite different in that their spokesperson openly acknowledges the toxic chemicals and the volume involved—and why not, since we find Montana has no laws or limits on expelling formaldehyde into the atmosphere, though it's known to be a carcinogen.

The glib 'not to worry' statement by the EPA toxicologist that the half-life of formaldehyde, in ideal sunlight conditions, is "only six hours" becomes meaningless with continuous day and night operations and a prevailing westerly wind aligned with the central area of Columbia Falls.

Remember, there is a clause in the Montana State Constitution that says the citizens of Montana are entitled to clean air and water. That should be a function of the Department of Environmental Quality, but the state doesn't test for either formaldehyde or methanol—not interested under the present administration.

This, along with the seemingly cavalier attitude of the EPA official quoted as saying, "It's the nature of the business—it's the nature of the process." It seems to translate into, "You're on your own Buster. Good luck."

Well, not really—there's this little matter of an election coming up in about three weeks. Fortunately, by way of our right to vote out of office the party that won't do its job, we can elect those that will. It's imperative we do so.

Loren Kreck

Columbia Falls