Date: Thu, 16 Jan 2014 07:36:33 -0500
From: J
Subject: Re: Chatham Chatlist #4840
On Thu, Jan 16, 2014 at 12:45 AM, Chatham Chatlist wrote:
> ———————————–
> From: mphorn22
> Subject: WVa vs ChathamPark re regulations
>
> Perhaps most have you have seen/heard the recent news of a coal plant in WVa suffering a spill of severely toxic
> chemicals into its town’s drinking, cooking, and cleaning water? The coal company had built their plant UP stream from
> the “fresh” water intake for the whole town. That’s all residents, restaurants, medical facilities, stores, other businesses,
> theaters, schools…..no one could go anywhere in the town without encountering the same toxic water that not even
> boiling it would clear it of the toxins! Thank heavens we don’t have that here; even when the water is turned off for
> repairs, I can still go to a restaurant, coffee house or the Coop for those few hours. But not those WVa people; they were
> suffering through all of that for at least a week!!!!!
>
> My next reactions to the news were: How stupid and callous was that?! Why did the plant site its project UPstream?!
> Why didn’t the town, county and state’s regulatory systems prevent that siting?! Furthermore, why haven’t their
> governments made over-sight inspections since the 1990s?!
Using that logic, you would have absolutely zero industry of any sort anywhere but either in the middle of nowhere where there are no water systems, or all along the coastline we value so highly. Because anywhere you put a plant of any source is going to be upstream of someone’s water inlet. (obviously there are exceptions to that rule, but in general, that’s the case)
If you think the municipal water is better here, without a coal company spilling stuff (and arguably it is) you must not see the multiple warnings sent out by Chatham County water every year (at one point I think I was getting them about once every 6 weeks) indicating that the water was not safe to drink or had a much higher concentration of toxins and carcinogens that the EPA allows for.
One year I counted 10 warnings. Last year, I believe I received 5 or 6.
So what is more stupid, in your opinion. An accidental chemical spill, that while said is only inconvenient and no where NEAR as tragic as other “accidents” like Chernobyl and in Bhopal, India, or a municipal water system that has so much trouble maintaining safe water WITHOUT accidental toxic spills?
And how exactly does that tie into Chatham Park? Last I heard, Chatham Park wasn’t planned to have any coal processing or other heavy industrial sites in its land use. Besides, using your logic, Chatham park is down-stream from most of us, right?