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EPIC and Californians for Alternatives to Toxics (CATs) together have persuaded the operators of the Evergreen Pulp Mill, with the help of the courts and the Clean Air Act, to comply with federal emissions laws. In a settlement reached on March 12, 2007, Evergreen has agreed to install by September, 2008, new pollution-control devices on their smelt dissolver tank and their lime kiln, which should significantly reduce overall emissions. See press release for more details: http://www.wildcalifornia.org/pressreleases/number-84
A Little History
In January, 2005, Evergreen Pulp, Inc. took ownership and commenced operation of the former Louisiana-Pacific/Stockton-Pacific pulp mill on the Samoa peninsula in northern Humboldt County, California.
Within three months, approximately 100 complaints were filed with the North Coast Unified Air Quality Management District (NCUAQMD) reporting troublesome emissions from the plant. In March, 2005, Evergreen applied for a permit to increase particulate matter in the noth coast air basin by 18 tons, well in excess of allowable limits of the law. EPIC submitted a letter to the NCUAQMD opposing the issuance of such a variance permit to Evergreen. http://www.wildcalifornia.org/cgi-files/0/pdfs/1136488840_Pulp_Mill_Comments.pdf
On July 15, 2005, despite the public opposition, the NCUAQMD granted Evergreen a variance which allowed them to continue operations while emitting excessive pollutants. The following month, a private citizen and resident of Samoa, filed a Petition for Writ of Mandate seeking a reversal that decision. See press release: http://www.wildcalifornia.org/cgi-files/0/pdfs/1136493078_Pulp_Mill_Petition_.pdf
The variance violates Health and Safety Code section 42352. According to Evergreen's own statement, the variance allows them to emit 37.10 additional tons of heavy metals such as lead, arsenic, mercury and carcinogenic chemicals, as well as fungi, that can become lodged in the lungs. Mill operations also emit carbon monoxide, methanol, sulfur dioxide, and other compounds and substances identified as hazardous by California law and the federal EPA. Some of the dangerous health effects from these particulates can include systemic toxic effects, allergic and hypersensitivity reactions, irritation of the mucous membranes of the nose and throat, bacterial and fungal reactions, and cancer.
The Citizen Pulp Mill Committee, organized by residents of Eureka who live in areas affected by emissions from the pulp mill, have demanded that the mill either be made safe through installation of state-of-the-art pollution control equipment, scientific source and ambient monitoring and spectrographic analysis, or be shut down.
Several hearings have been held on this issue. Evergreen organized a "fishbowl" community forum for discussion of the issues at hand, and they have aired advertising spots on local TV and paid for full-page newspaper ads in an effort to communicate their status as a "community-oriented" company. But many who attended felt that the scripted presentations by Evergreen executives, combined with the deliberate lack of coordination among "community" members who sat in on the panel, was merely an effort to propagandize Evergreen's good will toward the public. Notably absent from the discussion was any presentation of scientifically based data about the impact of these emissions on public health. Also excluded from the dialogue were the toxicity reports that have been issued by Evergreen themselves.
Needless to say, Evergreen's slick TV advertisements (costly ventures in public relations) do not mention this data either. It falls to the regulatory agencies and the judicial system to enforce the existing laws, and it falls to EPIC and CATs to take up the work of making sure they do their jobs.
On November 1, 2005, Californians for Alternatives to Toxics and the Environmental Protection Information Center joined Elizabeth Eytchison of the Citizens Pulp Mill Committee with a 60-day Notice of Intent to File Suit against the Evergreen Pulp Mill. See press release http://www.wildcalifornia.org/cgi-priv/PressReleases.pl?function=number&page_id=70
On January 2, 2006, CATs and EPIC filed a complaint against Evergreen for significant and ongoing violations of its pulp mill's federal air quality permit. See press release: http://www.wildcalifornia.org/cgi-priv/PressReleases.pl?function=number&page_id=72
See Complaint: http://www.wildcalifornia.org/cgi-files/0/pdfs/1136409708_Evergreen_Complaint.pdf
Our Objectives in Filing This Suit
Pulp mill executives of Hong Kong-based conglomerate Lee & Mann claim to be taking measures to correct ongoing violations, but EPIC and CATs have been denied requests to review designs and timelines for the hypothetical fixes, forcing our legal action. We expect Evergreen to install a new LIME KILN and a new SMELT DISSOLVER as well as state-of-the-art monitoring and spectrographic analysis to bring their emissions within legal requirements.
Another common defense offered by pulp mill employees and boosters emphasizes the vast improvements made by the pulp mill in reducing pollution over its lifetime, but they fail to recognize the fact that each step forward has been at the instigation of legal or regulatory administrative action.
Finally, while many neighbors sharing the air basin with the pulp mill are unaware of negative effects on their health, that is not the standard to be met, according to the law. EPIC, CATs and our fellow citizens are intent on protecting the health of the "most vulnerable population"--the very young, the old, the sick and the weak who suffer drastic effects from the particulate and other toxins emitted. Failure to meet this standard under the Clean Air Act is another instance of dumping corporate costs of doing business on the most vulnerable among us and the public at large. This is unacceptable!
