What happens to a state run by Republicans

[Legion Troll]

The Ouachita River begins at Lake Ouachita in central Arkansas, where it is a vibrant blue.

By the time it reaches Monroe, Louisiana, about 50 miles after it passes by the Georgia-Pacific plant in Crossett, Arkansas, it’s a dark coffee color. Most of the people in Monroe and West Monroe do not know that the river is the wrong color, because it’s the only color they’ve ever seen.

It’s not just that the water turned brown. The local department of health warned residents to limit the quantities of fish from the river that they were eating because of high levels of mercury. There are no more water-skiing contests because residents are afraid to swim in that water. On some days, residents say, the river puts off a foul stench.

The plant runs 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and emits upwards of 1.5 million pounds of toxic chemicals every year, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Toxic Release Inventory, which is based on self-reported calculations from emitting facilities. In the case of the Georgia-Pacific plant, these emissions include known carcinogens such as formaldehyde, dioxin, acetaldehyde and chloroform.

The plant also emits a steady stream of another toxin, hydrogen sulfide, both in the air and in the effluent streams of its water treatment system. One of these streams, which residents call “Stink Creek,” brings a harsh, metallic smell into the homes of nearby residents. A strong whiff stings the nose and burns the throat and lungs.

Residents began complaining about emissions back in the 1990s. In addition to the worrisome odors, there were the chemicals eating through air-conditioning units and copper wiring.

Georgia-Pacific responded by going door to door, doling out checks in exchange for signed release forms absolving the company of any responsibility for damages to the residents’ property—or their health. In exchange, they agreed to absolve Georgia-Pacific of “any and all past, present, or future, known and unknown, foreseen and unforeseen bodily and personal injuries or death.”

Georgia-Pacific says they were issued in response to allegations of property damage. The wording about personal injuries and death was nothing more than “standard legal practice” and did not reflect the possibility that the plant might be responsible for residents’ illnesses.

Georgia-Pacific says its water treatment system is thorough, carefully monitored and in full compliance with the law according to parameters laid out in the permit given to it by the Arkansas Department for Environmental Quality (ADEQ). The company also says the body of water residents call Stink Creek is a lawful, necessary part of that process.

The Clean Water Act, passed in 1972, requires that any pollutants discharged into bodies of water be clean enough so as to not disrupt the activities in those waters, such as fishing, drinking and supporting animal life. The law gives state regulators, such as ADEQ, the power to determine what those activities are and what the limits on pollutants should be. In this case, ADEQ determined that Coffee Creek and the lake through which it flows, Mossy Lake, do not have any “fishable/swimmable or domestic water supply uses.”


http://www.newsweek.com/crossett-arkansas-georgia-pacific-factory-pollution-446954?rel=most_read3

 

[FUCK THE POLICE]

The federal government should not delegate this task to state regulatory agencies. We need a single unified national regulator with uniform standards.

 

[Legion Troll]

Article 19 (Miscellaneous Provisions), Item 1 in the Arkansas Constitution is entitled "Atheists disqualified from holding office or testifying as witness," and states that "No person who denies the being of a God shall hold any office in the civil departments of this State, nor be competent to testify as a witness in any Court."


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_and_government_of_Arkansas

 

[Taft2016]

I recall a certain Democrap in that same state allowing Tyson Chicken to dump The Dude (read "Chicken Shit") into the Arkansas River.

Tyson lawyers in turn managed Madame Hillary's cattle future accounts to the tune of a $100K profit.

 

[Legion Troll]

I recall a certain Democrap in that same state allowing Tyson Chicken to dump The Dude (read "Chicken Shit") into the Arkansas River. Tyson lawyers in turn managed Madame Hillary's cattle future accounts to the tune of a $100K profit.

True.

I detest the Hildebeast and BJ as much as their GOP successors.

 

[Leonthecat]

Environmental report finds harmful pollution from Oklahoma power plants

A group of environmental organizations on Tuesday released a report that claims Oklahoma's six coal-fired power plants release too many harmful materials into the state's lakes and rivers.

Oklahoma utility companies disputed the report as inaccurate and misleading.

The report “Closing the Floodgates: How the Coal Industry is Poisoning Our Water and How We Can Stop It” reviewed water permits for 386 coal plants throughout the country. It found that 274 nationwide — including all six in Oklahoma — discharge coal ash and scrubber wastewater into waterways.

“None of these have limits on the amounts of toxic metals like arsenic, boron, cadmium, mercury and selenium they are allowed to dump into public waters,” the report stated.

“This report makes it clear that utility companies in Oklahoma need lessons in common sense: dumping poisons into our water without rigorous monitoring and reporting threatens the health, drinking water and recreation opportunities in Oklahoma,” said Whitney Pearson, who heads the Sierra Club's Beyond Coal campaign in Oklahoma. “New Environmental Protection Agency limits on these toxics in our water will prevent children from getting sick and ensure our water is safe to drink and our fish are safe to eat.”

Oklahoma Gas and Electric Co. spokesman Brian Alford said the company's wastewater permits are renewed by the EPA and the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality every five years.

Its Muskogee plant was last checked in 2011 and its Sooner plant near Red Rock was inspected earlier this year.

Both inspections found the metals listed in the environmental report as “below detection,” Alford said.

“We don't dispose of coal ash on site, either at Muskogee or Sooner,” Alford said.

The environmental report also found that three of the state's six coal plants are operating with expired Clean Water Act permits. Western Farmers Electric Cooperative said the claim is misleading.

“Western Farmers Electric Cooperative's single coal-fired electric generation unit located near Hugo, Oklahoma, is, despite the allegations of the Sierra Club, in compliance with the Clean Water Act and its valid Clean Water Act permit,” Brian Hobbs, Western Farmers' vice president of legal and corporate services, said in a statement.

“While the term of the existing permit has passed, the governing regulations provide that so long as the facility has made timely application for a permit renewal at least six months in advance of the expiration date, the existing permit continues in force and effect until such time a new permit is issued. Western Farmers Electric Cooperative has made such application and has complied with the applicable water regulations and the existing water permit is valid and enforceable. The regulations are clear on this matter.”

A spokeswoman for the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality declined to comment Tuesday, saying agency representatives had not had a chance to review Tuesday's report.

http://newsok.com/article/3865168

 

[Teflon Don]

The Ouachita River begins at Lake Ouachita in central Arkansas, where it is a vibrant blue.

By the time it reaches Monroe, Louisiana, about 50 miles after it passes by the Georgia-Pacific plant in Crossett, Arkansas, it’s a dark coffee color. Most of the people in Monroe and West Monroe do not know that the river is the wrong color, because it’s the only color they’ve ever seen.

It’s not just that the water turned brown. The local department of health warned residents to limit the quantities of fish from the river that they were eating because of high levels of mercury. There are no more water-skiing contests because residents are afraid to swim in that water. On some days, residents say, the river puts off a foul stench.

The plant runs 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and emits upwards of 1.5 million pounds of toxic chemicals every year, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Toxic Release Inventory, which is based on self-reported calculations from emitting facilities. In the case of the Georgia-Pacific plant, these emissions include known carcinogens such as formaldehyde, dioxin, acetaldehyde and chloroform.

The plant also emits a steady stream of another toxin, hydrogen sulfide, both in the air and in the effluent streams of its water treatment system. One of these streams, which residents call “Stink Creek,” brings a harsh, metallic smell into the homes of nearby residents. A strong whiff stings the nose and burns the throat and lungs.

Residents began complaining about emissions back in the 1990s. In addition to the worrisome odors, there were the chemicals eating through air-conditioning units and copper wiring.

Georgia-Pacific responded by going door to door, doling out checks in exchange for signed release forms absolving the company of any responsibility for damages to the residents’ property—or their health. In exchange, they agreed to absolve Georgia-Pacific of “any and all past, present, or future, known and unknown, foreseen and unforeseen bodily and personal injuries or death.”

Georgia-Pacific says they were issued in response to allegations of property damage. The wording about personal injuries and death was nothing more than “standard legal practice” and did not reflect the possibility that the plant might be responsible for residents’ illnesses.

Georgia-Pacific says its water treatment system is thorough, carefully monitored and in full compliance with the law according to parameters laid out in the permit given to it by the Arkansas Department for Environmental Quality (ADEQ). The company also says the body of water residents call Stink Creek is a lawful, necessary part of that process.

The Clean Water Act, passed in 1972, requires that any pollutants discharged into bodies of water be clean enough so as to not disrupt the activities in those waters, such as fishing, drinking and supporting animal life. The law gives state regulators, such as ADEQ, the power to determine what those activities are and what the limits on pollutants should be. In this case, ADEQ determined that Coffee Creek and the lake through which it flows, Mossy Lake, do not have any “fishable/swimmable or domestic water supply uses.”


http://www.newsweek.com/crossett-arkansas-georgia-pacific-factory-pollution-446954?rel=most_read3

What are you going to do about it? Cry harder

 

[Ralph]

Article 19 (Miscellaneous Provisions), Item 1 in the Arkansas Constitution is entitled "Atheists disqualified from holding office or testifying as witness," and states that "No person who denies the being of a God shall hold any office in the civil departments of this State, nor be competent to testify as a witness in any Court."


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_and_government_of_Arkansas

Not much of a "history actual" buff? There is no law that prohibits any state from seeking Christians as leaders...as per the founding documents of this nation. Have you never read the prerequisites of all 13 original states/colonies in relation to any citizen that wishes to hold public office? Now in the era of Alinsky and "left wing revised history".....seeking God fearing citizens to hold public office is a crime against the "imagined" separation of church and state clause in the United States Constitution? Really....anyone....produce the clause that exists in any "legal" founding document of the United States that separates any US Citizen from God regardless if he/she works for THE PEOPLE or the private sector.

The only constitution where those words actually existed was located in the Soviet Constitution. They were brought into the US rule of law by left wing activist judges that enjoy legislating from the bench....LEAVING THE PEOPLE OUT OF THE LOOP.

 

[CFM]

Article 19 (Miscellaneous Provisions), Item 1 in the Arkansas Constitution is entitled "Atheists disqualified from holding office or testifying as witness," and states that "No person who denies the being of a God shall hold any office in the civil departments of this State, nor be competent to testify as a witness in any Court."


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_and_government_of_Arkansas

Good.

 

[The Dude]

I recall a certain Democrap in that same state allowing Tyson Chicken to dump The Dude (read "Chicken Shit") into the Arkansas River.

Tyson lawyers in turn managed Madame Hillary's cattle future accounts to the tune of a $100K profit.

I remember that trade, I will never believe Hillary didn't have at least inside information or fraud.

 

[Legion Troll]

I remember that trade, I will never believe Hillary didn't have at least inside information or fraud.

There is not much doubt that Hillary Clinton took full and enthusiastic part in the activities that rendered the 1980s the decade of greed.

 

[Mott the Hoople]

The federal government should not delegate this task to state regulatory agencies. We need a single unified national regulator with uniform standards.

it doesn't. EPA sets minimum national standards for effluent discharges. State programs are permitted but they must be at a minimum as stringent as Federal Regulations. They can have more stringent standards.

I also wonder what this has to do with Republicans and Governing as Democrats dominated the AR State government for most of the 70's, 80's and 90's.

 

[Legion Troll]

it doesn't. EPA sets minimum national standards for effluent discharges. State programs are permitted but they must be at a minimum as stringent as Federal Regulations. They can have more stringent standards. I also wonder what this has to do with Republicans and Governing as Democrats dominated the AR State government for most of the 70's, 80's and 90's.

Who's controlled Arkansas since then?

In a 2007 Use Attainability Analysis (UAA) published by the EPA, the agency found that, “aside from the fish and macroinvertebrate communities using Coffee Creek and Mossy Lake, other wildlife live in or frequently contact the [Georgia-Pacific] effluent. Muskrat, beaver, nutria, turtles and ducks are known to use Coffee Creek and Mossy Lake, sometimes in very large numbers.” Most important, it concluded that “the waters of Coffee Creek and Mossy Lake have the potential to support aquatic life indicative of streams in the ecoregion.”

Those findings might have seriously affected the parameters of Georgia-Pacific’s permit—had ADEQ been required to consider them. But the company sent a letter to the EPA (cc’ing several Arkansas and Louisiana congressmen and senators) in which it accused the regulatory agency of acting without its knowledge and demanding the opportunity to redo the study using a contractor of its choosing. The EPA agreed, the 2007 UAA was set aside, and Georgia-Pacific’s effluent flowed on. Meanwhile, Georgia-Pacific hired the environmental engineering company Aquaeter to conduct a study. It completed a draft UAA in 2013 but has not yet finalized or published any findings.


http://www.newsweek.com/crossett-arkansas-georgia-pacific-factory-pollution-446954