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COMMENTARY & OPINION
<br />CEME7{ the hshould not be necessary to
<br />burning plan
<br />requires a leap
<br />of faith
<br />s we move closer to the
<br />imended time flame set
<br />by CEMEX to test
<br />bum tires az a supplemental fuel
<br />in the cement kiln at their
<br />Lyons plant, the debate over
<br />the wisdom of the proposal is
<br />starting to ga as hot as a kiln
<br />impugn CEMEX's trustworthi-
<br />ness in order to say mixing
<br />tires into the coal used as fuel
<br />in the plant is a bad idea L'sed
<br />tires are a problem. They accu-
<br />mulate at the rate of one per
<br />person pet year, for every man,
<br />woman and child in the United
<br />States.
<br />Thc thing is, tires do become
<br />hazardous waste when they arc
<br />burned and hazardous waste
<br />should be disposed of in hez•
<br />ardour waste incinerators
<br />fire (about IS00 degrees Fahr- which ors much more tightly
<br />enheil, slightly honer than the CEMEX plain on UIe Highway regulated -and far more so-
<br />asphalt on the 100 degree day has had a difficult time bring- phisticated -than cement
<br />we had on the last day oUuly). ing CKD blowing off its site kilns. For example, hazardous
<br />Both sides, it seems, arc under control R took the ex- waste incinerators art outfitted
<br />growing weary of the debate ternal pressures of the Commu- with secondary combustion
<br />and tones of personal attack are Wily Task Force to get any chambers, afltrbumers that fur-
<br />slarting to creep around the movement on the issue. Cher combust [he products of
<br />Fringes of the controversy. The But some people who live initial combustion.
<br />nest public melting oa the near the plant don't think the The other thing ia, degiaod
<br />matter -Tuesday, August 20, problem has been adequately (or used tires as a raw material
<br />a[ Rogers Hall nn High Street addressed yet. They complain in other, non-combustive lists
<br />hem in Lyons -ought to be a that the sprinkler system de- is growing. Tires are stripped of
<br />barn burner. sign to keep CKD wetted down their steel belts and pelletized
<br />Thc lest public meeting on and on the ground breaks dowo -tor use oo artificial athletic
<br />CEMEX's plan was actually and then is out of service for turfs. Tires are turned into mb-
<br />two competing meetings held some time while new parts are bar matt. Tires are being us2d.
<br />simultaneously nt the CEMEX ordered. Why, they ask, doesn't - as an additive [o asphalt that -
<br />tant out on Ute Hi hwa
<br />p g y (by
<br />CEMEX keep Sparc parts-oo
<br />~ -"
<br />:aas'pmductd "good results `tn~
<br />the North Bouldei County En--- hand? It's not as i(they don't Califoruii.',-,-: -. - :-:.'- ~r
<br />vironmcntal Health Commu- know the sprinkler system will ~ `~ Toga Abbott, -chairman of
<br />Wily Task Force) and nt the. break down now and then. Aa the Community Task force, is
<br />Methodist church in Hygiene Ken Dobbs, of the' Environ- right when hesays that we have
<br />(bY the St. Vrain Valley Watch- mental Justice Project and an obligation to make the moat'
<br />dogs). Even witfi tfie Crowd owner ofe business that, is of the oatural«sources we ex-
<br />split in two, things ace reported part, installs sprinkling Sys- pact from the earth.
<br />to have gotten testy at points. terns, says all sprinkler systems But we'd also do well to be
<br />7o the the credit of the coin- are prone to breaking dowo. ~caretul in how we wring adds- -
<br />paay, they have been quilt up The groups vocally oppos- -tional'.uses from those re-
<br />front about Poeir intention to ing CEMEX'a plan cite Ibe sgtu4es dad, in the case of tiled
<br />test bum tires, and anyone who CKD situation as one reason -Gres, true ruycling that toms
<br />had given it much thought they don't trust the edmpany -Grn iotg-other products £tt
<br />should have seen this proposal to bum tires al the p{dnl. ~-_ ~ ' Chu bib fat better than simply ~ -
<br />coming. lire-burning in ce- Certaiply the potential Cor ~ thern.~.+~~"t~--i ~'..; -. -'
<br />meal kilns is a growing trend. hazardous emissions fromfire-~ ~ . If CEMEX sues roelly too- --
<br />CEMEX is p«tty good at " homing ere possibk. Open air ,seined with pu(tiag dubstayce
<br />putting a Smiley environmental lire Fires art a serious health , behind'the faxadc of eaviron- ,
<br />face on its operations, putting .' hazard. to a typical year, three mental coacem all corporatioM
<br />out books filled with wildlife ~or'fonr such Tres break out are eRectivety «quired to
<br />photographs and gleaning the` across the Mt country. Tat op- project, .they'd be exploring
<br />sort awards that often gc to - posing groups say that even if ways to
<br />fire their kilns with-
<br />huge corporations }hat do ~ ~ CEMEX could run the kiln _
<br />vaturai gat...
<br />little bit of tlcaning up around ~ - properly with tires mixed into ° ' Tbe~idea that we should art
<br />the margins. But the tact re, eke fuel u a IOY. to 207. ratio, ~ on the'side~of caution where
<br />mains that mating cement is a ~ 'upxts' that periodically occur , hrimau tiehlth is conctroed, put
<br />dusty end, it stems, environ- _~ during combustion would send 'forth by Boulder County ~ea~-
<br />menta{ly shaky proposition. the products of [ncomplcte dent and CEMEX neighbor Lou
<br />"We make dust, that's what we combustion into the. atmo- Dobbs, seems to bt the best
<br />do,` plant manager John Lohr ephere, where such Compounds ~guidirig ptinciple~at work m
<br />has been quoted az saying. can bind to particulates is the -this eontroveray, ~EMEX'a
<br />Cement kiln dust (CKD) is air and travel more than 40 bottom tint k cot nearly 6o aig-
<br />thought to be a carcinogen. The miles before settling to earth. nifiant of a concern.
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