Athens Community Group Organizes To Protect Community Health and Oppose the Burning of Out-of-State Waste

The stereotype is that controversial business plans tear communities apart. Folks in the rural Somerset County town of Athens, are showing that such plans have just as much power to bring communities together. When the Massachusetts-based company GenPower announced plans to build a “waste to energy” incinerator that would burn 3 million pounds a day of up to 100% Construction and Demolition Debris (CDD) in their town, folks set aside political and ideological differences, and began meeting to educate themselves and figure out what they could do to protect their community.

The group is a diverse mix of those who call Athens and the surrounding region their home – parents, farmers, students, retirees, hunters, engineers, teachers, veterans, health care workers, loggers, church members, fishermen, business owners, artists, and workers of all stripes. The group, Citizens Against Pollution in Town (CAPIT) meets every Thursday, at 6:30, in the old Athens Academy, and has seen turnout for the meetings grow steadily as more people in the area become aware of the issue. Recently the group was awarded $1,500 by New England Grassroots Environmental Fund to help with the costs of research and organizing.

Folks in the Athens area find themselves asking some serious questions...

Why is the burning of CDD banned in all other New England States? Why is Maine becoming the destination for out-of-state waste?

Why would the people of Athens again be the test subjects for burning out-of-state construction & demolition debris? Back in 2002, many people in the area were fell ill, children were kept inside for recess, and birds dropped dead, as a fire smoldered for over a month at a former incinerator owned by Montreal-based Boralex that had previously been deemed safe by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection. How can we trust that this new incinerator would be safe?

How are the ash and emissions that result from burning painted and treated wood, and materials containing plastics, mercury, lead, and arsenic possibly safe or healthy?

Why did GenPower originally tell folks in Athens that they'd be burning only 25% CDD waste - then when their planned site was approved for Pine Tree Zone tax credits, that number jumped to 100%? No other incinerator in Maine burns more than 50% CDD, and those that burn any amount have faced numerous Air Emissions Violations.

Why would GenPower be receiving Maine tax-payer money and MA renewable energy credits for burning CDD?

What will be the impact on our health, air, water, and roads of the estimated 275 round-trip diesel trucks carrying this waste through the center of Athens, directly past the school and playground every day?

What will be done with the hundreds of thousands of pounds of extremely toxic dioxin-containing ash that would be produced by daily this incinerator? Why is the Maine BEP considering rule changes that would allow this ash to be used in fill and for other “Beneficial Use”, instead of treating it as a highly dangerous substance?

What would the cumulative effects of emissions, ash and truck exhaust be on the air, water, and health of this community? Somerset County that is rated among the worst 20% of Counties in the US for air releases of recognized carcinogens, Maine has the highest asthma rate in the US, and dioxin levels are so high that the State has advisories on the dangers of eating fish.

Why is the Board of Environmental Protection considering rule changes that would exempt this incinerator from the requirement to apply for a Solid Waste Disposal permit?

What would be the impact on the Wesserunsett Stream and the surrounding water table if GenPower pulled the 650 gallons a minute of water it plans to use for the incinerator?

Why would this incinerator, with all its risks, be built within 4 miles from the local Elementary School, a group home, numerous residences, many farms, and an active town center?

What are alternative projects that could bring much needed jobs and money to the local community that wouldn't come at the cost of the health and safety of our children, our families, our land, air, water, and community?

On Saturday, December 3rd, from Noon to 3:00 PM, in downtown Athens (across from the Corner Store and Elementary School on Rt 150) folks will be hanging an informational banner, and will be present with information and a giant garbage monster to talk about the incinerator, alternatives, and what can be done. The group will be out in that location every following Saturday that the weather makes it possible – call to confirm what following Saturdays the group will be standing in town.

For further information about Citizens Against Pollution in Town, email sterren (at) maineindymedia.org, call 207.649.5980, or write CAPIT c/o Lister, PO Box 129, Athens, ME 04912.