Environmentalists sparred with industry supporters at a public hearing last week over whether Blue Ridge Paper Products should spend more money on air pollution controls.

Blue Ridge Paper is applying for a new air permit as required by law every five years. The permit is subject to a public hearing, which drew a large crowd that was evenly split over the issue.

Those speaking on behalf of the paper mill said Blue Ridge could be forced out of business by costly new regulations. Those calling for tougher regulations, however, said the mill could do better without breaking the bank.

“Here we have a company making a profit — profiting from it — while polluting the air and the water,” said John Noel with the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy.

That argument was later countered by the CEO of Blue Ridge Paper.

“We have not made a profit over the past three years,” said Richard Lozyniak, CEO of Blue Ridge Paper Products. “This has been a challenging time.”

Blue Ridge Paper last month took out a $125 million loan at 9.5 percent interest. The loan was used to pay off outstanding debts, to improve cash flow and to better position the company for when the sluggish paper industry rebounds.

Private investors who backed the loan will come knocking in 2008, however, wanting their loan paid back along with the steep interest. In addition, Blue Ridge still owes the investors who backed the 1999 employee buyout of the mill. Last year, Blue Ridge had to close one of its paper mills in another state.

“There is such a thing as the straw that broke the camel’s back,” said Haywood County Commissioner Mark Swanger, speaking on behalf of the mill. Blue Ridge Paper employs 1,300 people with an annual payroll of $75 million, making it the largest manufacturer in WNC.

One speaker wanting Blue Ridge to do more to clean up its air emissions cited new federal laws that will clamp down on areas exceeding the federal ozone standards. Haywood County currently exceeds the federal standards and Buncombe is teetering on the edge. Part of the federal regulation would strictly srutinize and possibly prohibit permits for new industries that would add to the already high ozone levels.

“We are going to lose the placement of jobs in the future if we do not reduce local emissions. It’s not just Blue Ridge Paper jobs we’re talking about, it’s effecting all our jobs now,” said Alyx Perry of Asheville.

Nearly all those calling for stronger pollution controls lived in Asheville. Some of the speakers said they weren’t from this area, and after the hearing, several mill workers gathered outside commented that these people could go back where they came from if they didn’t like the mill.

Blue Ridge Paper Products in 2002 received a national award from the EPA for its environmental progress and improved pollution controls. The company has spent more than $500 million on water, air and noise pollution control upgrades over the past 50 years, according to C.W. Hardin, a retired Blue Ridge employee, former state senator and former Canton mayor.

Mill supporters touted a $20 million expenditure for new emission technology currently being installed. But those upgrades are mandatory, not voluntary, argued speakers with the group Clean Water for North Carolina.

Several speakers called for greater accountability and record-keeping by Blue Ridge. Blue Ridge is required to monitor and regulate its own emission outputs, but several speakers don’t like that arrangement.

“Allowing self-monitoring is like letting the fox guard the henhouse,” said Scott Gollwitzer, Air Pollution Campaign Coordinator for Appalachian Voices.

“We need actual fence-line monitoring — not just computer modeling — to measure these toxic emissions,” said Lou Zeller of the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League.

The permit would require the mill to report excess emissions after exceeding acceptable levels for four hours.

“What about notifying the community?” asked Linda Block with the Clean Water for North Carolina. “The community has the right to know when the excess points are in the air.”