The comments from the public hearing Sept. 6 on Blue Ridge Paper’s discharge permit won’t decide whether the Canton papermaker gets its new permit. In the end, that decision rests entirely with the state, and residents must trust that they use good judgment.

There’s little doubt the effluent from the pulp and paper mill has become significantly cleaner over the last decade. While the Pigeon River still runs brown, its tint and smell are much improved. In fact, the river’s condition and timed releases from CP&L from its Walters Hydroelectric Plant have spawned a thriving whitewater industry at the Tennessee line.

Just last week, state health officials lifted the advisory on eating fish from the Pigeon River and partially lifted an advisory for eating fish caught in Walters Lake. Fish from the Pigeon River no longer have dangerous levels of dioxin.

Champion started the improvements to the river, but many in the environmental community credit Blue Ridge Paper for bringing an entirely new attitude to the table. The employee-owned company that bought the mill in May 1999 has brought a new openness and sincerity toward environmental improvements that is roundly applauded by many who in past years fought fiercely against Champion International.

The permit proposal that is the subject of the Sept. 6 public hearing, however, is drawing criticism.
Many in the environmental community are charging that the state is simply not being tough enough on Blue Ridge Paper. They charge that the reductions asked for by the state will be easy for the papermaker to achieve. They say those improvements — a 19-percent color improvement at best — won’t lead to the same kind of noticeable, significant improvements that occurred over the last five years. They say noticeable color improvements are achievable.

Laymen and most citizens will have a hard time deciphering whether that is true. Blue Ridge officials say they are making substantial improvements, removing up to 29 percent of the brown color from their effluent. The company is seeking a variance from the same regulations other papermakers in the state have to meet for color and temperature of their effluent. Since the Pigeon River is such a small waterway, the company says making the improvements needed to meet those levels could lead to irreparable economic hardship, perhaps even mill closure.

This argument — economics versus the environment — is played out daily at hundreds of factories, power plants and other state-monitored facilities. In the end, we have little choice but to raise questions and then place our trust that state officials keep the best interest of the people in mind.

 

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The Smoky Mountain News