With the enthusiastic complicity of the State and the participation of Canadian, US, British and South African transnational mining companies, Venezuela is seeing the execution of a project promoting the immediate exploitation of a rich gold reserve which, according to its promoters and beneficiaries, will turn out to be the discovery of the famous El Dorado — sought so remorselessly in the 16th century by Europeans in these lands.

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In large-scale gold mining operations, enormous pits are dug out of the land; dynamite is often used to blast holes in the ground; ore is sprayed with cyanide solution to leach out the gold.
RainForestWeb.org

The most powerful force in Las Claritas is Crystallex, a Canadian-owned mining company. It’s not difficult to notice their presence: a high fence surrounds their huge swath of land, and at the main gate, beneath a watch tower, guards with helmets and riot sticks keep away unwanted persons. “No pictures”, says one of them harshly, even on public soil outside of their territory. It’s clear: these mining companies are here for the money and nothing else.

Another company is the US-based Hecla, which is the biggest gold producer in Venezuela. Hecla owns concessions in El Callao and El Dorado, a bit further up north, in the state of Bolivar. A third mining company, Toronto-based Bolivar Gold, holds concessions in El Callao as well. In June of 2006, the company announced the first extraction of gold at their Choco 10-field, which is supposed to hold ore reserves of 1.3 million ounces. And then of course there is the Venezuelan, state-owned CVG, which has a gold mining division.

The presence of mining companies like Crystallex and Hecla is a highly controversial issue among many NGOs and indigenous groups in Venezuela. The main reason for the controversy is the fact that the mining takes place in the Imataca Forest, a large forest reserve along the disputed border with Guyana. Though it doesn’t have the status of a national park, the area is under special administration. The Imataca Forest Reserve, which is bordered by the Orinoco delta in the north and the area of Las Claritas in the south, was created in 1963 and measures 3.8 million hectares, which makes it roughly as big as The Netherlands. The area is rich in different wood arts, gold, diamonds, copper, bauxite, magnesium, water, genetic diversity, and energy.
(source)

Mining, particularly gold mining, is an increasing threat to the world’s rainforests and to forest communities. The social and environmental repercussions of mining are particularly disturbing considering that nearly 80 percent of newly mined gold goes towards jewelry fabrication.
RainForestWeb.org

Because the Imataca Forest has the status of a reserve since 1963, it was supposed to have a Management Plan since then, but until 1997, such a plan never existed. This means that all logging and mining before that year was carried out on an improvised basis. In 1997 almost half of the reserve was given over to mining, leaving less than four percent of the region completely protected.

“… Cyanide and mercury is used for the extraction of the gold, both highly toxic substances which cause enormous damage to people’s health, and which easily pollutes complete rivers. According to Julio César Centeno, Professor at the Los Andes University in Mérida and Rapporteur to the Secretariat of the UNCED, the social and environmental costs will surpass the economic benefits by far. “The main beneficiaries will be the multinational companies.”
(source)

Water interacts with these wastes to generate contaminated fluids that can pollute soils, rivers, and ground waters. These fluids can be highly acidic and metal-laden or highly alkaline, and they often contain various forms of cyanide, depending on the waste source. Although tailings are often deposited in lined facilities, leaks are not uncommon. High rainfall, typical in the Guayana region, can aggravate this problem by causing tailings ponds to exceed their recommended capacity and either overflow or rupture dams, contaminating groundwater and nearby streams, as was the case at the Omai mine in Guyana.
source

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Experts from the park and Western Kentucky University conducted the research, which was intended to measure the amount of the poisonous metal in park wildlife, including bats that inhabit Mammoth Cave.

Their work is now also shedding light on how pollutants, such as mercury, become concentrated in and saturate our natural environment.


During the park study, teams of researchers spent two summers using nets to capture hundreds of the estimated 6,000 to 8,000 inhabiting bats for evaluation. The teams strategically placed the nets at locations the bats were expected to fly during the evening hours, such as at the mouth of caves.

Once researchers caught the bats, locks of hair were trimmed from the animals, placed in sterile bags and sent to a Western Kentucky University laboratory for evaluation. As is the case with human beings, the level of mercury found in the bats’ hair has been revealed to correlate with the amount of mercury in their small, fury bodies.

This correlation is called “biomagnification.” Biomagnification is the process where concentrations of a specified pollutant, in this case mercury, increase at each link in the food chain. Prior to this groundbreaking research, mercury studies typically focused on humans and other animals that consume mercury-tainted fish, which are just one step higher on the food chain than the lowly insects. As it turns out, the recent research on bats verses mercury pollution is quite revolutionary because it is revealing that biomagnification even takes place in animals that feed on tiny insects.

In the case of bats, toxic mercury, derived primarily from power plants, falls to the ground and accumulates in a multitude of microscopic plants. These plants are then eaten by minuscule animals, which are then eaten by insects, which are finally devoured by our only truly-flying mammal, bats. Through each of these eating cycles, the quantity of mercury increases until it reaches the bat. In other words, the bat accumulates more mercury than the insect, the insect has more than the minuscule animal, and the minuscule animal has more than the microscopic plant. And so it goes.

Environmental groups and park authorities are placing the blame for the increased mercury contamination primarily on the emissions from Kentucky’s many coal-fired power plants. Utility companies, however, say they are reducing mercury emissions as a result of recent legislation. They point out that some mercury in the atmosphere comes from certain natural events, such as forest fires and volcanoes.

Additionally, Kentucky’s coal-fired power plants are likely not the only mercury contributor as bats do migrate and can acquire the lethal mercury during their travels to neighboring states. Mercury, like bats, is also able to travel long distances before settling in bodies of water or being soaked up by tiny plants.

While Kentucky’s power plants are not the lone mercury bandit, many environmentalists call Kentucky a mercury “hot spot” due to the sheer number of coal-fired plants. In fact, state officials have had to issue mercury warnings cautioning people against eating fish taken out of rivers, creeks, lakes and ponds located in all 120 Kentucky counties.

Although it is yet to be determined whether or not the amount of mercury found in these bats is actually causing serious harm, such as damage to the central nervous and reproductive systems, researchers have already found mercury in the bats’ hair at nearly 10 parts per million.

10 parts per million is an extremely elevated level, a concentration beyond which detrimental health effects are detected in humans and a variety of rodents. In fact, the United States Environmental Protection Agency reports that human mercury exposure should be limited to 1 part per million. This is a whopping 10 times lower than the level found in bats during the Mammoth Cave National Park study.

It is now understood that bats are especially susceptible to the toxic metal due to their high metabolic rate, which requires the bats to consume an excessive amount of insects every night. In fact, bats are better than your average bug zapper light as many can easily eat close to their body weight in insects in just one night. That’s a lot of bugs.

Because of the sheer number of insects bats must eat to survive, it is believed that mercury has the obvious potential to seriously affect a bat’s ability to reproduce, thus hindering their capability of keeping their species alive. Mercury contamination can also alter the way the baby bats’ brains develop as well as impair the adult bats’ ability to care for their new babies.

For the furry-faced Indiana bat, which is found throughout the eastern states, the future is uncertain as they are still facing the threat of extinction. At one time, this tiny flying mammal, only weighing as much as three pennies, is estimated to have numbered up into the tens of millions in and around Kentucky’s Mammoth Cave National Park.

Urban development, increased farming and deadly tree diseases depleted and, in fact, removed a significant amount of these tiny bats’ maternity habitat and food supply. Prior to 1941, when Mammoth Cave was designated as a national park, much of its 52,000-plus acres were used as cattle grazing-ground, farmland as well as a prime location to harvest a great deal of timber.

Dutch elm disease also eliminated 90 percent of the nation’s American elm trees; a member of the elm tree family that the Indiana bats used to raise their young. Currently the Dutch elm tree has made a comeback, however the current woodlands are still too young to support the needs of the many roosting females. This serious decline in suitable roosting trees presents quite a challenge for mammals that only produce one offspring each year.

Scientists have estimated that, at one point in history, as many as ten million bats wintered in Mammoth Cave. That number has been reduced to zero. When the Indiana bat was added to the Federal Endangered Species List in 1967, their numbers had declined drastically; by greater than 60 percent. It is now estimated that the current national population of this bat is only roughly 330,000.

The Mammoth Cave National Park research findings, which are still being scrutinized, will most likely turn into a conflict between environmentalists, Kentucky power plants and, of course, government environmental authorities over the effects that toxic mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants has on the environment, including the bats who reside at the park.

In 2005, Environmental Protection Agency authorities imposed a seemingly significant limit on mercury emissions from power plants. These new regulations should reduce mercury emissions by approximately 70 percent over the next 13 years.

Many environmentalists, however, are still not convinced that these new mercury pollution regulations will be enough to protect the environment. Some groups have even challenged the new policy in court saying it is still too weak and will take too long to make a significant environmental difference.

While some may not give the future of creatures that often provoke fear because of their Halloween-like, spooky reputation of sucking human blood and attacking unsuspecting people, the importance of bats should not be underestimated.

Insect control, particularly of the dreaded mosquito, is just one of the benefits offered to the world by the bat. Consider the little brown bat that can swallow approximately 600 mosquitoes an hour.

The mosquito is just one insect different varieties of bats love to devour. The big brown bat can devour about 18 million rootworms every year, while the long-eared pallid bat can actually hear its prey – various walking insects, such as scorpions, centipedes and grasshoppers.

Not all bats eat insects, but they still provide other benefits to humans and our environment. Some bats, like the lesser long-nosed bat, drink nectar. Just like bees and hummingbirds, they carry pollen from one flower to another, thus aiding in the pollination of plants.

Photo:Doug Bowman

Some bats, like the short-tailed fruit bat, eat delicious fruit and scatter the seeds as they fly. Some 60,000 seeds can be distributed in one night by a single short-tailed fruit bat living in South and Central American rain forests.

Finally, take a minute to think of the mysterious vampire bat of Central and South America. While these bats do suck the blood of certain larger mammals, they pose no threat to humans. In fact, vampire bats have actually helped the medical profession.

Photo:bubblemonkey

Vampire bat saliva is unique and is made up of three ingredients that keep their preys’ blood freely flowing. An anticoagulant is the primarily component and works to keep the blood from clotting. A relatively new drug, Draculin, has been developed as a result of research and testing on the anticoagulant element of vampire bat saliva. This drug is now used to the benefit of human patients with heart ailments.

It should be obvious that there really is much to be lost if the diverse environments of the many bat species are not protected.

High Resolution Images from this article

One of Michigan’s most exclusive communities, prestigious Bay Harbor, stretches along five miles of Lake Michigan’s Little Traverse Bay scenic coastline. This impressive four-season, luxury resort community comes with all of amenities one would expect of such an upper class, high society resort community – the 27-hole Bay Harbor Golf Club (which Golf Digest magazine calls “The Pebble Beach of the Midwest”), the Olympic-caliber Bay Harbor Equestrian Club, and, the part that is supposed to set this community apart from all others, the first-rate deep-water harbor.

But, this spectacular private community, which rests between Charlevoix and Petoskey, has a dirty little secret, and it just so happens to have found its way to the surface – the surface of the waters of Bay Harbor. Throughout the past year, the Northwest Michigan Community Health Agency has issued advisories and even closed certain beaches along Bay Harbor and Resort Township’s East Park. People have been advised to avoid three stretches of beach that actually covers roughly 7,000 feet of Lake Michigan shoreline.

This 7,000-foot area along Lake Michigan’s sandy coastline just happens to be near old, buried kiln dust piles. And, it just so happens that portions of the exclusive Bay Harbor resort and park were developed right on top of the well-known, hidden heaps of kiln dust. The kiln dust mounds, which have caused highly alkaline seepage and toxic heavy metal pollution, is a waste product left behind by the old Penn-Dixie Cement Company which operated at the very site of Bay Harbor’s development for decades until the 1960s.

For more than 100 years the Penn-Dixie Cement Company and mining operations spoiled and disfigured in excess of 1,200 acres and five miles of Lake Michigan shoreline on Little Traverse Bay. The retired cement plant, which lay abandoned for 35 years after closing its doors back in the 1960s, left a desolate moonscape consisting of asbestos, coal, chromium brick, and 2.5 million cubic yards of kiln dust.

This contaminated eyesore sat unchanged until 1993 when David V. Johnson, Bay Harbor Company Chairman, joined forces with CMS Energy and began what was, and still is to this day, North America’s largest land reclamation. Together, Johnson and CMS Energy attempted to do what most true environmentalist advocate. Instead of destroying existing forests, farmable fields, and the very habitats necessary to support native wildlife, Bay Harbor was developed over a desolate, environmental blemish that no one else wanted to mess with.

The vision of Harbor Bay, which started in the early 1990s with the alliance between Johnson and CMS Energy, would definitely be put to the test as the real pollution problems became evident. At the beginning of their partnership, CMS Energy agreed to assume every bit of the liability for all initial necessary environmental cleaning as well as complete responsibility for handling the cleanup of any future environmental mishaps, should any arise.

Beginning in 1994, the bleak moonscape environment seemed to change overnight as synchronized explosions brought down the plant’s obsolete smokestacks. Just eight short months later, the barrier that separated Little Traverse Bay and Bay Harbor was removed allowing water to gush into Bay Harbor with amazing speed. Flowing at a rate of one million gallons per minute, it took just 24 hours to accumulate more than 2.5 billion gallons of water that gave birth to Bay Harbor Lake and created the brand new Nautical Center of the Great Lakes.

Because Bay Harbor ranks as one of America’s best marina resort facilities and is home to the Bay Harbor Yacht Club, Bay Harbor exemplifies the perfect, definitive lifestyle. The Bay Harbor Lake Marina has been revered because it is said to provide a safe harbor, and it has actually grown to be one of the biggest and most well known destinations for Great Lakes boaters. In fact, the Wall Street Journal once called Bay Harbor a “magnet for the world’s magnates.”

But now, just 12 years after the extreme makeover of a once desolate moonscape into a renowned resort community with all of life’s best amenities and $5 million waterfront mansions, it appears that the fantasy-like transformation was, just that, an incomplete fantasy.

As the transformation began, four towering heaps containing toxic cement kiln dust were covered by dirt and rock. These four massive piles of kiln dust were equivalent to greater than 312,000 completely filled, commercial-sized dumpsters. Once, concealed under rock, soil, and new grass, much of the once barren terrain was landscaped with new, young trees and multiple varieties of attractive, healthy plant-life. At the bottom of the biggest mound, a piping system was installed with the very important job of collecting any toxic runoff and transferring it to a nearby wastewater treatment plant in Petoskey.

Unfortunately, this trusted and relied-upon collection system failed. Then things went from bad to worse as the system was not repaired. It was simply quietly shut off for about eight months from the end of 2003 to the beginning of 2004.

Finally, state authorities tested the water in Bay Harbor and discovered a dangerous dilemma. Toxic runoff was seeping directly into the bay in disturbing amounts. As they continued their investigation, it was found that Bay Harbor was being harshly infected at many spots along the bay’s five-mile coastline as well as at the site of the idle collection pipes.

Levels of pH elevated to 13.5 were discovered in some standing water on a number of private beaches. According to the Michigan Department of Community Health, pH levels this high are just about as caustic as the average liquid bleach and drain cleaners. In fact, pH levels of 13.5 are considered well above levels strong enough to inflict irreversible skin damage.

Along the sandy coastlines of some beaches, vegetation and insects appear to have vanished as a result of the noxious seepage. But, the contamination does not stop on the beaches. The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality has documented that water tests taken as far out as 90 feet offshore still show high alkalinity levels.

As the magnitude of this pollution is still being measured, there are many who suggest that the perils of this type of land and water contamination has been overstated and embellished. These skeptics allege that a lot of the red carpet, resort community’s lake front property has been evaluated and is completely free of contamination. This area, they say, includes a sandy swimming beach designated for residents along with the well known boat harbor.

In contrast, however, a Michigan Department of Community Health evaluation has determined that people who come into contact with the polluted lake water or any of the contaminated shoreline seepage which contains such high alkalinity levels will likely suffer irreparable injuries to bodily tissues, particularly on the skin, in the eyes, and around mucous membranes.

In addition to the dangers of very high pH levels, mercury found in the lake’s water and seepage also presents a significant health hazard. Mercury, which can irreversibly impair the human body’s central nervous system, poses a noteworthy threat to anyone who comes in contact or ingests the chemical. The threat of mercury is especially strong for unborn fetuses and young children. As a result, mercury contamination is a primary concern for health officials when issuing health advisories regarding avoiding or reducing consumption of fish taken from Lake Michigan.

Test results have shown mercury levels in some of the shoreline seepage puddles around Bay Harbor at levels 230 times higher than the safe threshold at which all wildlife can be exposed on an ongoing rate. It is also important to mention that the levels of several other dangerous toxins also surpass Michigan’s safety standards. Some of these contaminates include selenium, copper, zinc and nickel.

Now that Bay Harbor’s ugly little secret has finally churned back to the surface for everyone to see, closed beaches, protective fencing, health advisories, and government workers in white protective suits are the norm along some parts of Bay Harbor. At least a dozen lakefront homes have been directly impacted, and the value of many undeveloped waterfront home sites will probably decrease. The force of such damaging and potentially deadly pollution is bound to flow throughout the roughly 550-home-resort community.

The unfortunate thing about the Bay Harbor pollution crisis is that it, like most other man-made environmental catastrophes, could have been prevented.

As it turns out, Michigan state environmental officials were aware of the toxic brew that was leaching into Little Traverse Bay for several years prior to the development of Bay Harbor. At the time, even though the building and development site for the upscale Bay Harbor community was to be directly over the concealed and abandoned cement-kiln dust piles, the environmental and human health risks were announced and documented as negligible.

According to records examined by the Detroit Free Press, environmental authorities with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality had been aware that the nickel, lead and copper levels that were oozing into Lake Michigan surpassed tolerable and safe limits going back to 1989. This is some five years prior to the beginning of the development of the Bay Harbor community.

For some reason, however, at that time, the environmental regulators opted to not require the developer to completely contain and satisfactorily treat all the seepage. Their initial conclusion was that the contamination was, and would remain, insignificant.
As a direct result, in 1989, the state of Michigan established that the kiln dust was to be labeled as an inert byproduct. And, in 1994, environmental officials agreed that the state would not have the right to sue Bay Harbor in the event of any future problems, including any messy environmental problems that may occur.

The federal government, on the other hand, did not make the same agreement.

The federal Environmental Protection Agency and CMS Energy have been discussing direct and immediate measures to enclose the poisonous overspill. The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality will be responsible for the supervision and administration of the continuing, long-term solution.

For now, as the cleanup of Bay Harbor continues, hazardous sections have been fenced off, warning signs posted. Contractors have been draining off lethal stagnant water from along the shore, and the existing collection system is now up and running again. There are also plans all ready in the making for a new, more comprehensive collection system.

Due to their agreement for assuming all responsibility for any environmental mishaps, CMS Energy has laid aside roughly $45 million. All of this is designated for the cleanup of Bay Harbor, but no one can be sure if this huge amount of money will even be enough to cleanse and purify the water and land of this exclusive resort community.

What’s the first thing you think of when you sit down to a delicious, seafood dinner? If you enjoy eating seafood even half as much as I do, you are probably already salivating at the very thought of it. You probably are not looking at this masterfully cooked cuisine and wondering whether the catfish was farmed or wild or whether the grilled Salmon once swam in one of the Great Lakes or the great Pacific Ocean. Of course not. There is, however, one question that we all may be forgetting to ask… just how much mercury has accumulated in my broiled mahi mahi?

This question should be of particular concern to Hoosiers as Indiana’s coal-burning power plants emit the fourth-largest volume of mercury in the country. Indiana is one of the most coal-dependent states in the United States and actually generates approximately 95 percent of the state’s electricity from fossil fuel at its 21 plants. As a result, Indiana’s dirty power plants have helped the state receive very high marks among our nation’s top polluters. In fact, Indiana is ranked among the top-five polluting states in the country.

But just what is mercury and how does burning coal result in the emission of mercury into our environment?

Mercury is a naturally-occurring metal found in water, air, soil, and is actually an element of the earth’s crust. Humans cannot create or destroy mercury. Mercury can exist in many forms; however, pure mercury is actually a liquid metal that is also known as quicksilver. Traditionally, mercury has been utilized in the production of, to name a few, thermometers, some types of light bulbs, and switches; although, most people are exposed to mercury primarily by eating contaminated fish.

As an element of the planet’s crust, mercury can be found in many types of rocks. One very useful mercury-containing rock just happens to be coal. When coal is burned, mercury is released into the air. Once in the air, mercury will eventually settle in water or on land where it is swept, along with other pollutants, into the water as storm water runoff. After mercury enters a pond, river, or lake, various microorganisms that live in the water begin to transform the element into the very toxic methylmercury.

This is where the real problems start as methylmercury is a highly poisonous substance that collects in the bodies of certain shellfish, fish, and many fish-eating animals, including us humans. And, because fish and shellfish are the leading cause of human methylmercury exposure, it is important for us to remember that some types of fish and shellfish are more susceptible to methylmercury and will build up higher levels of the toxin than others.

For this reason, we need to pay particular attention to the types of fish we are eating. This can be a confusing subject though as the amount of methylmercury found in fish and shellfish will depend on several factors: What did my large mouth bass typically dine on, how old was he, and just how high on the food chain did he rank. It can be assumed that the bigger the fish, the higher on the food chain (the more little fish he gobbled), the higher the risk of eating a mercury-laced dinner.

Not very appetizing, huh?

So, what does this mean for those of us in Indiana?

For one thing, data collected by the United States Geological Survey at four Indiana monitoring stations has determined that the quantity of mercury falling from the Hoosier state’s sky is roughly 25 percent higher than the national average. When you consider the size of Indiana compared to the nation as a whole, 25 percent is considerable. Further, even though the southwestern part of Indiana has one of the greatest concentrations of coal-fueled power plants in the United States, it is interesting to mention that currently there are no monitors in that part of the state.

As an attempt to curb methylmercury poisoning and contamination, Indiana’s coal-burning power plants must now, for the first time, slash mercury emissions as a result of a recent federal ruling. This new regulation, signed into effect in March 2005, is intended to radically reduce the release of toxic mercury by 70 percent nationwide over the next 15 years.

The majority of the pollution reduction will be a result of tighter controls on smog and soot-type contaminates. Having a reduction in these types of pollutants as a result of new pollution controls will present Indiana utilities with a price tag in the billions. Indiana will also have to fork over the necessary funds to cut the toxic mercury levels back to the new stricter standards by the year 2018.

Similar to the smog and soot regulations, the EPA’s new mercury strategy sets a national limit on emissions. What this really means is that all utilities that successfully reduce mercury pollution will be permitted to sell pollution “credits” to those companies who do not meet the standards. This “bartering” can take place as long as the nationwide cap is not surpassed.

Currently, 48 tons of mercury are discharged into the environment each year. By the year 2010, this figure will reportedly be restricted to 38 tons. By the year 2018, the limit should be 15 tons; however, it could very likely take several more years to fully realize this level because the utilities that significantly reduce their emissions during the early years will actually have more time to comply with this important environmental ruling.

What all of this indicates is that the amount of overall mercury emissions will decrease over time; however, some of the “dirtier” power plants will be allowed to purchase the right to continue releasing the elevated levels of mercury. The obvious, possible result would be mercury “hot spots.” These hot spots would be the waterways around the power plants that still emit the higher levels of mercury. These elevated levels of mercury would eventually work its way up the food chain, of course, concentrating its efforts in fish.

Do you feel that these emissions and pollution regulations are really enough? Some medical doctors and environmentalists are saying that even these pollution reductions are not extensive enough, nor immediate enough, for Indiana. Some who work in the power plant and utilities industries are saying that these new regulations are a clean-air landmark; however, quite a few environmentalists are not satisfied and believe these new regulations to be too lax to ensure the health of Hoosiers.

In fact, many are coming to the worrisome conclusion that the mercury problem in Indiana is actually putting Hoosier kids in danger. According to the Hoosier Environmental Council, for many Indiana kids, predominately from lower-income and/or minority families, state-caught fish is actually one of their biggest sources of protein.

To illustrate this danger, take a look at a couple of startling statistics:

In Indiana alone, there are roughly 1,127,326 kids living just about 30 miles away from a coal-burning power plant. 30 miles is the estimated area in which the most damaging and severe health impacts are realized. Using the same geographical closeness, research has found that infants exposed to consistently elevated levels of particulate matter pollution are at a 26 percent increased risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome as well as a 40 percent increased threat of death as a result of severe respiratory illness.

Currently, throughout the state of Indiana, all women and children are cautioned to monitor the amount of fish and shellfish we eat from any of the many state waterways due to the dangerous threat of methylmercury. It has been proven that, due to its neurotoxic effects, abnormally-high amounts of methylmercury in the bloodstreams of fetuses and young children harm the youngsters’ developing nervous system which in turn causes the child to be less likely to think and learn at normally-expected levels. More specifically, the effects of mercury exposure are much like the results of lead poisoning in children – delayed mental development, significant cognitive and language deficits, and difficulties developing normal motor function, attention, and memory.

If all of you Hoosier men are breathing a sigh of relief, think again. Exposure to elevated levels of mercury proves harmful to the brain, heart, kidneys, lungs, and immune system of everyone, not just women and young children. Therefore, all Hoosiers need to watch their fish and shellfish intake. And, remember, Indiana has standard warnings advising every Hoosier to limit their consumption of and completely avoid eating many different types of fish taken from any of its 35,673 miles of rivers and caught in any of its 47,806 acres of lakes – this, in a large part, is because of mercury contamination.

Research suggests, however, that for the majority of us, fish consumption, when limited or minimal, will not present a significant health concern. However, we all might want to remember the old saying: “You are what you eat.” Conversely, there are still areas of specific concern even when fish consumption is limited. For example, 2003 research conducted by the Centers for Disease Control determined that approximately 10 percent of American women already have elevated mercury levels – levels high enough to put an unborn fetus at a potential risk for neurological damage and delays.

So, considering the fact that coal-burning power plants are responsible for the largest human-caused mercury air emissions in the United States combined with the real and present danger that methylmercury can pose to all of us; it is definitely an environmental issue that warrants much serious attention – Not just for those of us in Indiana, but across the nation.

In the case of Indiana, three of its coal-burning power plants made the Environmental Integrity Project’s “America’s Most Dirtiest Power Plants” top 50 for 2002. The EIP, a nonprofit, nonpartisan group that strives for more effective enforcement of current environmental regulations, report that three of Indiana’s power plants were among the top 50 dirties mercury polluters – Rockport’s AEP – ranked 18th, Gibson’s Cinergy – ranked 34th, and Petersburg’s AES – ranked 46th – out of a total of 491 total plants evaluated.

When I take a look at the list of fish that you and I should not consume more than once a month (canned tuna, mahi mahi, blue mussel, eastern oyster, cod, Pollock, Great lakes salmon, channel catfish (wild), and Lake whitefish) along with the pregnant and nursing woman’s inventory of black-listed fish (shark, swordfish, tilefish, and king mackerel), I feel a little sad. A “natural resource” such as our waterways and the fish who reside there should not have “warning labels.” I can see warning labels on cigarette packs, beer and liquor bottles, chewing tobacco, household chemicals, etc. But, something is definitely a little strange when we have to consider putting warning labels on the fish that we eat.

Industry officials argue that, at this time in history, the commercially-available technology to reduce mercury pollution by at least 90 percent does not yet exist. Some environmentalists are saying that the technology is out there and just has to be utilized properly. Both could be partially right; however, I would think that if we can send astronauts into space to walk on the moon, we should be able to strategically and successfully be capable of tackling methylmercury emissions.

A power generation plant near Washington DC has voluntarily ceased production to protect the health of people living nearby. Seriously. Really!

It sounds like a fairy tale but it’s the official story being given by Mirant Corporation, owner of the power plant. What lies below the surface, however, is another matter entirely. Years of bitter fighting between the residents of a densely populated urban area and the owners of a coal-burning power plant in their midst have left both sides alienated, angry, and advocating permanent solutions.

Mirant’s Potomac River Generation Station (PRGS) was built in a lower density neighborhood near Washington, D.C. circa 1949. But sprawl happens, and now there are high-rise condos neighboring the plant.

Computer Models and Reality

On August 19, 2005 the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) received the results of a computer simulation study on emissions from Mirant’s plant in Alexandria, VA. The results showed that if the plant operated all five of its generators at full tilt and certain wind conditions were present, the emissions of three substances (sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and particles) would exceed acceptable limits in the area immediately surrounding the plant. Virginia DEQ gave Mirant less than a week to propose a solution.

The study was jointly commissioned by Mirant and DEQ. While the worst-case scenario results show that Mirant could generate excess pollution, Steven Arabia of Mirant has pointed out that actual emissions from the plant are within Federal guidelines. There are pollution monitors around the plant and on the neighboring condos.

Mirant and DEQ failed to come to an agreement in a teleconference on Wednesday, August 24. At midnight Mirant shut down power generation at the plant, stating that they would re-start when a solution was agreed to. DEQ claims that they never requested nor suggested that Mirant should cease generation there.

Mirant representatives have held fast to the line that they are doing this out of concern for the health of people living in the area. But if one looks at Mirant’s record, this just doesn’t ring true. And the question must be asked: What could Mirant hope to gain by temporarily halting generation?

The plant, which is still in the same place, is now located in a densely populated urban area, and is woven into the complex network that supplies electricity to the Nation’s Capitol. While there is enough excess production in the network to cover the loss of Mirant’s 482 megawatts, it leaves the Capitol without a safety net. If there is a heat wave (above 96° F) or other disaster, the grid could falter.

When dealing with the complex machine that is the electrical power grid, a falter can quickly turn into a chain-reaction failure given the complex power needs of the region.

Because of the risk this presents to the nation, the D.C. Public Service Commission has already petitioned the U.S. Department of Energy and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to force the plant back into service.

Potomac Electric Power Company (PEPCO), the company that buys electricity from Mirant and sells it to customers in the D.C. area, has contingency plans in place and assures that customer service will not be interrupted. So long as there are no extreme weather events, like a 98 °F heat wave in late August, for example. They have been instructed to create contingency plans for their contingency plans.

Clean Air or Electricity?

Obviously, we need both. But half of Maryland’s electricity is generated in coal-burning plants. In the D.C. area, 180,000 residents go to the hospital each year with respiritory ailments that have been directly linked to air pollution from coal fired power plants.

The air pollution puts infants and the elderly at even greater risk. In 2005 an estimated 687 Maryland residents are expected to succumb to their last gathering involving slow singing and flower bringing because of particulate pollution created in coal-burning power plants. Mirant has finally heard the alarm ringing.

Residents and politicians in the area of the Potomac plant have been concerned about emissions for years. When the Alexandria plant was built in 1949, the height of its stacks was limited to 165 feet by the FAA to ensure the safety of planes approaching and leaving what was then Washington National Airport.

Marina Towers condominiums (501 Slaters Lane) was then built near the plant’s stacks by developers eager to take advantage of the real estate boom. But the proximity and height of the Marina Towers structure produces a downwash effect that causes harmful pollutants to settle in the area rather than drift away. The residents of Marina Towers and others have been working to either cut emissions from the plant or close it down. Locals complain of respiratory problems that are most likely brought about by emissions from the Potomac plant.

It’s worth mentioning that the plant is no secret, so it’s not like the residents who bought condos somehow didn’t know it was there. It’s a huge industrial power plant, and the smokestacks, even at their dangerously low height, are visible for miles. The condominium complex at issue is very close to the power plant.

Lots of people live near coal-fired power plants that continue to operate, causing disastrous health consequences for persons nearby and downwind. Usually these persons don’t live in highrise condominiums. Those living nearby power plants may lack the sophistication to order a computer model but they are at risk just the same.

The air traffic approach to the airport has since been re-routed over the Potomac River, so the stacks can be extended. According to the computer model, they should be at least 100 feet taller to alleviate the downwash effect. The taller the better is what you would be asking for, if you are breathing nearby.

Environmentalists are calling on the federal government and energy industry to fill the gap created by the halt in generation with renewable and green energy sources, such as solar and wind. But such generation fields are not brought about overnight. For some inexplicable reason, it still takes years of planning and construction to create a solar or wind farm. So the lack of a planning fast track and an efficient design methodology for renewable power generation could be an issue. But this is arguably a management issue.

Mirant has taken the first step by placing the five generators at the plant into standby mode. But does the current executive leadership of the company have the courage to lead the power generation industry into sustainable, health-friendly production of electricity?

While their spokespeople express a great concern for people’s health, Mirant’s action in shutting down production at PRGS says “Which do you want? Clean air or enough electrical power to keep the Nation’s Capitol stable..? Well?”

Mirant as a Neighbor

The Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN) has held protests at other Mirant plants around DC and spent years pressuring both Mirant and PEPCO to provide cleaner energy. They’ve had some pleasant successes, including PEPCO now offering wind-generated electricity to its customers.

Mirant was negotiating with Federal agencies to reduce emissions during the Clinton administration. Once President Bush started easing environmental restrictions on coal-burning plants, Mirant simply walked away from that table. If they are not required by law to reduce emissions they will not do so voluntarily. Going a step further, Mirant has regularly lobbied against environmental laws that could affect the energy industry at both the State and Federal levels.

And then there is the tax problem. Rockland County had expected Mirant to pay their full tax bill. But Mirant has taken the County to court with a demand for lower taxes, stating that they are unable to pay the full amount. This is causing school taxes in Rockland to go up between 7% and 40% which comes out to as much as $250 per month in additional taxes for residents of Tomkins Cove. Mirant has been also delinquent on taxes in Charles, Montgomery, and Prince Georges counties according to CCAN.

A Little History

Mirant has had a tough life since it was spun off from Southern Company in 2001. Southern Co. stripped the company of $2 billion in assets and left it with a $60 million liability tied to the Enron scandal. In July 2003, Mirant management filed for bankruptcy.

In the wide and wild wake of Enron, they could not convince competent creditors to extend them any more credit and could not meet a $1.1 billion loan payment. Thus, the tenth largest bankruptcy in the U.S.

Its expenses have far outpaced expectations. Final costs for the bankruptcy may reach as high as $700,000,000 — seven hundred million dollars — most of which is paid to lawyers and consultants.

Mirant may be able to emerge from the bankruptcy by September 5. They have secured $2.35 billion in credit to pay off their loans and become solvent. Yet they shut down the five generating stations at the plant because of some criticism and a computer model.

Could this be a turning point in the operation of the company toward one that takes responsibility for the health problems that older coal-fired plants are known to produce in urban areas?

Mirant purchased the Potomac plant from PEPCO. Part of their agreement has Mirant selling discounted energy back to PEPCO. Mirant will not increase production at its other three facilities in the area—they say that these are already near capacity. So perhaps this helps get them out of the discount power business.

There’s no question that the Potomac plant create hazardous pollutants in excess of the allowed amounts. In the ozone season of 2003 it exceeded its Nitrogen Dioxide (Nox) permit by 1,117 tons, and was fined $500,000. Since then it has appeared to stay within limits for all pollutants.

Politicians Jump In

Maryland’s Governor is retiring, and the office is up for grabs. County Executive Douglas M. Duncan has thrown himself into this issue with gusto. After the Alexandria plant powered down, he asked the Maryland Governor to do additional testing at Mirant’s three generation facilities on the Maryland side of the Potomac. On the Dickerson coal-burning plant the smokestack is 700 feet high, as opposed to the 165-foot stack in Alexandria, so that one probably won’t cause the same problems nearby—instead those problems will be widely dispersed over the Chesapeake Bay and the Eastern Shore. The jury is still out on the other two. Presumably we will hear back on this issue from Mr. Duncan.

Mirant wholesales electricity in the U.S., Philippines, and Caribbean. The Alexandria plant supplies electricity to between 500,000 and 700,000 customers in Washington, D.C. and surrounding areas. Their common stock can be traded under the symbol [MIRKQ] on the “pink sheets,” and shares in this company may actually end up having no value at all. Mirant’s stock (MIRKQ:PK) closed at $0.80 on Friday, August 26, 2005.

A Judicial Decision

Right now, it all rests on an upcoming decision to be made by the Honorable D. Michael Lynn, U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas. Several of those following this case closely have suggested the actions of Mirant management and creditors establish a new precedent for corporate manipulation.

Pre-bankruptcy shareholders and disciples of The Mirant Mindset are hoping Judge Lynn remains mindful of these actions when making his judgment. While the interested parties are sweating it out, the neighbors of the Alexandria plant will at least be breathing a little easier this Labor Day weekend.

References and Sources for this story

An industrial city founded in 1935 as a slave labor camp, the Siberian city of Norilsk, Russia is the northernmost major city in Russia. After Murmansk, it’s the largest city above the Arctic Circle. It’s also the most polluted.

Right now, in June and July, the sun stays up all day, but the furnaces in the Nadezhda Metallurgical plant run round the clock all year long, smelting nickel and other ores and spouting a steady fountain of toxic, sulfurous smoke. Two million tons of sulfur dioxide per year since the 1950s. That they reported.

As a result, the Norilsk region is the home of the world’s largest pollution induced forest decline. For forty kilometers around the smelters, the soil contains 10-1000 times the normal background level of heavy metals.

As a result, the snow is yellow and black.

As a result, move to Norilsk to work, and your life expectancy will drop by ten years.

“Norilsk is the world’s biggest nickel and palladium producer, having overtaken Inco several years back. Since data first emerged from the ex-Soviet Union in the early nineties, it has established itself as one of the world’s single biggest ambient air polluters – if not the biggest. Indeed, despite early technological assistance from outside Russia (notably from Finland’s Outokumpu Oy), its contribution to the country’s sulphur dioxide burden has increased in relative terms.” Mines & Communities

“[Norilsk] is a city where the bus driver tells you, ‘If a Norilsk man gets sick in Moscow, the way to cure him is to move him closer to the car’s exhaust.’” Howard Weaver

“In my estimation, about 400,000 people took part in the construction of this complex. Due to the cold and the bullets, about one-fifth of them died,” Anatoly Lvov says. “At the same time, tens of thousands of volunteers worked shoulder to shoulder with the prisoners, and they object to those who say Norilsk was built on people’s bones. The prisoners who survived also are proud to have built this.” Howard Weaver

"In 1997, with the old combine in disarray, one of Russia’s richest men, Vladimir O. Potanin, bought its mines and factories and began a modernization that has cut the work force nearly in half, to 60,000, and jettisoned many of its obligations to support the city’s basic services." New York Times

“Officials say the environmental depths of Norilsk pollution was reached in 1984, but the plants even by official admission still emit many times the allowable norms and acid rain is killing hundreds of thousands of acres of forest and tundra nearby. Water pollution also is severe, with officials admitting to more than 100 polluted kilometers of river.” Howard Weaver

“The Norilsk Mining Companies… produce one seventh of all the factory pollution in Russia. Each year they churn out over two million tonnes in waste gas, and 85 million cubic meters of dirty water, according to the few figures provided by the Russian government. Its impact, ecologists say, is felt in Norway and Canada, and is killing off the forest tundra for hundreds of miles. Locals say the snow is yellow for 30 miles around the town.” Mines and Communities

“They took everything from me,” said Olga I. Yaskina, who was sent to the
Gulag in Norilsk in 1952 when she was just 16 for writing a letter to a friend in exile that said: “Don’t cry. The sun will rise for us again.”

She never left after she was released from the prison camp three years later. Now 67, she receives a pension and works as a concierge at an apartment building, supporting herself and an unemployed son on little more than $300 a month.

She stays not because she wants to but because she has no better alternative. “I have nothing left on the continent,” she said.

New York Times

"The [charitable donations] represent a “goodwill gesture” to the people of Montana from the Russian company that bought controlling interest in Stillwater Mining Co. in 2003. The donation marks ZooMontana’s largest corporate donation to date. Frank McAllister, CEO at Stillwater, said the idea was born when the company was in the midst of transactions with Norilsk two years ago.

“We were concerned about our image and needed to explain to the community exactly who Norilsk is,” he said.
Billings Gazette

Thanks to Dave Greten

You may have heard that it’s getting more difficult to see the view in Grand Canyon National Park. The Department of the Interior first complained about the air quality there in 1985. It keeps getting worse. You’re looking at the reason why.

It turns out there is such a thing as a coal pipeline. This seems to me like such a bad idea I can barely get my mind around the fact that they actually build them. This one is currently the world’s largest, and it’s been in operation since 1970.

This is where the pipeline ends: At the the massive generating station and slurry ponds just over the border in Laughlin, Nevada. About half of the electricity from the Mohave Generating Station goes to Southern California. The other half goes to Las Vegas.

Connecting from the generating station to the Black Mesa Coal Mine on the Hopi reservation, a distance of 275 miles, is an 18-inch diameter pipeline for coal slurry: a mix of pulverized coal and water in a ratio of 1:1 by weight.

It starts here, at the Kayenta open pit mine, operated by Peabody, the largest coal company in the world. If you’ve visited the Hoover Dam, you’ve been only a few miles from this site. They probably didn’t mention it on the tour.

In 1967, Peabody Coal negotiated the mining rights to the Black Mesa with a Mormon named John Boyden, who represented the Hopi while himself secretly on the payroll of the coal company.

The Hopi sued in federal court to get the lease overturned, but the court ruled that the Hopi, in effectively suing themselves, were violating their tribe’s own sovereign immunity to lawsuit.

It’s almost unimaginable how much water this coal pipeline requires. The company admits to about 4000 acre-feet a year, but it’s probably higher: the Hopi agreed to almost unlimited water withdrawal from the aquifer, back in ’67. They have since rethought that agreement as their water dries up.

Four thousand acre-feet is around one and a half billion gallons, or six million tons of water. Every year. Since 1970.

All of that is fossil water pumped from the deep aquifer. None of the water is recovered. It’s grossly contaminated by the time the coal is ‘de-watered’ in the huge black slurry ponds at the end of the line.

Of course the mine itself, and the smokestacks at the generating station, and the mercury-laced alkali ash produced by the burning, are all environmental nightmares in their own right. But this pipe just freaks me out.

Thanks to Nat Vaprin.