BP to double waste/sludge pumped into LAKE MICHIGAN

BP to double waste/sludge pumped into LAKE MICHIGAN

www.chicagotribune.com

Mithc Daniles signs legislation to double the pollution pumpout into Lake Michigan.....

(visit the link for the full news article)

This Story broke here in CHicago two days ago. Please as a fisherman and boater on Lake Michigan for years take 2 min to call and politely express your dissgust and dissatisfaction with this move to further polutte and compramise this amaizng Natural resource, that is the source of 10 million peoples drinking water.

I have called and his secretary was nice enough to take my name and forward my message to him.

Please inundate this office with your oppinion on this tragic and blatent dissrespect for the well being of the lake and the people that live on its shores.



Governor Mitchell Daniels (R-IN)
1st-term Republican from Indiana.
Contact Information
Web Site: www.in.gov/gov
E-mail: Contact Via 'Web Form.'
State House, Rm. 206
Indianapolis, IN 46204
Phone: (317) 232-4567
Fax: (317) 232-3443


THank you hopefully enough people will call and make Mitch rethink this misstake.





www.chicagotribune.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

Fellow members of ATS please call and help me make a differance

I'm up in Green Bay, and I'll be calling to express my opinion as well.



[edit on 19-7-2007 by Mekanic]

Ok, I emailed Gov Daniels office, and got this reply.

I'm sorry for the long quote, but this is from my email, not a linkable page.

Kristin Wiley
Governor's Liaison for the Indiana Department of Environmental Management

Dear Mr. ---, (I removed my name here)

Thank you for your e-mail to Governor Daniels regarding your concerns about the BP refinery in Whiting, Indiana. He appreciates the time you took to share your comments and has asked me to respond on his behalf.

The Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) issued the BP wastewater permit in accordance with state and federal environmental laws, which are protective of human health and the environment. IDEM coordinated with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) during this permitting process to ensure that the final permit is compliant with the Clean Water Act. On or about April 5, 2007, EPA issued a letter to IDEM indicating that EPA had no objections to the permit being issued pursuant to the Clean Water Act.

The public was asked to participate in developing this permit. The public comment period lasted several weeks and included a public meeting at Whiting City Hall. The permit document was on file in several locations before the public meeting, including the Lake County Health Department and the IDEM office in northwest Indiana, on the web and at IDEM's offices in Indianapolis.

There were several inaccuracies in the Chicago Tribune article, one of which referred to the Total Suspended Solids (TSS) limits as industrial sludge. It is not. The TSS limits in the permit are similar to the limits a small Indiana city may have for a wastewater treatment facility. Sludge is a byproduct of the wastewater treatment process and must be disposed of in a landfill or incinerator. This permit does not allow BP to put sludge into the lake. The permit requires the company to follow state and federal laws to ensure the protection of human health, aquatic life, and the environment.

The state has not provided exceptions for this facility. The permit meets both state laws and regulations that apply to the facility and project. Many of the limits placed in the permit are actually more protective than required by federal law, but because the discharge point is in Lake Michigan, additional protections were addressed. This discharge will not negatively affect drinking water, recreation or aquatic life in Lake Michigan.

Thank you for your active citizenship. Please do not hesitate to contact Governor Daniels or the Indiana Department of Environmental Management with future questions or concerns.

Sincerely,

Kristin Wiley
Governor's Liaison for the Indiana Department of Environmental Management

Edit: Fixed tags

[edit on 19-7-2007 by Mekanic]

Originally posted by Mekanic
There were several inaccuracies in the Chicago Tribune article, --

I think that is an understatement.

Sludge is a byproduct of the wastewater treatment process and must be disposed of in a landfill or incinerator.

This permit does not allow BP to put sludge into the lake.

So much for the Tribune just hyping things up which is their norm