Page 10-The Michigan Daily- Friday, April 2,1993 0 Envotech seeks to construct incinerator close to campus by Mike Goecke Daily Staff Reporter Washtenaw County's. Augusta Township may soon become the hazardous waste capital of the Midwest. Envotech, a waste management company, is seeking permission to build a $160-million industrial de- velopment that would handle hazardous waste. The proposed site would house a high-tech hazardous waste landfill and a modern, two-stage incinerator for thermally treating hazardous waste. Envotech submitted two propos-. als last May to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) - one for an incinerator and one for a landfill - but the MDNR deemed them incomplete. "The application process for (a landfill and incinerator) is the most detailed, complex, stringent applica- tion," said Ken Burda, who is in charge of the hazardous Waste Permit Program of the MDNR. "We've never seen a complete ap- plication in the history of the program," he added. Although the MDNR does not grant the actual permits, it must approve the application. "It's a two-stage process," Burda saigd "The MDNR just determines if they meet all the technical aspects, then we pass it on to a side review board." ,The side review board, comprised of 10 people - eight of whom are appointed by the governor - will conduct numerous public hearings before determining whether to issue Envotech a construction permit. Jerry Fore, vice president of Envotech project management, said, "We've had the objective of putting. together an application that can't be depied and I think we've come as close as humanly possible to achieving that." The proposed site is generating much controversy between the community and Envotech. Augusta Township Trustee Hans Poseltt said he, along with the com- munity, is opposed to the new facility. "Outside of Envotech, I don't know anyone who wants it (to be built), except maybe the governor," he said. Burda also acknowledged the opposition of the community. "I haven't been written any let- ters supporting it, let's put it that way," he said. One University student, Kathy Cook, an LSA junior, is particularly concerned because she hails from Milan, Michigan. "The air pollution can spread around 30 miles, which includes Ann Arbor," she said. Inspired by the 20th anniversary of Earth Day, three years ago Cook began researching Envotech's proposal. "There are thousands of people within a four-mile radius whose wa- ter has the potential to be contami- nated. (The waste) could even get in the aquifers that feed Great Lakes." Aquifers are underground layers of porous rock that contain water. Other reasons for caution are the unknown effects and conflicting data on hazardous waste pollution. "There are inconclusive studies from, say, acquiring cancer from living near the incinerator," she said. The necessity of the site is another debated issue. Fore said the need for such a fa- cility exists because Michigan is the second largest generator of hazardous waste in the country. "We're right in the middle of one of the greatest manufacturing industries of hazardous waste," he said. Burda added that Michigan has insufficient means to handle hazardous waste. "We have no incinerator capacity other than some limited special waste capacity, and we have three to five years of commercial land capacity." Poseltt said he sees no need for the incinerator. "Right now, in handling haz- ardous waste, we have a national ex- cess of 1 million tons. The construc- tion of new waste management facil- ities undermines efforts toward waste reduction," he said. He added, "The problem with this is that many people are getting poisoned and a few people make millions off it." Another issue fueling controversy is the history of the landfill site. Burda said, "There are alleged thousands of barrels of toxic waste at the site." The absence of strict pollution laws in the 1970s allowed the dumping to occur, he said. Burda explained that, according to Michigan Law Act 307, compa- nies responsible for polluted lands have three options. "One, they can remove all of it. Two, they can remove part of it. Or three, they can leave it and provide and on-site solution," Burda said. Envotech is attempting to satisfy the third option. Interstate commerce laws do not allow states to deny the admittance of hazardous waste. "The Supreme Court ruled that waste can come from any state. They can't regulate it to be just a regional thing," Cook said. The transportation of hazardous waste then becomes an issue. "The site is located near a prison, and if an accident occurred (the prison) would have to evacuate thousands of prisoners and the government isn't prepared," Cook said. Dan Gilbert, Envotech manager of Corporate Communications, pointed out that the waste is not as dangerous as many allege. "Hazardous waste sounds very ominous. It's not this green, oozing stuff that, if released in the air, is going to kill people," he said. One of the reasons Envotech chose the Augusta site is its proximity to the interstates. AN , STH AVE. AT LIBERTY 761-9700 25 SAILYHOWS BEFORE 6 PM $3,2 DALY DAY TUESAY exetin STUDENT WITHI.3.50 TH E CRYING e d4u: GAME 236, 4:4,;4 -.s",SSMm 120 Bill Murray FrI 5:15, 7:20, rou og Day ;'9:30 Sa Sun 12:45, 3:00 5:15, Prsent This Coupon When Purchasing A Lam Popo*n A REcs //On* EXPIRES: 43093 -- it 1 1VAN I'L 1111 /Daily April Fool's University student Ken Min glances up at nature's April Fool's Day prank as he walks through the Law Quad. More than three inches of snow accumulated yesterday, just 48 hours after temperatures were in the 60s. 'U' computer network thrives by James Cho Daily Staff Reporter Neither rain nor sleet nor snow can stop a computer link-up system pioneered at the University from connecting people across the globe. "Both UPS and Federal Express are very concerned," said Joel Maloff, vice president of Client Services for Advanced Network & Services, Inc. (ANS). Electronic mail has permeated the globe. "People in Sydney and Helsinki are able to transfer information," said Eric Aupperle, president of Merit Network, Inc. Merit is a corporation affiliated with the University that monitors Internet, an international computer network. Internet links 120 countries - 1.2 million computers and more than 10 million users. "It is hard to fathom the growth of the network. This is a new social phenomenon different from any other telecommunication structure," Aupperle said. Users could release information through electronic mail even during the recent Soviet coup when the government shut down radio and television communications. The primary purpose of forming a nationwide network was to connect six U.S. supercomputer sites to educational and research institutions. In a speech to members of the student chapter of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)' Tuesday, Aupperle focused on the important role Merit played in the formation of the international computer network. In 1989, Merit, in partnership with IBM and MCI, procured a con- tract from the National Science Foundation to form a nationwide computer network, known as the National Science Foundation Network (NSFNET), to improve connectivity between research uni- versities and six supercomputers scattered across the United States. Merit pioneered the concept of computer networking when it came into existence to provide a computer link up with Michigan State University and Wayne State University in the 1960s. "In the days of punch cards and crude interactive devices, the ability to link students, faculty and staff was pretty phenomenal," Aupperle said. "Today, the NSFNET is a high- way system, which connects the re- gional networks and is the key linch-pin to Asia and Europe," he added. "The partnership with IBM and MCI is a good example of industry, government and academia working together for the good of the country," he said. 1 - t . 1