When you think of
our coal-ash mess, one temptation is for “Everybody” to blame
“Somebody” because “Nobody” did what “Anybody” could have
done. That’s right. Somebody ought to have said, “Wait a
minute, Republic. You’re promising a lot of money, but this
contract is too one-sided. We need to have the flexibility to
renegotiate or cancel this agreement if unforeseen consequences bring
unwanted risks or dangers to our community.”
Yeah, that’s
right.
It’d be easy to
wag our pointer-finger until it fell off. But what good would that
do? Republic’s savvy lawyers set a trap. And blinded by “easy”
dollars, Wayne County stepped right into this environmental
nightmare. You know the old saying: “When you point your finger at
someone, there are three fingers pointing back at you.”
Yeah, that’s
right.
There’s enough
blame for everyone, but that doesn’t mean we have to sigh and say,
“Go ahead, Republic. Make us pay for our lack of foresight, while
you pimp our environment for your profits’ sake. After all,
prostitution is the world’s oldest profession.”
Hold on.
I’d rather you
cut my tongue out before I muttered those woe-is-me words.
As exasperating as
this David-and-Goliath battle seems, our great-grandchildren and
their children deserve better than us wallowing in that defeatist
quagmire.
No, sir.
Surrendering is not
a legacy we should leave for those who come after us. Toxic
contamination of our natural resources is not temporary. Once lead,
mercury, arsenic, beryllium and a host of other nasty things invade
our coastal environment, they are here to stay.
At the March 16
public meeting, I told Russ Knocke, Republic’s vice president of
communications and public affairs, “If the Harvard Business School
was looking for a case-study example of how not to handle a
controversy, Republic’s dealing with Wayne County and coal ash
would be a classic.”
I will always
believe that Republic chose Central Virginia Properties, LLC as the
rail-spur applicant, hoping to tiptoe through the permitting process.
A handful of people might have known Republic’s intentions, but
99.9 percent of our citizens were unfairly blindsided.
Also, I feel
Republic had good reason to believe the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) would cave to industrial lobbying and reclassify coal
ash as nonhazardous. You don’t get to be a $9 billion
waste-management giant without having some influence on the federal
regulatory process. Closer to home, Republic has hired Georgia’s
former secretary of state, Lewis Massey, to lobby for its best
interest with the General Assembly and our Environmental Protection
Division (EPD.)
The owner of
Broadhurst Environmental Landfill had to know coal ash would cause an
emotional turmoil in Wayne County. Republic almost got away with its
stealthy scheme, hoping Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody
wouldn’t notice.
If Republic really
wanted to be a “good neighbor” and “partner” with Wayne
County, it should have hosted—with the county commissioners and the
solid-waste authority—a town-hall meeting to educate us on its
coal-ash plans. For the most part, prior to January, our citizens
were clueless about coal ash.
Since EPA changed
its rules, Republic should have given Wayne County a say-so on
coal-ash dumping. And now that citizens have had the audacity to
balk, Republic is threatening to lash us with its money whip.
Republic appears to be willing to ruin our reputation by turning
Wayne County into an environmental sex slave while pumping up its
reputation and profits on Wall Street.
Yeah, that’s
right.
Our community’s
brand and our environment are in great peril.
That’s why we
can’t let this happen.
dnesmith@cninewspapers.com
