Letters to the Editor

To the editor,

Clarification of the relationship between the City of Pomeroy and Columbia Pulp

In response to the article published in the East Washingtonian (Columbia Pulp Contemplating Next Step for the Pomeroy Plant), the City of Pomeroy feels obligated to the community to explain the complications faced.

As a smaller community, the City of Pomeroy wants to promote growth and generate revenue not only for itself but for its citizens. When faced with the task of an industrial entity discharging waste into a municipality, there are many factors from each side to comprehend.

The City’s wastewater treatment plant is tasked with breaking down the community’s waste. The plant is engineered to breakdown waste created by humans. The addition of industrial waste to the wastewater plant can cause many challenges due to the composition of the discharged substance. In many cases, the waste is extremely concentrated and does not present a good food source for the microorganisms, which the plant uses to breakdown waste. When a plant comes into contact with these materials, it can become very distressed and turbulent. Most industrial enterprises will use a pre-treated process that yields a more organic product. To put into perspective, the concentration of Columbia Pulp waste at 3000 to 5000 gallons equals the waste that the entire City produces in a day.

The City of Pomeroy is held to strict requirements by the Washington State Department of Ecology and the EPA to produce an effluent that is acceptable to be discharged into the Pataha creek. That being said, the City of Pomeroy’s wastewater facility is not a regulatory agency that can control what is discharged to the sewer. Columbia Pulp has a permit through Washington State Department of Ecology to discharge to the collection system of Pomeroy’s wastewater treatment plant. DOE establishes acceptable limits when issuing these permits which incorporates guidelines and restrictions for environmental safety. If there becomes an imbalance resulting in a negative effect on one or the other (that impedes the final discharge to the Pataha creek), DOE will intervene to correct the problem. Columbia Pulp and the City of Pomeroy have been working together to find solutions that prevent these types of problems from happening. The City has in no way acted to stymie or inhibit Columbia Pulp from discharging to the collection system. We understand that they are a production-based company, and the City wants to assist Columbia Pulp to aid them in this process.

The bottom line is that the City of Pomeroy is grateful to Columbia Pulp for bringing new ideas, jobs and families into our community. We have had a very strong working relationship with Columbia Pulp’s representatives and it has been a pleasure to work with them to strive to find solutions to the problems faced. With all new ventures, there will be adversity. Time and cooperation will solve these obstacles faced.

Thomas Warren, WWTP Operator

G. Paul Miller, Mayor

To the editor,

Lawlessness is intolerable. Lawlessness is taking the law into your own hands! It doesn’t matter to me if you are President of the United States or an “average” citizen. Passionately opposing a law is your right but ignoring it or actively subverting the law is not your right. The worst kind of law breaker is one in a position of authority. They unfortunately teach us laws don’t matter if I don’t agree with them. We cannot tolerate this kind of behavior and maintain a civil, respectful and democratic society instead we seriously risk it being transformed into a society filled with chaos and anarchy.

Most of us would agree that someone driving 90 miles an hour down the highway flying a banner off their bumper saying “I hate speed limits” should not be allowed to use this form of protest against speed limits even if no one gets hurt in the process because in reality someone could get hurt there are tolerable and intolerable limits to protest. I feel the same way about brandishing guns; they are a serious attempt to intimidate those you disagree with.

We are blessed to have the right of free speech including the freedom of the press, the right to peaceful assembly and the right to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. You can actively work to remove a legislator from office if they have voted for a law you don’t agree with. In many states you can start an initiative to overturn a law or create a new law. You can challenge the law in our courts. There are numerous lawful manners to seek change to a law you disagree with; lawlessness should not be substituted for them.

Tom Fitzsimmons

Pomeroy, Wash.