Eight people spoke against allowing a permit modification for the Army
and Washington Demilitarization Co., which is handling the destruction of
nerve agents. The modification would let the company measure for gases and
particulates after emissions from the incinerator have passed through a carbon
filtration system, instead of before. Six people said they were in favor
of the modification. DEQ officials said they have tentatively decided to recommend approval
of the permit modification to the state Environmental Quality Commission,
which will make the final decision at its meeting May 20 and 21. Stuart Dick of Pendleton was angry about the prospect of change. Dick said Oregon residents have been lied to since the weapons were first
brought to the depot for storage. He said no one told the public the weapons
were coming, and no one said they were dangerous. "We've been lied to every step of the way," Dick said. Several members of GASP, a group opposed to incineration of the chemicals,
accused DEQ of going back on their word to measure emissions before waste
from the incinerators passed through the carbon filtration system. Susan Jones of Hermiston said the intent of changing the permit was not
to protect human health, but to catch up with delays in the schedule to destroy
the weapons. The depot, located 30 miles south of the Tri-Cities, stores 220,604 munitions
and containers filled with 7.4 million pounds of deadly nerve and mustard
agents that are to be destroyed under international treaty, most likely beginning
in July. Umatilla County Commissioner Dennis Doherty said there was no compelling
reason to deny the modification because it would not change the level of emissions.
And it would lessen the time the community was at risk. "Why would the community want to expose itself to this stuff for another
64 months," Doherty said.