Tooele Transcript Bulletin

August 21, 2001

Alabama burner protests continue

by Jeff Schmerker
Staff Writer

Adding to negativity surrounding the looming startup of the Army's
chemical weapons burner in Anniston, Ala., the national board of directors
of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference last week unanimously
adopted a resolution calling for the implementation of alternative
disposal technologies there.

Construction at the Anniston Chemical Depot's burner ended recently, but
for some there was little to celebrate: unrest in the area surrounding the
burner has escalated as construction drew to a close. Opposition in
Anniston has generally been stiffer than in Tooele. The Anniston burner is
surrounded by 70,000 people whereas the Tooele burner is surrounded by
just a few hundred.

Complaints of environmental racism ran through the Southern Christian
Leadership Conference's action, and the group says the burner is situated
curiously close to black and low-income neighborhoods.

The resolution, adopted at the Southern Christian Leadership Conference's
43rd Annual Convention, held in Montgomery, Ala., states that: "Whereas,
the Department of Defense has identified and successfully demonstrated
non-incineration disposal technologies that would eliminate or
significantly reduce the possibility of the release of chemical warfare
agent, dioxins, lead, mercury, chromium, cadmium, PCBs and other
carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic health impacting chemicals ... The
federal government has failed to meet its statutory duty to provide
maximum protection, to the people of Calhoun County in general and to the
African-American communities in particular."

The resolution went on to say that, "the current incineration technology
is not a viable approach for destroying the chemical weapons stockpile and
the incinerator should be retrofitted with an alternative technology which
is less intrusive and more environmentally benign."