Story originally printed in the Vernon Broadcaster or online at www.vernonbroadcaster.com
Published - Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Dairyland needs to seek alternatives to Genoa ash landfill proposal
We use electricity. We should be very pleased that Dairyland Power Cooperative will clean up the air by installing a new lime scrubber system! But, the new and vast amount of non-recyclable lime-ash waste soon to be produced has to go somewhere.
Dairyland wants 600 acres of productive farmland in Vernon County for a new landfill. They have threatened using eminent domain. This new dump is a terrible, destructive idea. We know there are other landfills and quarries already in existence that could take this waste. We are offended that Dairyland would take away our homes and our neighbor’s. Feeding us false sympathy and misinformation doesn’t make the project OK.
We encourage neighbors and fellow Wisconsinites to investigate this situation (see www.dontdumponus.org). Not being hypocritical, if we thought a nasty caustic lime and ash pit here was the only option we’d sadly concede; we would understand.
Dairyland admits transferring pollution from air to ground. The short-sightedness is stunning. Dairyland Power told us they didn’t decide to clean the air with a scrubber until January. Not until June was a waste dump site proposed. On Oct. 6 (Volden Farm) Dairyland stated they narrowed the 70 sites to two by August but the floods held things up. It’s not possible to research all of these sites within two months without errors in judgment regarding siting criteria. It’s also not possible to rule out recycling alternatives within months -- it took years to decide how to clean the air!
Unbelievably, nobody saw what would happen when Wisconsin legislation was passed mandating cleaner air. Brian Rude, former Wisconsin Senate president, current director of external relations for Dairyland, and fellow legislators did not see this through to the secondary effects and collateral damage from these decisions. The whole environment must be protected, not just air.
So, we hope Dairyland Power continues the aggressive search for other alternatives to a new landfill and implement even faster wind, solar and manure power. They need to use all the science, research and connections available to their large cooperative to recycle this caustic lime-ash waste. Don’t test our neighborhood soil and water for that state-of-the-art landfill. We will use all means to hold Dairyland Power Cooperative accountable and prevent unnecessary destruction of homes, farmland and environment. Change never happens when the status quo is comfortable. It is our American right to question the bottom line and protect our property.
Scott and Jennifer Leum
Rural Genoa
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