Sunday, February 1, 2009

Welcome To Community Advocates for Safe Emissions (CASE)

CASE is a local group recently formed by concerned citizens in the Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk area, as well as Columbia County. CASE is working in collaboration with Friends of Hudson, Citizens Environmental Coalition (CEC), Selkirk Coeymans Ravena Against Pollution (SCRAP), Sierra Club Atlantic Chapter, Earthjustice and several other environmental organizations.

CASE is actively pursuing the following three goals:
  • Immediate, substantial reduction in current toxic emissions levels from Lafarge. While CASE supports Lafarge’s efforts to modernize their operations with a new kiln and stack, something must be done in the meantime to mitigate harmful emissions.
  • Installation of the maximum available control technology in the proposed plant modernization that will unequivocally protect our communities from any emissions that may endanger human health.
  • Comprehensive assessment of the full range of Lafarge’s emissions and analysis of their health impacts on our communities, in particular young children and our schools.

    Click on any of the links on the upper right for additional information.

    Please feel free to contact us at:
    PO Box 291
    Ravena, NY 12143
    518-653-2467
    safe.emissions@gmail.com
Posted by at 12:26 PM

5 comments:

  1. One Concrete plant worth observing is the one owned by Cranesville Block Company in Amsterdam on Route 5S. The public can easily view and watch the trucks being loaded from Route 5S or even Route 5.

    Trucks there are usually unseeable in a cloud of cement dust while being loaded. And the trucks are covered in grey "haze" that is "impossible to wash off."

    It has been reported that other plants owned by this comapny are worse, including one in Syracuse.

    It is also highly recommended that concerned individuals also do a net search of Craneville and it's "OSHA violations."
    ReplyDelete
  2. Like the companies that make the cement dust, the companies purchasing it and transporting it should be watched and regulated as well.

    I am told that the problem at Cranesville can be controlled, but isn't. Various companies use methods to reduce dust emissions. One person told me that simply adjusting the flow rate into the truck will cut down the dust problem, but he said the company chooses not to, because they are in "too much of a hurry."

    I was also told other problems arise in trasnporting and delivering the dust. The bulk trailers often leak, usually around the hatches, or bad seams.

    Once pressurized with high pressure air, the dust blows out of the leaks into the environnment.

    The dust is unloaded into silos at the concrete plants. Often, they tend to overfill the silos and dust blows out the top of the silos through vents or even bad seams.

    A common problem is over-ordering dust. The silo will be full before the delivery truck is empty. The same person I spoke with say he often sees delivery drivers, who are in a hurry, continue to empty their trucks, despite the silos being filled, causing dust to blow out "all over the place."
    ReplyDelete
  3. With regards to the above mentioned "grey haze" on the the Cranesville Trucks, just compare the cleanliness of their trucks to the trucks owned by other concrete companies in the area.

    The evidence is self-explanatory.

    The other companies are concerned with emissions control and cleanliness.
    ReplyDelete
  4. Dust emissions in our environment are not just a local problem, it is an industry wide problem.

    Just do various searches on You Tube to see videos of dust emissions.

    It's not just cement dust either. It's other material used in concrete too. Like Flyash, Micro Silica, etc.
    ReplyDelete
  5. If your curious about cement dust exposure, just read the MSDS on it at LaFarge's website.
    or just search "cement dust MSDS."

    www.lafarge-na-com
    ReplyDelete

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