P.O. Box 5036, Annapolis, MD 21403 . . Subscriptions are free. To subscribe, E-mail the words . . Today, enormous quantities of hazardous waste are escaping regulation through this loophole. A recent report from Greenpeace describes the burning of chemical wastes in aggregate kilns and cement kilns.
Cement is the raw material from which concrete is made.
As with cement, aggregates are formed by firing them in a hightemperature kiln. Thus aggregate kilns and cement kilns seem ready-made for destroying hazardous wastes. This was the question Greenpeace's Science Director, Pat Costner, and her colleague Joe Thornton, set out to answer. Marine Shale Processors in Amelia, Louisiana, which was recently closed down by EPA after national TV threw a spotlight on them, is a notorious example of a fraudulent waste hauler disguised as a kiln operator. Even when the intention is not to defraud, destruction of wastes in kilns is highly questionable.