On the other hand, businesses that are operating legally and contributing to the economy should be able to operate without being harassed on the basis of unproven allegations. In the early 1980s, Congress drew up extensive regulations on disposing waste considered a threat to human health or the environment. But lobbying by the oil industry persuaded Congress to exempt any wastes from exploration, development or production of oil or natural gas. Considered hazardous As a result, benzene from a chemical plant is considered hazardous. The distinction is lost on Grand Bois residents.
Toxins are toxins, they say.
U.S. Liquids maintains it is obeying the law, and air-monitoring equipment the state Department of Environmental Quality installed at Cell 11 last summer has shown nothing out of the ordinary. There's no scientific evidence that indicates . . . Barium, a heavy metal, can cause muscle spasms, stomach problems and sometimes heart ailments. The Grand Bois pits opened in 1982. Residents say they noticed smells from the start, but those early odors were nothing like the stench that blew over the community in March 1994.