The copper era and Morenci leader., 1915-02-19
SHELTER FUMES
AFFECT FARMERS


better understanding between the
farmer and the owners of smelling
plants as to the damage done by
the smoke and fumes from these
plants is made by the Bureau of
Mines in a report from Charles H.
Fulton, expert. Millions of dollars.
have already been spent in litigation
on this subject, and it is Mr.. Full
toms object to put an end to this
commissions to make an impartial
study of the problem as it arises in
different parts of the country.
Much of the trouble in the past has
been in the Western states, chiefly
Montana, Utah and California. In
these States very large tonnages of
ores are smelted with the production
of great volumes of smelter smoke.
Mr. Fulton makes the point that
mining and metallurgyl are often the
advance agents of civilization and
the pioneers in establishing indus
trial centers.
|, In many localities" he says, THE
mines and the smelters supplied by.
them were essentially the only loca-
tors within great stretches of terri
tory. Around them grew communi-
ties and cities dependent upon them
for a livelihood. Agriculture was
then of relatively small importance.
But conditions changed with the in.
creasing population of the country
and the closer settlement of the
West, and, coincident with the in
crease, an agricultural industry has
grown, which, in the vicinity of
smelling plants, naturally suffers in.
some degree from smoke, Still,
the area damaged is Comparatively
small and even this damage can be
much lessened by the adoption of
proper means. Since, some, plants
have installed devices to remove sui
phuric acid from the smelter smoke
and, have the smoke diluted with
air, conditions have been much anne
liorated. t
The prevention of. damage to
vegetation by sulphur dioxide in the
atmosphere needs the close study of
disinterested scientific observers. It
is probable that the question will be
prominent for some time, as the
elimination of sulphur dioxide from
smelter smoke seems to be in the far
future, and the amelioration of con-
ditions depends at present on dilut-
ing the smoke until the sulphur-diox-
ide content is so small as to- be
harmless. This in itself is a great
engineering problem for large plants.
carried no doubt depends upon the
nature of the vegetation in the vicini1
ty of the plant, the climate, whether
wet or dry, and the season of the
year. 1t has been found in Europe
and in Japan that some crops are
much more subject to injury at GER
tain stages of their growth than at
others, and proposals. have been to
put seasonal limitations on the ton
mage. of sulphides ore smelted- An
agreement of this kind is in effect in
southeastern Tennessee and also in
Japan During the active crop-grow
ing season the amount of high sui
phur-bearing ores smelted is reduced,
and is again increased during the
fall and winter months
.The damage that smoke can do
depends largely on climatic condi
tions, especially the relative humid
ity of the atmosphere. The damage
is much greater in regions having a
moist than in those having a. dry
climate. In this respect, such States
as Montana Utah and Arizona are
favorablyI located and, .smelters in
thoess States can probably. DISCHARGE
gases richer in sulphur dioxide with
out doing damage than those in re-
gions having moisteF climate. For
the, same reason the damage done at
different seasons of the year varies.
The moist atmosphere and the rains
of spring and early summer conduce
to increase damage to, vegetation, par
ticularly as at that timesof the year
the early crops and young vegetation
are susceptible.tos serious injury.
1T has been customary to discharge
the sneltar smoke by means of very
tall chimneys, ON the ASSUMPTION that
if the noxious gases are discharged
at considerable height they will have
to diffuses more thorough
ly and thus become SO diluted as to
be mparatively harmless, butt the
efficiency of this method is now be-
ing, Questioned. There is reason to
believe that the use of high stacks
increases the area to damage, where
as low. stacks may intensity the
damage but concentrate it within a
smaller area rsEf
Within the past five. or six years
the realization has come to- smelter
that inl many plants, a
loss of, valuable material
NAV take place in the fine fiue dust
with the smoke stream
Officials of two large copper-smolt-
ing plants of this country have in
vestigatedi this question Thoroughly
and have acted ontheir Investigations
by constructing suitable devices TO
overcome losses. One is the Ana
conda rcompany's smelter at Great
Falls, Montana, and the other is the
smelling, plant of the Copper Queen |
mine in Arizona 49,.
1T was demonstrated at the Great |
Falls plant that with the old fiue
system in use there was daily loss in
the dust of BITS pounds of copper,
nf Ci1
of gold. BY using the new fue sys-
tenn, which makes adequate provis- |
ion for dust recovery, the losses have |
been reduced to BAT pounds of COD
uer, 2S6 ounces of silver, and OF
ounces of gold. The saving thus eff