What You Can Do- Please Get Involved In Wyoming's Pollution Issues

by Steff Kessler

To participate in the Amoco refinery cleanup process:
• Attend the monthly technical workshop sessions with Amoco, DEQ and city and county officials. They’re eye-openers! Public comment is solicited at these meetings, which are only held during work hours in Casper. The schedule, meeting agendas and minutes are posted on the Amoco Reuse Joint Powers Board website at www.reuse-jpb.com (Or we can tell you about these meetings, if you give us a call at (307) 332-7031.)

• Let us know if you’d like timely alerts of critical public comment opportunities for this Amoco process. WOC has an special alert list just for this purpose.

• Put yourself on DEQ’s email list for news of upcoming meetings by emailing the department at vmered@missc.state. wy.us  You can also browse DEQ’s website on the Amoco cleanup for information and public notices at http://deq. state.wy.wy.us/shwd/amowelc.htm or call their Amoco cleanup hotline at 1-888-570-9907.

• Support WOC’s suggestions for improving Amoco refinery cleanup public participation opportunities by contacting Dave Finley, Administrator, DEQ Solid and Hazardous Waste Division, Herschler Building, Cheyenne, WY 82520; phone 777-7752; email dfinle@missc.state.wy.us

To help North Casper residents deal with their community health and contamination problems:
• If you live in Casper, bring these issues before the city council, county commission and our Congressional delegation. Ask them to support and pursue funding for a community-wide health survey conducted by the U.S. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). Ask them to help pursue further environmental testing of the area.

• Contact Steff Kessler at WOC if you’d like to help organize future Wyoming Pollution and Public Health Forums in the Casper area. This is an important means of educating Wyoming residents about pollution and health impacts.

• Contact this North Casper group directly and join their efforts:
Citizens Outreach, c/o Dick Innes at (307) 235-6830 or Gloria Stewart at (307) 237-3308.

• Speak with your state elected officials. Tell them you oppose Amoco’s brownfields bill, SF 147, and don’t want to allow Amoco to avoid its pollution cleanup responsibilities because you do not believe that massive contamination should remain near or threaten residential areas, such as those in North Casper.

To urge the EPA to hold Wyoming’s feet to the fire:
• Let us know if you’re interested in submitting comments to the EPA regarding concerns over SF 147 or aspects of the state’s hazardous waste program (such as the Amoco process). We can provide additional background information. The public comment period is open until July 22.

• Or simply use the information provided in this newsletter and tell EPA it should withhold approval of Wyoming’s program until SF 147 is revised to meet the minimal federal requirements for maintaining state primacy. Write to: Kris Shurr (8P-HW), EPA, 999 18th Street, Suite 500, Denver, CO 80202-2466.

To get involved with Brownfields legislation:
• Hold your legislators and Governor Geringer accountable for passing a bad bill like SF 147, which could jeopardize Wyoming’s primacy for federal programs and cost DEQ significant federal funding. Contact WOC if you would like the final votes on this bill. Sponsors of SF 147 include Senators Coe, Devin, Hawks, Hinchey, Scott and Twiford and Representatives J. Anderson, Bebout, Illoway, Law, Nagel, Parady, Stafford, Tempest and Willford.

• If you’d like to be alerted about future interim committee hearings, or would like detailed fact sheets on this issue, contact Steff Kessler at WOC. You can also contact: Glen Lang, WY Legislative Service Office, State Capitol, Cheyenne, WY 82002; phone 777-7881; fax 777-5466; email lso@missc.state.wy.us or look up the Joint Interim Minerals Committee’s schedule on the state legislature’s website at: http://legisweb.state.wy.us/ 1999inte/min/minerals.htm (DEQ’s proposed brownfields bill is there too.)

• You can also contact directly any of these Minerals Committee members:
Sen. Bill Hawks (Casper), co-chair
Sen. Ken Decaria (Evanston)
Sen. Dick Erb (Gillette)
Sen. April Brimmer Kuntz (Cheyenne)
Sen. Bill Vasey (Rawlins)
Rep. Bill Stafford (Chugwater), co-chair
Rep. Bruce Burns (Sheridan)
Rep. Pat Childers (Cody)
Rep. Ross Diercks (Lusk)
Rep. Floyd Esquibel (Cheyenne)
Rep. John Eyre (Lyman)
Rep. Pete Illoway (Cheyenne)
Rep. Robert Tanner (Casper)
Rep. Jane Wostenberg (Worland)