Careful what we wish for

Last week, the latest appointee as director of the EPA, Stephen L. Johnson, told a Senate appropriations subcommittee that it will probably take another five to six years to complete the Libby cleanup.

While this had a few people blanching it should come as no surprise to anyone following the Superfund cleanup effort in Libby. Nor should it disturb anyone.

EPA onsite coordinator Jim Christiansen reported earlier this year that he expects 200 properties to be cleaned in 2005 with another 1,000 to 1,200 properties remaining. Do the math.

It would be unreasonable to expect the EPA to be able to maintain a 200-properties per year average considering the types of problems we've seen in recent years from contract woes to congressional funding cuts. Something the EPA hasn't seen is good ol' freakish weather. Remember the mud, flood, snow and big blow that preceded their arrival in the late 90's.

Besides, the cleanup is costing the EPA somewhere between $17 million and $20 million a year with almost half of that money being spent locally on employees, contractors and materials. Do we really want to give up an $8 million to $10 million part of our economy?

I didn't think so. At least, not quite yet.

It took years and years of effort on the part of a handful of asbestos victims to get the EPA here to conduct testing and cleanup. While we shouldn't allow the federal agency to run roughshod over individuals or the community nor should we allow them to rush through the cleanup skipping the thorough and safe part.

But the EPA does not exist for us to tack a target on their backs and take never-ending verbal potshots at them. We need them to clean the community for the economic sake and safety of future generations.

Yes, it's true that past Montana and EPA leadership made a lot of noise about getting this cleanup over in a short period of time. But most of that came before the decision to clean Zonolite Attic Insulation from commercial buildings and houses. And it took time to figure out the best way to clean insulation from buildings, something the federal agency has not done before.

We need the EPA and we need to work with them. Not capitulate. But work with them. You have to wonder how many hoops can we make the EPA and its contractors jump through before we're contributing to the delay in completing the project.

Sometimes I think the old cartoon character of Pogo was right when he said "We have met the enemy and we is them."

I don't doubt that the EPA hierarchy and some politicians look forward to the end of this Superfund project. Let's not give them the excuse to hasten that departure - at least not before the cleanup is done. - Roger Morris