Newspapers / University of North Carolina … / April 17, 2003, edition 1 / Page 1
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Patriot ble to the Bill ich rights are ittoour'rep- i’ system, he American 1 that the first nent is that government the right and ry to, I would revolutionize •anny,” said >n the intern- Americans ^ it as unnec- eflect on the ime manner, in half of my irofcommu- id of mindset, iway people’s of the pros- j during the lost.unfortu- eem to learn said Gibney. about ,check- V opin- ‘Gladly Bill of ; Mark Ipa^e i :es had taken buildings in major presi- Information ccording to ;oalition also n roads lead- dad, accord- forces made n early this se in Basura, The Blue Banner Mountain Jam So many jam bands, so litde fundage, b ■ see page 3 News Continued ■ page 2 Sports ■ page 6,7 I Opinion M page 10,11 I Features ■ page 4,5 Campus ■ page 12 The University of North Carolina at Asheville ^olume 37 Issue 10 Closed paper mill poses threat to river The shutdown of the Ecusta paper mill may jeopardize environmental safety and the French Broad river Becky Reese News Reporter The closure of the Ecusta Paper Mill in Brevard, N.C. creates a po tential environmental disaster on the French Broad River and to ev ery community downstream. "It’s going to be one of the worst environmental issues ever in the state of North Carolina,” said Mike Cody, director of environmental health and safety for the plant, ac cording to The Asheville Citizen- Times. “I don’t know of any plant the size of Ecusta where someone has just shut it down and not oper ated the environmental systems.” The waste water treatment area of the plant utilizes a 75-acre waste lagoon to store cancer-causing di oxins and other pollutants, accord ing to The Asheville Citizen-Times. The shutdown of the plant could result in untreated waste water from the lagoon seeping into groundwa ter and also leaking into both the French Broad and Davidson river basins. The impact of the leakage over time would be hard to determine due to the unknown concentra tions of pollutants in the lagoon. It will be difficult to predict how far downstream the impact will be once waste begins seeping into the rivers, according to Philip Gibson of Riverlink in an Asheville Citizen- Times article. “My major concern is with the environmental effects of the chemi cals and their effects on the aquatic life in the river,” said Shea Benson, a senior biology major. “Fm also concerned for the life of the French Broad since it has such historical significance.” Ecusta'closed in August 2002 and declared bankruptcy in October April 17, 2003 Coalition looks now to future of post-war Iraq Beth Wyche News Reporter rrri BECKY REESE/NEWS REPORTER The French Broad River, the third-oldest river in the world, pro vides drinking water and recreation, as well as a habitat for many WNC plants and animals. MAX TAINTOR/S'l AFF PHOTOGRAPHER The Ecusta paper mill closed and declared bankruptcy in 2002. Untreated waste water at the mill poses the threat of leaking into the French Broad river, causing severe damage and pollution. “My major concern is with the environmental effects of the chemicals and its ^ects on the aquatic life in the river” Shea Benson, senior biology major 2002, leaving 500 people unem ployed. The plant has been on the auction block, but has yet to be bought. Officials with the plant threat ened to turn off the plant s electric ity, but have not yet due to environ mental concerns, according to The Asheville Citizen-Times. “It’s critical that the state of North Carolina finds a way to continue to safeguard the French Broad from the deadly toxins at the now-closed Ecusta plant,” said Kevan Frazier, director of student life. The state threatens to press charges against Ecusta if the waste treat ment facilities are closed. The state seeks removal of all chemicals from pipes, storage con tainers and machines, according to The Asheville Citizen-Times. If the plant stops operation and does not restart within 90 days, the state can consider the chemicals onsite to be hazardous waste and order their removal. The chemicals created by the pa per-making process include sulfu ric acid, citric acid and hydrochlo ric acid, according to The Asheville Citizen-Times. It will cost an estimated $2.5 mil lion to clean up the containers and equipment at the plant. If the plant does not comply with the state by Apr. 30, theycouldface fines of up to $25,000 per day, according to The Asheville Citizen- Times. Many are concerned that Ecusta, its potential buyer and the state realize the importance of the waste treatment lagoon and the impact it could have on Western North Carolina’s environment and economy. “Our main concern was to make them aware that we needed to have all those systems operational out there, and we were assured that wouldhappen,” saidjim Patterson, waste management specialist with the N.C. Department of Environ- See ECUSTA Page 2 Senate votes against drilling in Alaska Ginger McKnight News Reporter The United States Senate voted 52-48 against drilling for oil in Alaska’s Artie National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) Mar. 19. “The Artie National Wildlife Ref uge was set apart as a refijge for a reason, and that is because it is a very, very special place that is just teeming with life for the summer,” said Rick Maas, professor of envi ronmental science. “It is one of the last truly wild remaining places on the whole earth that really hasn’t been exploited by humans. To think about ruining one of the most truly wild ecosystems for a few months of oil doesn’t seem to make much sense.” The arguments for drilling in the ANWR vary from monetary gain to philosophical reasoning, accord ing to Chris Bell, associate profes sor of economics. “People want to drill oil because it’s a useful and scarce resource and there are profits to be made drilling oil,” said Bell. “There are some who' believe that the material resources the world has given to us were to exploit, and we’re idiots for not exploiting them,” said Bell. “Drilling for oil is something that no one does but us, because of our basic and flawed concept that we are here to do whatever we want to the planet,” said Jack Bennett, an undeclared sophomore, in an e- mail. “That it was made for us and we can conquer it, dump all our crap in it and it will just go right on pro ducing all the things we need.” The question of how much oil actually exists in the ANWR con tinues to be debated. Amounts range from enough for six months to a couple years, according to an Associated Press article. “The amount of oil in Alaska is about six months to a couple years at current consumption rates,” said Bell. “In the grand scheme of eco nomic history that is a blink of an MAX TAINTOR/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Nikki Nelson, a junior psychology major, pumps gas into her SUV. Many UNCA students support research for alternative fuels rather than drilling oil in the Alaska preservp| eye.” of recoverable oil will not be worth Since the amount of oil is very disrupting the wildlife, according small, one of the arguments against to Maas. drilling in Alaska s is that the amount “There apparently is quite a bit of oil there, but nobody knows how much,” said Maas. “There is a lot of evidence that having all that oil mining would be disruptive to the last main [Porcupine] caribou herd there.” Many students feel the drilling will disrupt the ecosystem in and around the ANWR. “[Alaska is] a very fragile ecosys tem and there are animals that live there that don’t live in other places,” said Tom Meisenbach, an unde clared sophomore, in an e-mail. “It’s one of those places that people can go to and admire nature with out the distraction of civilization and I would hate to see that ruined by an oil rig on the horizon.” Along with the devastation to the Alaskan ecosystem, some students say the effects of the oil will not only hurt the environment in ANWR, but will affect the whole “We aren’t reliant on other coun tries, we are reliant on the planet,” said Bennett in an e-mail. “If we See ALASKA Page 2 Despite the Pentagon’s announce ment that major combat has ended and President Bush’s declaration that “the regime ofSaddam Hussein I more,” small but fierce battles continue sporadically in Northern “Ofcc )t gomg 1 5 be all over j ust yet, ” said Courtney Wells, ajunior psychology major. “They’re (U.S.) not going to just take care of the problem in one big swoop. I’m just glad because it means that my friends over there will be coming home soon and that they’re going to be ok.” American marines clashed with local residents in Mosul early Apr. 15 that left at least seven Iraqis dead, according to The Associated Press. However, Iraqi officials claim that at least 10 Iraqis died and some s wounded, according to The New York Times. U.S. officials defended their ac- ions, citing mob-like violence as the justification for opening fire. ; directed at the Marines and special operations forces in this nplex,” said Brig. Gen. Vincent Brooks in a press conference in Qatar, according to CNN.com. “It i aimed fire, and aimed fire was returned against some of the dem onstrators, against some bf the agi tators climbing the wall of the com pound. It was lethal fire.” Mosul, the third largest city in Iraq located approximately 240 miles north of Baghdad, remains a nghold for Arab nationalism and the Ba’ath Party, according to The New York Times. Like Baghdad, Mosul continues o experience significant looting and violence. UNCA students express concern about how these condi- ions affect Iraqis. “It’s crazy. It’s like a nuthouse,” said Wendy Segars, an undeclared freshman. “It’s horrible and I just wish that something could be done.” Others acknowledge the reality of looting and violence in such un stable conditions. “It’s unfortunate, but it’s pretty typical,” said Wells. “It’s sad, but this would have happened almost anywhere else the same way. I think that Iraqis are j ust trying to get back what has been taken from them for so long.” Despite the clash in Mosul, coali tion forces cite the capture of ter rorist Abu Abbas and the raiding of “Dr. Germ’s” secret biological labo ratory, both occurring in Baghdad, as major victories both in the war against terrorism and in the war on Iraq, according to The Associated Press. “We’ve said for a long time that Iraq [has] harbored terrorists, ... and in some cases have facilitated operations of terrorism,” said Brooks, according to CNN.com. American Special forces raided the biological laboratory early Apr. 16 where Rihab Taha, wife of Gen. Amer Mohammed Rashid, Iraq’s former oil minister, weaponized anthrax. Special forces discovered See IRAQ Page 2 Serving UNCA Since 1982 tvww.unca.edu/banner V
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April 17, 2003, edition 1
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