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6The Daily Tar HeelTuesday, September 19, 1989 State and National Geoeral By JENNIFER BLACKWELL Staff Writer Gov. James Martin postponed a special session of the General Assem bly Friday after eight Southeastern states failed to agree on a new regional plan for hazardous waste disposal. The purpose of the special session, originally scheduled for this Thursday, was to approve the regional agreement. The session has not been rescheduled, but it will probably take place one or two weeks following Sept. 29, the new proposed date for signing the agree ment. North Carolina is discussing the management of hazardous waste with seven other Southeastern states. The officials had hoped they would reach an agreement Friday in Atlanta. The proposed regional plan involves Study suggests shift By WENDY BOUNDS Staff Writer Patients considering taking court action for malpractice suits in North Carolina may need to examine alter nate channels, according to a three year malpractice survey released Fri day. The survey, an extensive review of all malpractice cases filed in North Carolina, was released by the Duke University Private Adjudication Cen ter and suggests the future of malprac tice suits may lie outside the court room. Thomas Metzloff, director of the survey, said the findings show that only 10 percent of malpractice suits are ever actually brought to trial and the defen dant prevails in 80 percent of these Chemical By KIMBERLEY MAXWELL Staff Writer The 1.4 million acres of water and land known as the Florida Everglades are in danger, according to environ mental specialists. Nitrates and phosphates from the fertilizers in nearby dairy and sugar farms are being loaded into the Ever glades, said Pat Tolle, public affairs specialist for Everglades National Park. This affects the wildlife by causing new organisms to grow, thus unbal ancing the local food chain. An indicator is the explosive growth of cattails, Tolle said. Cattails consume oxygen, making survival harder for the animals. To make matters worse, high levels Come ride with us. 4503 Chapel Hill Blvd., This Tuesday and Wednesday, Sept 19 & 20, when i you present your current coupon at the Bruegger's Bagel Bakery on West Franklin St. in Chapel Hill, youll receive a bagel of your choice with cream way of introducing you to Bruegger's Bagel Bakery. Offer valid 7:30 am -11:00 I Sept 19 & 20 only. One coupon per customer. Not valid in combination 'mm Assembly the eight states sharing waste treatment facilities, such as incinerators, landfills, metal recovery and water treatment plants. Each state would be in charge of handling one of the facilities, and each facility would be made available to the other states in the region. Kentucky and Mississippi are "not quite ready to do any committing," said Linda Little, executive director of the governor's Waste Management Board. Kentucky wanted to postpone the meeting until Sept. 29 because of a public meeting it has scheduled for Sept. 28. Officials want to give the public a chance to express their views on the plan before finalizing the agree ment, said Annette Heyden, a spokes woman for the division of waste man agement in Kentucky. Mississippi, although excited about cases. But he says the statistics don't mean the patient is being pushed aside in malpractice suits, but that the patient is seeking alternative ways of settling cases outside the courtroom. "What these results suggest to me is that although the plaintiff in many trial cases does not retain an award from the jury, he may very well be compensated via settlement resolved outside of court," Metzloff said. These statistics shouldn't discour age plaintiffs, but should encourage them to seek compensation in other ways, said David Warren, a professor of health administration at Duke. "Both the defendant and the patient will now be able to negotiate with more awareness about their odds," he said. "For the first time, we have factual pollutants of mercury contamination have been discovered in bass and bull-head cat fish, Tolle said. The levels in the fish were safe only for limited consump tion. The source of the mercury contami nation remains unknown. The problem in Florida originates from efforts in the past to regulate water flow in the Everglades, said Cynthia Len Hart, wildlife policy specialist for the National Audubon Society. "They, in an effort to develop the southern Florida region in the 1920s and '30s, began ditching and diking the area," Hart said. Canals and levees were also included in the plan. As a result, there was a total change in the area, Hart said. Certain areas Mxtutiatt... i(gGBSQI?2 on sal now with savings up to Durham 439-7478 o UUDTTE3 il UNC UNC I.D card with this cheese for FREE! It's our the deliciousness of am with any other offers. wesi rraiuuin oi., inapei nui aoi-oiw IftJ 1WT--. l "ll Tf:i1 AH PAJA sessiioini the plan, has not reached an agreement as to what type of facility it is going to offer the region. North Carolina has tentatively agreed to construct a $30-million solid waste incinerator, capable of handling 40,000 tons of solid waste per year. Other states would export hazardous wastes to this incinerator, while North Caro lina would have access to facilities in other states, such as landfill sites in Alabama and South Carolina, or water treatment plants in Tennessee. After the agreement is signed, it will go to the General Assembly. It is too soon to say whether the agreement will have a difficult passage in the General Assembly since the agreement has not been finalized, said Rep. Dennis Wicker, D-Sanford. But he did say there was substantial sup to out-of-court information on malpractice litigation in North Carolina that will provide a basis for the plaintiff and defendant to reassess their claims." Warren and Metzloff agreed future cases might be resolved more effec tively by the following means: Arbitration out of open court. Jury-determined settlements where each party sets a range for his settle ment and the jury determines a settle ment within this range. Mediation in which both parties work through a mediator to find a solu tion without going to trial. In some situations the case is not about money, but based on a patient's complaints of a doctor's treatment. These alternatives would provide less expensive solutions to these problems. - endanger were left with limited water supplies, and other areas were oversupplied. The Everglades is actually a river, and the system begins north of Lake Okeechobee, Tolle said. A lake was formed each year because of flooding, and the lake was modified for flooding and storage of surface water. But the modifications weren't effec tive, Tolle said. They required about 2,000 Army Corps of Engineers workers to restore the area, but the projects they have Virus reports panic From Associated Press reports NEW YORK News reports of a harmful computer virus that will strike after Oct. 12 have spread fear among many users of personal computers even though experts say only a few people are likely to be affected. Computer security firms and com panies that supply anti-viral software say they have been deluged by calls since word spread of the Datacrime iiaiiu1 printed rcoltori bedcovers mens University Squat Chpt Hilt 967-8935 to await waste plao accord port, especially since he doesn't know of any alternatives. The interstate agreement is better than handling all of the state's own waste independently, he said. Wicker said the legislature would also emphasize that all eight states concentrate on waste minimization and recycling, and not just treatment as a means for handling hazardous waste. Several environmental groups op pose the interstate agreement. North Carolina does not have suffi cient need for an incinerator, said Chip Hughes, a spokesman for the Environ mental Defense Fund. The legislature also needs to look at and adopt meas ures concerning reduction regulations, and he pointed out that several facilities in North Carolina and in the other states malpractice settlements Finding compromises outside the courtroom is becoming more common in malpractice suits and more accept able by insurance companies. These types of solutions are known as ADR, Alternate Disputes Resolutions. This alternate route of dispute settlement is popular in many respects simply be cause it is cheaper than taking a case to court. A one-week malpractice suit being handled in court by lawyers would cost the defendant on average around $10,000 for lawyers and expert wit nesses. The plaintiff would spend around $3,000 to $5,000 for his legal fees. ADR alleviates these costs to the parties and saves the court time and state funds. The most important issue raised by wildlife in Florida Everglades completed over the years are being undone. Former Florida Gov. Bob Graham started the program called "Save Our Everglades" to undo the damage, and it has been successful so far, Tolle said. Action to help save the Everglades is coming from several different direc tions. The U.S. attorney filed suit last May against Florida for not enforcing its own water standards, Tolle said. The case is being researched now. virus. Some experts said the virus, while unusually harmful, was so rare that it was not a cause for panic. But that was no comfort to computer owners fearful they would be among the victims. "The alarms that are going off abso lutely staggered me," said Winn Sch wartau, president of American Com puter Security Industries Inc. in Nash ville, Tenn. He said several govern ment agencies and Fortune 500 compa nies had contacted him about the virus. "Frankly, the virus isn't all that important a virus, yet this phone is ringing off the hook," Ross Green berg, a New Yorker who makes a virus protector called Flu-Shot Plus, said late last week. Greenberg said he had received as Egrarei imri.m iiyssasm.m liraora rereg Soft Contact Lenses H At Sera-Tec, believe chances, that's Use sterile, disposable equipment Are FDA approved and regulated. Require a physical exam prior to donating plasma (Physician on premise - physical is FREE). Test every donation for hepatitis and the AIDS virus. Provide a pleasant and relaxing environment. KIEiLP OS HELP PEOPLE VJHO MEE PLASf,m rS SERA-TEC BIOLOGICAIS 10:00am-4:00pm Mon,Wcd,Fri 109 V2 E. FRANKUN ST. (a RiteAid) 942-0251 1 0:00 am-6:00 pm Tucs, Thurs are leaking and contaminating the environment. "We think it's a good idea for states to get together," Hughes said. But he feels that North Carolina should not be part of an agreement with other states that have sites that are polluting the environment. "It's an ethical problem," he said. An alternative plan involves the use of above-ground storage, and solvent and metal recovery plants to deal with most of the refuse. North Carolina has previously dis posed of its waste through the use of private companies in neighboring states. If this agreement is settled, North Caro lina would save money in the long run. The state would look for a site for the incinerator, and then consult with other private companies who would under the survey concerns the recent trend toward out-of-court settlements in North Carolina, said Ken Wing, a UNC professor of law. For a while, malpractice suits were becoming very costly, said Bob Byrd, a professor of law at UNC. "During the '70s and '80s there was a major move toward tort reform (civil law reform). Doctors and insurance companies were claiming that their liabilities to the patients were so overwhelming that it wasn't feasible for insurance compa nies to provide malpractice insurance without extremely high premiums. The juries were running somewhat wild with their settlements for the plaintiff." This legal history could explain why, in the past seven years, North Carolina The U.S. Congress is considering legislation to expand the Everglades National Park by 100,000 acres to the east. The National Audubon Society supports the bill. The Army Corps of Engineers, along with the Save Our Everglades program, is also doing research in the area. "We (have been) conducting rain driven topic experiments for the last three years," said Juan Colon, chief of public affairs. "It will duplicate how rainfall will accomplish getting rain to PC users nationwide many as a half-dozen reports of the virus since it surfaced earlier this year. The Computer Virus Industry Associa tion of Santa Clara, Calif., has received seven reports, Chairman John McAfee said Monday. In contrast, there have been thou sands of reports of other viruses. Far more people will be hit Oct. 13 by the less harmful but more widespread Jerusalem virus, also known as the PLO or Friday the 13th virus. "I'm more worried about spilling a cup of coffee on my keyboard than I am about the Datacrime virus," Green berg said. Computer viruses, created by an onymous programmers, are pieces of software that make copies of them selves and spread from one machine to DAILY WEAR s11f mplete Includes: Eye exam, fitting lenses, sterilization system, and follow-up care. Nearsighted and Spherical Only coupon must be presented at time of purchase Thomas A. Costibile Optometrist 235 Elliott Rd.. Kroger Plaza 968-4774 '.4. 1 expires 10689 we don't in taking why we take the construction of the facility. According to Little, the Waste Management Board is still researching possible sites for the incinerator. She said the government expects an uproar when the, sites are chosen. She hopes there is not much opposi tion in the General Assembly. "I really don't know what alternative we have." Another consideration is the Oct. 17 deadline set by the federal government that says states must show they have the proper facilities to handle their hazard ous waste or that they have entered into regional agreements. If North Carolina fails to meet this deadline, it could lose $30 million in Superfund money, which pays for approximately 90 percent of the costs of cleaning up hazardous waste sites. has begun to take a more conservative , approach toward malpractice litigation, . and as a result has one of the lowest medical malpractice premiums in the . country, said Ronnie Chamberlain of . the N.C. State Insurance Commission. ;.. Those involved with the survey say J the findings are preliminary and pre dictions about their future significance ,. are not concrete. But they agree their , findings show the juries of North Caro- lina are no longer out of control as they r , may have been 15 years ago, and mal- ', practice suits appear to be headed out of . the courts. ; , "The results of the survey indicate '.! that more tools are needed to resolve . these disputes," Warren said, "and yet ? it shows that our discovery and negoti- v ating processes are working." the Everglades." Environmentalists will have to de termine a way to negotiate with the sugar and dairy farmers to decrease the amount of fertilizers in the water, Hart said. But the Everglade's problems aren't. affecting tourism. "We had over one million visitors last year," Tolle said. "People are going ; to see it while it's still there." The damage isn't evident on the first visit, she said. another through infected floppy disks, -office networks or phone links such as . computer bulletin boards. Datacrime attacks the hard disk data- ; storage devices of IBM-compatible personal computers that use Microsoft Corp.'s MS-DOS operating system. It wipes out the directory section, making J it impossible for the disk's contents to '! be read. The virus is triggered when an in-,, fected program is used anytime after the computer's internal clock passes J Oct. 12, the traditional date for Colum-A bus Day. It. is also known as the Colum bus Day or Icelandic virus. The virus was found dormant in:: computers by people who noticed that;; some of their programs had swollen,! inexplicably. V t For insurance call Allan Gray 968-0470 431 W.Franklin St. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there STATE FARM State Farm Insurance Companies Home Offices Bloomington, Illinois INSURANCE J.) A1 - nT nm j- -n -r- -mf- ..- . ir ifir' ... m: tobA" i
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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