7
Commissioners Speak Against Nuclear Waste Disposal Bills
Al an afternoon hearing conducted that house nuclear. fnrleH nnu-nr vs. small mainriivue *...i :* .. .... . .
BY SUSAN USHEK
Two Brunswick County commis
sioners went to Ralciyh Tuesday to
make what Chairman Grace Beasley
hoped would be a "strong statement"
opposing bills that target the county
in key roles for low-level nuclear
waste disposal.
One bill would make Brunswick
County one of three possible counties
for location of such a facility;
another would require the county to
"donate" $933,000 in property taxes
yearly to a county that volunteers to
host the site.
At an afternoon hearing conducted
by the Water and Air Hesources
Committee, Commissioners Chris
Chappell and Jim Poole urged the
state legislature to rethink its posi
tion on low-level nuclear waste
disposal, including Senate Bill -16’s
proposal to withdraw from an eight-
stale southeastern regional compact.
'I’hey were accompanied by Regina
White, clerk to the board.
that house nuclear- fueled power
plants. Brunswick. Mecklenburg and
Wake.
According to the county’s state
ment. low level waste should be hous
ed "in the area which is safest, and
that site shoiUd be selected from the
state at large."
S.B. 46 also calls for placing the
state’s own low-level nuclear waste
facility in one of the three counties
Adopting pending low-level waste
legislation without looking at related
scientific data and without studying
the legal implications if the state
withdraws from the compact, they
suggested, “sets the stage for a big
vs. small, majority vs. minority con
frontation."
Benefits of energy proiuccd at
CP&L's Brunswick Plant reach
across comity lines, they said, and
sharing the consequences of this
energy form as well as its benefits
"is only equitable and affords equal
protection to all residents."
The county is also concerned that
withdrawal from the Southeastern
compact could put the state in the
position of having to accept waste
from other states.
And it questions the county’s
suitability for low-level nuclear
waste storage “due to high water
table depth, shallow aquifers, high
flooding potential, high soil and sedi
ment permeabilities, the degree of
hydrogeologic complexity and high
groundwater migration rates."
Rep. E. David Redwine called for
the hearing, he said, as a way to “buy
time" for further consideration by
the legislature of the options
available to the state.
He has worked on several pro
posals designed to counter the effects
of S.B. 46. including the .shallow l:>iid
burial bill. It would prohibit tho sUimo
of the facility in any ana \uth a
seasonal high water table of voveti
feel from the surface. Also. .sai«l Ih d
wine, the commission responsible f»>r
choosing a loc'atioii would have to
consider factors such as inter.^l.de
routes and four-lane highways.
"I believe these factors and others
that I hope to gel pas-sed \^il|
preclude Brunswick rminly fi oin
coiisideratiuii for the facility." he
noted in his weekly legi.slatii *e report
THL
HOAG :E-ONS BI NOB
1
Z'F’n!Ir NI
Twenty-fifth Yeor. Number 35
:: J/icif^ACON
Shallotte. North Carolina, Thursday. July 9, 1987
25c Per Copy
36 Pages Including Supplemont
Mill Creek Residents
Want KBK tnterprises
To Haul Ash Elsewhere
&TAI' rtlOlO SUSAN USHta
Waving Old Glory
BY SUSAN USHER
While KBK Enterprises plans to
look again at other sites, Vice-
President Jerr>- Chumlcy said Mon
day the company still considers a
Mill Creek trad a good business
choice for its proposed coal ash
transfer site.
The Marietta. Ga., company has
applied for a permit to temporarily
stockpile coal ash from the Cogentrix
plant due to begin operation at
Southport in October. The plant will
sell process steam to Pfizer
Chemicals Inc., and use the surplus
to make electricity for sale
Carolina Power & Light Co.
to
Thrc^yeaMld patriot Bryan McDonald of Wilmington Old Glory at Saturday’s parade in Southport. More
gets into the spirit of Independence Day as he waves coverage of the parade is inside this issue.
$28.7 Million Budget Requires
^ Four-Cent Property Tax Hike
.'j?-
use as fill in construction projects
and to experiment on-site with its
potential farming applications. It has
an option to buy from Worth Mercer
an 85-acre tract off N.C. 87 near its in
tersection with Danford Road.
Brunswick County Commissioners
took no vote Monday on the proposal.
But, reflecting the concerns of about
20 Mill Creek area residents in the
audience. Chairman Grace Beasley
told Chumley it was the board's con-
.sensus that KBK should look at alter
nate sites. “We want to work with
you," she said, “but our citizens
don’t imdcrstand it.
"We want you to be happy cor
porate citizens and we want the peo
ple to be happy."
A few moments earlier Chumley
told Beasley and other commis
sioners. “We want your support, but
the only thing we need for a permit is
a letter from the planning director."
However, state environmental
regulations governing transfer
facilities states the permit applica
tion requirement differently: “An
approval letter from the xmlt of
gnyemment (emphasis added) hav
ing zoning authority over the area
w'hcre the facility is to be located."
The site is in an unincorporated area
of the county.
The county does not have a zoning
ordinance. However, its CAMA land
use plan offers broad land use
designations on its accompanying
maps, which are used by the stale
and federal government in reviewing
various types of permit applications
for conformity with the plan.
On the county’s current bmi u.sc
map, the tract is located in an area
designated for agricultural, not in
dustrial use. While roiitimv an
amendment to the map could take
two to four montlis. Planner 11 I )on
Eggert indicated 'ITie.sday aflc riKHin.
The request must l)e approved b\ the
county planning board, commis
sioners and the Coastal Ucsoiin cs
Commission.
Chumley said choasing the .Mill
Creek site had been a good business
decision l)ccause of its central loca
tion in its proposed iiunkcl area, its
proximity (12 miles) to the i ogentn:;
plant, and iLs “total isolation »'rom
local residents." Tlie nearest house is
about a half-mile away, according to
Chumley.
KBK expects to liandle twelve
23-yard covered truckloads of ash
from the Congentrix plant per day.
operating five day.s a week from 7
a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Chumley said the company had
looked at other sites that were
already designated as industrial
tracts, bat their locations weren’t as
(See MEETING, Page 2-A)
^ / BY SUSAN USHER
^ A final draft of the county budget
ordinance adopted by Brunswick
County Commissioners Monday mor
ning calls for a 50.3-cents tax rate, a
four-cents increase over the current
46.5-cents rate.
Approval of the ordinance w-as the
final step in the budget adoption pro
cess, Vice-Chairman Benny Ludlum
was'absent and didn’t get to sign the
ordinance.
Last week's Brunswick Beacon in
correctly reported the new tax rate
as 52.5 cents after commissioners
adopted the new general fund budget
and an interim water system budget.
The major source of revenues in
the new $28.7 million budget will be
an estimated $18.45 million in proper
ty tax revenues, while the county will
appropriate $3.7 million in fund
balances. Another major source of
revenue is its share of two half-ccnt
sales taxes, $4.5 million, which, in
varying percentages, must be state
law be used for school and county
capital outlay projects and water and
sewer projects.
Included in the budget is $6.5
million for debt retirement for water,
school and technical college, road
and bridge issues from various
years. It also includes $4.77 million in
current expenses for the .school
system, plus $534,000 ir capital
outlay, of which $134,000 will he plac
ed in the capital reserve fund, along
with another $1 million in half-ccnt
sales tax proceeds. Tlie county also
has a water capital reserve fund of
$1.5 million and a county capital
reserve fund of $500,000.
By department, budget allocations
are as follows:
•Governing Body, $120,632.
•Public Inspections, $227,530.
•Engineering, $64,168.
•County Administration, $196,359.
•Board of Election.s, $162,186.
•Planning, $163,442.
•Utility Operations Board, $76,904.
•Finance and Purchasing. $191,750.
•Computer Services, $244,934.
•Tax Supervisor, $507,106.
•Tax Collector, $223,858.
•County Attorney, $190,996.
•Register of Deeds. $439,498.
•Housekeeping, $212,894.
•Buildings and Grounds. $581,611.
•Maintenance Garage, $1,129,664.
•Sheriff, $1,401,070.
•Jail, $291,890.
•Veterans Service, $43,455.
•Emergency Management, $81,880.
•Soil and Water Conservation
$38,689.
•Parks and Recreation, $887,787.
•Agricultural Extension, $154,506.
•Integrated Pest Management,
$2,300.
•Operation Services, $473,408.
•Corps of Engineers, $35,500.
•Sanitary landfill. $887,638.
•Coroner. $16,150.
•Courts, $33,702.
•Non-departmental. $1,353,191,
•Contribution to agencies
$1,424,436.
•Debt service contribution,
$6,508,268.
•Public Health contribution,
$807,309 of the Health Department's
$1.26 million budget.
•Revaluation, $56,250.
•Social services contribution,
$1,050,093, plus another $140,024
designated for programs for the
elderly, of the Department of Social
Services’ total $2.97 million budget.
Halden Administratar Begins Wark July 27
BY TERRY POPE
Holden Beach commissioners
voted unanimously Tuesday to hire
Thomas C. Birmingham, former
building inspector at Ocean Isle
Beach, as the town’s new ad
ministrator.
Birmingham accepted the to\m’s
offer Tuesday morning following an
emergency meeting of the council.
He will begin work on July 27, earn
ing $20,000 annually.
Town Administrator Bob Buck is
scheduled to retire July 31. He will
work with Birmingham for the first
week.
"We’re going to spend a week
together," Birmingham said Tues
day, "so I can get use to everything."
Birmingham, a native of Charlotte,
said he was happy to be returning to
Brunswick County. He currently
lives in Wilmington.
He served from 1982 to 1984 as
building inspector at Ocean Isle
Beach before leaving to enter into
private business as a building con
tractor.
"We’ll have to move to Holden
Beach," Birmingham said. "That's a
condition of my taking the job."
Birmingham and his wife, Gloria,
have three children.
Prior to becoming building inspec
tor at Ocean Isle, Birmingham was
employed with the City of Charlotte
for 17 years in the traffic engineering
and building inspection departments.
He lias received a number of
building code and administrative
certificates for studies at UNC-
Chapel Hill, Guilford Technical In
stitute in Greensboro. Wilkes Com
munity College in Wilkesboro and
Central Piedmont Community Col
lege in Charlotte.
While employed with the City of
Charlotte. Birmingham taught
classes in land use planning and zon
ing at Central Piedmont.
Commissioners interviewed .seven
persons for the job from a list of
about 100 applicants, said Mayor
John Tandy.
The town had hoped to hire a
replacement for Buck last Tuesday,
but negotiations with tliat peison
stalled. 'I’he board met in exei niive
session last Friday and again on
Tuesday before announcing it had
hired Birmingham.
At last Friday’s meeting, t:nmmis
sioners also voted to set the town’s
filing fee for candidates for
municipal offices at $5.
The board also agreed to hire a full
time maintenance per.son and to
eliminate a part-time position in the
department. Hie full-time posithm
1ms been budgeted for 1987-88.
Search Renews Far Manager
The search is on again for a new Brunswick County manager.
Brunswick County Commissioners have authorized County At-
tomey/Interim Manager David Clegg to invite three candidates for in
terviews with the board.
Two were finalists previously interviewed, while the third is "so
meone new we learned about," said Commi.ssioner Jim Poole following
Monday’s meeting.
M. Thomas Barnes, the first man hired to succeed William Carter
as manager, resigned June 22 before ever reporting to work. Commis
sioners asked for his resignation after learning Barnes had failed to
OI5C1UOC UlOV i/vvei Mrv ivlsvjwv \n oil yTCXjC vrstllC SCrVi
Halifax County administrator. He was cleared, with no charges filed.
Barnes was one of 70 applicants for the Brunswick County Job, four
of whom were interview^/'.
Clegg has been serving as interim manager since April, when
Carter took medical retirement and then signed on as a part-time
budget consultant wiU) the county.
Only Three Pay Filing Fees
As of Tue.sday afternoon, only
three people had filed for municipal
office in Brunswick County’s 13
towns, two at Ocean Isle Beach and
one at Shailottc.
'I’he filing period for candidates
began earlier this year and has al.so
l)cen extended, from noon July 3 to
noon Aug. 7.
Ocean Isle BeuclC Mayor ImDane
Bullington has filed for re-election to
another two-year term.
Ms. Bullington, 39, has been mayor
of Ocean Isle since 1973. She ran
unopposed for re-election in 1985.
Also filing for re-election at Ocean
Isle was Betty Williamson, who is
seeking another four-year term as
commissioner.
'rhree commissioner scats are up
for election in the fall. Each carries a
four-year term.
•ShaHottp re.sidenl Jay Gould
(Jody) Simmon.s, 28, may have l>een
the first person to file for office in
Brunswick County. The former Ash
resident is seeking election to the
Shallotte F^oard of Aldermen.
His wife, Janet, notarized the
forms required for him to file on July
3, a holiday and the first day of the fil
ing period. The Brunswick County
Board of Elections received his fees
July 7.
T^is is Simmons' first lime seeking
public office.
Sfafe Treasurer To Speak
At Water Plant Ceremony
State Treasurer Harlan E. Boyles wtU 1 s the guest speaker for the
official opening and siart-up of the county’s Northwest Treatment Plant
and water system.
The ceremony will be held July IB at the plant on Butler Road, seven
miles west of the Leland exit off N.C. 74-76. It begins with a tour of the
facility at 3 p.m.. followed a ribbon-cutting by Grace Beasley, chair
man of the county commissioners.
The public is invited.
In responding to the invitation to participate, Boyles wrote Plann
ing Director John Harvey, "I tIUnk this is a dream come true for many
people, and I know that you and all of your associates are proud of tl-.s
part you played In making it a reality. It is something which is gooil for
everyone, and in which ail can take pride."
The new additions to the county water system include the 24 million
gallon per day water treatment plant, transmission lines that nm frt*m
Malmo along U.S. 17 to Shallotte and along N.C, 87 to Sotilhport. several
storage tanks and pumping stations.
i