Are Governor Jack Markell, DEDO's Alan Levin and DNREC's Collin O'Mara Setting Us Up With An Illegal Incinerator Trojan Horse?

(WDEL) Peter MacArthur reports ~ Concerns aired over incinerator plans.  

Alan Muller says the project is being presented as 'good for business,' in Delaware, but in reality, it would be a major pollution contributor. Muller says the industry tries to present its facilities as less of a threat by labeling them as something other than incinerators, such as gasifiers. "What that means is that they put the tires in one chamber and cook them, and then the gas that comes out gets burned in another chamber and they claim, "Oh well, there's no combustion, they're just cooking the tires without burning them." And so if someone is motivated to promote this they can sort of try to narrowly focus."

And in case you missed the show, you can listen to it  ~ PODCAST: Al Mascitti Alan Muller, Green Delaware, on a proposed tire incinerator in New Castle (8/22)

The big news during the show yesterday was a call in from district County Councilman, George Smiley, who said that he was told by the owner of the industrial park at 78 McCullough Dr, New Castle - where ReNew Oil, DEDO and DNREC claim the facility will be located - that this incinerator NOT is NOT and was NOT EVER going to be a tenant there. That begs quite a few questions: 

• How can a permit be requested and considered for a site with no lease where the property owner claims never to have spoken to ReNew Oil?  
• Does this reveal a 'trojan horse conspiracy' of sorts for opening the door to allegedly 'clean' gasification process? 

Alan Muller discussed how the company has faked its way through most of the information so far submitted to the state and that the state told ReNew Oil to resubmit paperwork replacing the word incinerator with the word gasifier.

State Rep. J. J. Johnson letter today ~  Tire incinerator shouldn't be built so close to schools, parks

If building a tire incinerator a mile from New Castle City – and less than a half-mile from sever­al schools and parks – sounds un­believable, you’ll understand why I and many of my constitu­ents are angry. RenewOil Ener­gy has submitted an application to DNREC for an exemption to Delaware’s incinerator ban to build what they describe as a “pyrolysis plant for scrap tire and plastics” on McCullough Drive. Pyrolysis is the technical term for a chemical change brought about by heat – in this case, 300 to 700 degrees Fahren­heit – in which scrap tires and plastics would be broken down into fuel, oil and scrap steel.

I support the idea of recy­cling or reusing garbage rather than throwing it into a landfill. However, Delaware has had what essentially is a statewide incinerator ban since 2000. No incinerator can be built within 3 miles of any residence, school or park. It also must be built in an area zoned for heavy industrial activity. This proposal meets none of those criteria. RenewOil is trying to get by on a technical­ity: Its DNREC application states it should be exempt from the incinerator ban because “py­rolysis by definition is a non­combustible process.” I person­ally don’t care what you call it. If it looks like a rat and smells like a rat, then it’s a rat.

The area where I live and rep­resent is one of the “cancer clus­ters” identified in 2010, and we don’t need a plant producing more harmful chemicals like known carcinogen benzene – no matter how small a quantity.

State Rep. James “J.J.” Johnson

New Castle

(News Journal) Jeff Montgomery reports on State Senator David McBride's proposed legislation to put a stop to this mess ~ Projects will put ban on incinerators to the test in growing debate

A state lawmaker called for “caution” Thursday in state reviews of separate proposals for plants to break down scrap tires, plastic and poultry waste near New Castle and Millsboro, part of a nationwide flurry of new and controversial high temperature “pyrolysis” ventures.
The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control technical analysis tentatively has concluded that the Wilmington-area project is unaffected by Delaware’s effective ban on incinerators because the process is fully enclosed and takes place as a chemical reaction without combustion, flows of oxygen or large-scale emissions.
........Sen. David B. McBride, D-Hawks Nest, said he already has asked for draft legislation to extend the incinerator ban to pyrolysis units. He pointed out pyrolysis has virtually no track record in large-scale waste or energy recovery across the country. “Obviously I have doubts about the process,” said McBride, who sponsored and led support for legislation in 1997 and 2000 that effectively left all of the state off-limits to new incinerators. “I’m hopeful that DNREC will move in a very cautious manner on this.”
........At issue is a proposal by New Jersey-based RenewOil Energy Inc. to build a scrap tire and plastic conversion plant in a business and industrial park off Boulden Boulevard near New Castle, and another by Renewable Oil International for a plant on a poultry farm and poultry litter brokerage east of Traps Pond State Park, with a smaller laboratory-size version in Seaford.

Read this Green Delaware post for more details and call and write the Markell administration to protest this quackery TODAY! ~ Tire incinerator update/action alert | Green Delaware

I guess this is what we get for electing a DINO corporate-fed Governor who hires his ruthless GOPer opponent for the Economic Development cabinet post and a yes-man for Natural Resources. 

 Green Party parades with Toxic Jack Markell 

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