People protest the proposed Titan plant outside a state hearing in Wilmington.
Southeast Advocacy: Titan Cement
After three years of secret negotiations, New Hanover County residents had only three days to comment on a proposal by the Board of County Commissioners to “invite” Titan America to mine and make cement on more than 1,800 acres on the site of the former Ideal Cement plant on the banks of the Northeast Cape Fear River . Despite major public opposition, the commissioners voted 5-0 in favor of $4.2 million dollars in tax incentives for Titan America to build and operate what would be the fourth- largest cement plant in the United States. In addition the State of North Carolina has approved a $300,000 grant to Titan to bring the plant to our region.
The Titan Plant Could…
- Be the eighth-largest source of mercury emissions in the state and the largest in the Southeast Region. Mercury can be a potent neurotoxin that causes disabilities in children, infants, the unborn and the elderly. In water, mercury accumulates in fish tissue making the fish unsafe to eat. The state health director has already issued warnings about eating certain types of fish along the coast because of mercury poisoning.
- Be a significant source of nitrogen oxides, which contributes to smog and ozone; sulfur dioxide, which causes acid rain; and other air borne toxins including lead, arsenic and chromium.
- Emit nearly 700 tons of particulate matter each year, which causes asthma and other lung disease.
- Create a 3,000-acre mine that would be 70 feet deep and would destroy thousands of acres of irreplaceable wetlands, wildlife habitat and riparian buffers along the Northeast Cape Fear River. Titan admits that mineral reserves found on its current site will not be enough for this multi-billion dollar corporation to make a profit so they are looking at other large tracts of land for mining, which will further effect our region for decades.
- Withdraw millions of gallons of water from the Castle Hayne and Pee Dee aquifers, lowering the water table and risking contamination of a major source of drinking water.
- Put over 8,500 school children who attend school within five miles of the plant at risk from the pollutants emitted from the plant.
The Real Costs of the Titan Plant
Real Economic Costs
Titan and its proponents claim that the cement plant and strip mine will add needed jobs to the community, but they overlook the real costs of what a polluting industry will do to our natural resources. It could actually reduce the potential for future growth in southeastern North Carolina. Craig Galbraith, an economist at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington, refutes Titan’s economic claims and says that the real cost of Titan will be a longterm loss of jobs and opportunity and the possible destruction of our tourism-based economy in return for shorterm economic gain.
- Read Craig Galbraith's assessment
Instead of building an economy on the merits of our bountiful natural resources and pool of tradesmen, highly educated and skilled graduates of our university and community colleges, we are sacrificing the opportunity to a single destructive industry.
- Read the Wall Street Journal's description of the Titan fight as a clash between the "old" vs. the "new" economies
Real Human Health Costs
More than 240 Local doctors are opposed to the cement plant because of its potential effects on people's health.
Pediatricians, cardiologists, pulmonologists, oncologists, family doctors and emergency medicine physicians are on the growing list of medical professionals opposed to the plant. Declining air quality, they fear, is a major health risk for their patients. The emissions from Titan Cement, documented in their draft air quality permit, will degrade our existing air quality for the next 50 years
- Read one physician's fears.
Of 100 North Carolina counties, New Hanover’s physical environment is already in trouble and is ranked 68th in the state by the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute. The county already has some of the highest toxic emissions in North Carolina:
Each year the smokestack of Carolinas Cement will emit more nitrous oxide than the total yearly output from all of the 177,000 registered private vehicles in the county
Citizens Take Action
Protesters line the street outside another Titan workshop.
People attend one of Titan’s workshops.
In response to Titan’s plans, citizen activists have organized a groundswell of opposition to the plant and created a website, stoptitan.org, to serve as an informational portal for people worried about the effects of this project. The N.C. Coastal Federation, Cape Fear River Watch , PenderWatch & Conservancy and other advocacy groups have joined forces with this grassroots movement.
We have:
- Gone to Raleigh to lobby elected officials.
- Appeared before the New Hanover County commissioners to ask them to listen to our concerns.
- Raised money to battle this multi-billion dollar international corporation.
The opposition now includes:
- Over 250 local physicians and more than 300 health care providers.
- Local businesses, statewide environmental groups, local elected officials and state representatives in New Hanover and Pender counties.
- Community leaders, academics, scientists and environmental agencies concerned about this project now has hundreds of listings and continues to grow each day.
A new grassroots group, Citizens Against Titan, has gathered over 7,000 signatures of people who are opposed to the plant.In February more than 300 people rallied outside of the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners meeting and then asked their commissioners to rescind the $4.2 million in tax incentives granted to Titan. The board took no action, however.
A small group consisting of federation staff and other concerned groups met with U.S. Rep. Mike McIntyre and U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan to ask them to become involved in this issue. Both agreed to monitor the project and urge the EPA to keep a close eye on the permitting process. The group also asked them to support the proposed EPA regulations on cement plants.
The SEPA Issue
In the fall of 2008 the state waived the environmental review that is normally required under state law for projects such as Titan. The State Environmental Policy Act, passed in 1971, requires state agencies to review the potential environmental threats posed by a project that requires a state permit, uses public money or land or poses a “significant” threat to the environment. The law prohibits the state from issuing permits for covered projects until the review is completed and a record of decision is issued by the state.
The state, though, waived the review, despite Titan receiving $4.5 million dollars in state and local incentives. The department determined that the money doesn't constitute public monies because they will be distributed after the plant is built. With the waiver, Titan could apply for its required air permit, which would allow the company to design and begin building the kiln and manufacturing plant before a comprehensive review of the project by all state and federal agencies is completed.
The federation and other Titan opponents challenged this controversial decision to the State Department of Administration, but the department supported the decision to waive the review.
The federation, Cape Fear River Watch and PenderWatch & Conservancy have filed a lawsuit in Wake County Superior Court for a judicial review of the state’s action. A decision is pending.
Seeking Legal Help
The federation, Cape Fear River Watch and PenderWatch & Conservancy have requested the assistance of the Southern Environmental Law Center and Duke University Environmental Law & Policy Clinic also to assist us in the legal and scientific research on the permitting process.
Agencies Voice Concerns
Several state and federal agencies have expressed concern and opposition to the project as proposed including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (pdf letter), the National Marine Fisheries (pdf letter), the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission and the state divisions of Coastal Management, Water Quality and Marine Fisheries. Their concerns range from the destruction of wetlands and critical wildlife habitat to the effects on fisheries and endangered species.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has now identified the Northeast Cape Fear River as an “aquatic area of national importance,” which should provide additional support to either deny the current permit application or require alternative sites for the project that do not include these critical wetland and riverine areas.
State Issues Draft Air Permit
Despite the overwhelming opposition, the N.C. Division of Air Quality issued Titan a draft air permit in September 2009. The agency held two public hearings in Wilmington on Oct. 20. More than 1,500 people attended the hearings – people were lined out the door -- and over 150 people spoke out against the project. The Southern Environmental Law Center and Duke Environmental Law Clinic submitted written comments for the federation and the two other groups.
In response to the public hearings, the state hearing officer has submitted 10 recommendations to the director of the Division of Air Quality. The recommendations essentially “mirror” comments submitted by the federation and others that the state hasn't done its job in reviewing the draft permit submitted by Titan. In response the state chief permit officer has requested further information from Titan but does not go far enough. The state still seems to ignore the fact that what comes out of Titan’s stack will eventually be deposited in an area that is already polluted with mercury.
Invaluable wetland like these at Island Creek could be destroyed by the Titan project.
Governor Takes Action
In response to a well-respected political strategist, Joe Senshimer, and at the urging from opponents, Gov. Beverly Perdue directed the State Bureau of Investigation to review the state’s permitting action. The federation and two other conservation groups have asked Perdue to delay issuing permit to Titan until the SBI completes its investigation.
Urge Perdue to Delay Action on Titan
 Because of the recent scandals concerning campaign fundraising and environmental permitting, the public has lost confidence in the objectivity of state agencies, the federation and two other conservation groups said in a letter to Gov. Beverly Perdue. We have asked Perdue to delay issuing environmental permits for Titan America's proposed cement plant near Wilmington until an investigation she ordered into any permitting irregularities is completed.
Our letter notes two press reports: The News & Observer of Raleigh gives a good recounting of the efforts Titan and the state made to allow the company to apply for its state permits without first doing a comprehensive review of the plant's environmental effects, as state law seems to require. The federation is among the groups asking the courts to review that decision. The Star-News in Wilmington reported that fundraisers for former governor Mike Easley sold a building in Wilmington to a Titan executive for twice its tax value. The News & Observer devoted its editorial page to the Titan permit.
Action Alert: Urge Gov. Perdue to delay all action on Titan
Perdue on March 25 responded to questions about Titan at a meeting with political and business leaders and academics in Wilmington. She said that she will not approve the air permit until she is satisfied that the project is environmentally safe. The permit alone, though, won't provide the comprehensive information that is required to make that determination.
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