PD Continues... Case Western Reserve University steam plant may wait months for decision about permit renewal

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Thu, 08/12/2010 - 05:46.

Mattie Reitman of the Sierra Club standing-up to EPA against MCCO burning coal in University Circle Cleveland Ohio
Mattie Reitman of the Sierra Club standing-up to EPA against MCCO burning coal in University Circle, Cleveland, Ohio

John Funk of the Cleveland Plain Dealer continued his expanding coverage of the dangerous situation in University Circle that is the Medical Center Company. Outlining the timeline below, Funk highlights that "The permit, the facility's first ever, expired in 2003, and authorities have been reviewing the company's renewal application ever since" and "Built in 1932 and expanded with gas boilers as needed, the steam plant is operated by the Medical Center Co., a non-profit corporation whose board of directors represent CWRU and the major institutions that make up University Circle. The plant burns about 40,000 tons of coal per year." At issue is the renewal by the EPA of their permit to continue burning coal for five more years, which is outragous.Public feedback to the EPA is encouraged!

The article is included in entirety below to protect this information for public health and safety...

Case Western Reserve University steam plant may wait months for decision about permit renewal
Published: Wednesday, August 11, 2010, 7:09 PM     Updated: Wednesday, August 11, 2010, 7:17 PM

 John Funk, The Plain Dealer

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Opponents of the coal-burning steam plant on the Case Western Reserve University campus can expect to wait a few months for a decision about the plant's new air permit.

About 70 people turned out this week at a hearing near the campus held jointly by the Air Quality Division of the Cleveland Department of Health and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.Nearby residents, doctors and students who spoke were either opposed to renewing the plant's 1999 EPA permit or wanted stricter operating or phase-out conditions added to the permit. The permit, the facility's first ever, expired in 2003, and authorities have been reviewing the company's renewal application ever since.

Matt Carroll, Cleveland public health director, said his staff would consider the comments, inspect the plant and send a recommendation to the Ohio EPA. The final decision could take a few months.

Built in 1932 and expanded with gas boilers as needed, the steam plant is operated by the Medical Center Co., a non-profit corporation whose board of directors represent CWRU and the major institutions that make up University Circle.

The plant burns about 40,000 tons of coal per year and supplies steam heat to its members as well as chilled water in the summer and power purchased from Cleveland Public Power.

The Sierra Club has taken a special interest in the steam plant and is urging it to stop burning coal, calling the practice especially egregious because it is right next to a hospital.

Previous coverage

Old-fashioned Ohio coal still being burned at tech-savvy University Circle institutions

CWRU treasurer Bob Brown, who is also chairman of the corporation's board of directors, said this week that the company is committed to replacing the plant, perhaps with a facility that burns natural gas and generates electrical power as well as steam heat. Called "co-generation," the process is considered more efficient in the industry.

In addition to CWRU, other members of the Medical Center Co. include University Hospitals, the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Church of the Covenant, the Musical Arts Association, the Cleveland Botanical Garden, the Cleveland Hearing and Speech Center, the Cleveland Medical Library Association, the Cleveland Institute of Art and Severance Hall.

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seven years of "reviewing" a license???

whY????????

The MCCO license expired in 1998 I believe...

The MCCO license expired in 1998, I believe... we didn't have the time at the hearing to explore the reasons why or the status of the license since, but that is worth researching. It is safe to say this plant has been largely outside normal regulation for over a decade - and has had violations - and has had very few upgrades. All as capacity and emissions have ballooned - assets more than tripled to $66 million in 2007... explain that!

Worse, why are they a Non-Profit Foundation for public benefit?!?!

All a bunch of crazy 1932 science, engineering, law and trust logic no longer acceptable in modern society. Stop polluting - pay taxes.

They wanted to build more coal capacity - got caught in the clean coal circus - and when I learned about that and started attacking that plan they filed for a license to lock-in at least five more years of coal - and to protect their grandfathering.

If they hadn't tried for a permit, the Sierra Club wouldn't have been able to ask for the hearing and MCCO wouldn't have had any EPA or public opposition but me on realNEO... so they have some lawyers who had bad judgment and have some explaining to do - that will cost MCCO the loss of years of extra coal burning, and cost all University Circle institutions great harm to their reputations and images, which is hard earned

... but that mistake will help protect citizens from breathing thousands of tons of pollution... best mistake a lawyer ever made for me.

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any word from Green Lake Blue City on this?

any word from Green Lake Blue City on this?

where are they?

I believe Beach and Lefkowitz were at the hearing

I believe Beach and Lefkowitz were at the hearing - I believe the Natural History Museum is an MCCO customer, so CMNH members and GCBL members are customers - I believe they are involved in activities funded by Cleveland Thermal and other coal burners, like Sustainable Cleveland 2019, and so are further conflicted in their ability to be impartial on MCCO. That said, I assume they will submit letters to the EPA opposing the burning of coal and MCCO and promote the end of that with their sustainability network.

Ever since I realized the harm being caused in University Circle by MCCO and affiliates, I stopped supporting their customers - no orchestra - no museum - no memberships - no donations - and I'm driving that boycott family-wide.

We shall see.

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Green City Blue Lake - Cats got its tongue

 MCCO has deferred focus on it's coal permit for about 7 years.  Norm has focused community awarness on the issue.   This is realneo.   Civil discourse. Civil.

 

GCBL - A MalRite Production

GCBL - A MalRite Production... just like the FOR PROFIT MalRite Spy Museum and the Jewish Museum (with some of the worst websites in the WORLD)... long stories...

Hotel Bruce was a MalRite production and so is GCBL - your sustainability leaders are media monopolists trying to make money off museums... woopie!

So what do you expect from them regarding burning coal?

Does it make them money? Yes, they make more money by burning coal. End of story.

Speaking of Arts, Culture and Money... regarding the bankrupt WRHS.... did they get paid for being instrumental to making MalRite money?:

 

Regarding corruption of free thought and speech by industrialists, read this and think monopoly media... MalRite... Newhouse... Knight...  CIVIC COMMONS and IDEASTREAM:

Locally Focused Foundations Increase Support for Community News and Information Projects

Nineteen Ideas Receive $3.14 Million
In Matching Funding from Knight Foundation

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (Sept. 13, 2010) – To help ensure that communities are informed on key issues, 19 locally focused foundations will support local news and information projects with new funding from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

The community and place-based foundations will receive $3.14 million in matching grants as part of the Knight Community Information Challenge, which engages foundations in meeting local information needs.  They join more than 75 of their peers now funding in this area, a Knight Foundation survey has found.

"These foundations are at the front line of an increasing movement of place-based foundations to improve the information health of America's communities," said Alberto Ibargüen, president and CEO of Knight Foundation. "Their work helps residents have the information they need to make important decisions about their communities. Ultimately, our democracy will only thrive if we have informed and engaged communities." 

 

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Blackout on COAL

  It absolutely astounds me that to date--CWRU observer has not produced one article on the coal plant in their midst.

Anyone else is welcome to try and their hand at digging here:

http://www.cwruobserver.com/

A broader search of the CWRU site, did find this interesting article:

http://www.cwru.edu/med/epidbio/mphp439/Environmental_Racism.pdf

And, a chance to attend the T. Bone Pickens Town Hall...

http://www.townhallseries.org/season01.html

Black-ops at Case

Black-ops at Case - the more you learn about the real story of Case and the military you realize you have never known anything about Case.

You know nothing about Case.

I hope black-ops can pay their bills in the new economy, because I don't think the free world values the work being done there as highly as the commie world of our forefathers did...

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