PLYMOUTH-On Thursday February 17, a meeting on local air pollution, titled “Power Plant Solutions,” was held at the Common Man Inn to inform people in the Plymouth area of the dangerous greenhouse gases being released into New Hampshire’s air. Doug Bogen, program director for Clean Water Action, guided the meeting.
“This is the year to be tackling this problem. We have the Clean PowerAct from 2002 which said we will be cleaning up mercury and carbon dioxide in 2005, and now here we are in 2005 and we’ve got to get down to business,” stated Bogen.
He identified Southern New Hampshire as a hot spot for air pollution, claiming that because of local coal Emissions the Manchester area is one of the most highly polluted areas in New England.
Many of the nations dirtiest power plants are located in the southern part of the state. They include: Merrimack Station in Bow, Newington Station in Newington, and Schiller Station in Portsmouth. Bogen says that these plants are “grandfather plants,” because all three plants do not meet any type of pollution regulations and were expected to retire years ago. According to Bogen, however, they will continue to run for years.
Bogen feels that cleaning up the problematic power plants is feasible. The amount of money that it would cost to do so is far less than government officials suggest.
“As long as we keep burning coal we’re not going to keep using resources like solar power and other energy sources that are sustainable…and yeah we’ve got lots of coal and we’ll keep burning coal, but we’ve got to stop and think about what it’s doing to our global weather system,” stated Bogen.
Bogen suggests that people living in local communities should write to a government agent. Bogen insists that feedback or suggestions from a member of the New Hampshire community will have more impact on local officials dealing with environmental issues than the word of environmental organizations or protestors.
People are exposed to polluted air in a variety of ways such asbreathing it, consuming contaminated food that has been exposed topollutants, drinking polluted water, ingesting soil that has been exposedto pollutants, or touching anything that has been contaminated.
The hazardous toxins also make their way into the water. Because of high mercury levels in the water, New Hampshire has put forth advisories on eating fish from local bodies of water. Some types of fish contain more mercury levels than others because mercury levels increase as they are transported up the food chain. The state recommends eating as little fish as possible, and women of childbearing age as well as children should avoid eating the fish all together.
“I don’t think New Hampshire devotes enough funds to preserving its natural resources,” stated PSU junior Matt Appel.
“It surprises me that there is so much air pollution in New Hampshire,especially since New Hampshire is perceived to be an environmentallyhealthy state,” commented fifth year student, Marla Morris.
According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, people (and animals) exposed to toxic air pollution for consistent periods of time are more likely to suffer from serious health problems including: increased risk of cancer, developmental problems in children and respiratory problems, such as asthma.
Bogen concluded the meeting by urging Plymouth and other local residents to take a stand against the hazardous chemicals being released into the air. He suggested calling or writing state or government officials with any questions, comments, or concerns.