"EO: What motivated you and your group to get organized?
Gretchen: We did our homework. We were looking for real scientific data that would tell us about the smell. We found that the smell from the mill comes equally from the mill stacks and the basin pollution. We found that there is legal precedence in that that kind of pollution that could affect people’s health and livelihood is called “chemical trespass”.
Chemical trespass is chemicals spread from somebody else’s activities which impact your life and property. Our groups have spent thousands of hours researching this pollution and also the mill and how it operates. We wanted to know the details. It was a great effort by many people. PT Airwatchers has more than 500 members, and there is a changing core of 100 people doing the research and organizing events such as educating the community.
EO: Tell me about the Port Townsend Mill, what do they manufacture and how do they generate income?
Gretchen: The main product of the Port Townsend mill is the manufacturing of unbleached Kraft pulp. The pulp is sold to make corrugated cardboard. The pulp is made from local trees that are known for their extra-fine fibers such as Western Red Cedar. The mill has been buying the slash of clear-cuts since 1929. The mill also runs a Biomass burner to generate electricity. Although originally set up with a promise of cheaper electricity to the local community, the electricity is actually sold to the bigger markets for higher revenue. They already generate 14.9 megawatts to sell. So what they do is buy power that they need from Bonneville Power at sub-market rates and then sell the power they generate back to the power grid at market rates or higher. They sell at a higher rate because they claim they are making green energy. It is another way they generate income.
They also receive a subsidy from the US government because they are designated as “green energy” producers. Two years ago California stopped buying this power from the grid because the state passed a law to buy local first. The state would buy energy from California producers first. This kind of put a crimp in the mill’s plan to sell “green energy”. Fracking of natural gas across the country has driven down energy prices and the need for electricity has decreased.
They make money by collecting government subsidies. They get a tax subsidy for using forest products."
Source and More
http://communityrightsjeffersoncountywa.org/?p=536
For Some Reason the PT Airwatchers Blog has been down for awhile. Not sure Why. However, I do have every page of it saved as well as all connected documents to the best of my ability. If you have any documents of proof, or anything that exposes corruption connected to the Port Townsend Paper Mill and Jefferson County officials in ANY way, eMail your tip to ReverendCrystalCox@Gmail.com
Also Don't FORGET that the Port Townsend Paper Mill gets government subsidies to POISON YOU. They get YOUR TAX MONEY TO POISON YOU.