More Betrayals By Pend Oreille Economic Development Council

More Betrayals By Pend Oreille Economic Development Council

As you might expect, the residents of Pend Oreille County (and Bonner County, ID) are being betrayed by dishonest misrepresentations by the Pend Oreille County Economic Development Council (POEDC).

They've just published a HiTest Silicon "Schedule" and did not even bother to mention the "Expedited Permitting" being sought after that we are all aware of. Both HiTest and Pend Oreille County have promoted this fact. They don't want you to know.

The POEDC also totally failed to mention that the selected site is zoned Residential and cannot be rezoned commercial without a public hearing (point 2a). This is a direct violation of "County development standards".

The other issue they totally failed to mention is point 4a, where they claim that -

A preliminary air quality analysis conducted by Hi Test several hundred miles around the site indicates that the facility will meet the national air quality standards.This includes areas such as Glacier National Park which is protected bythe highest standards in the country.

This is not even remotely true. The "analysis" referenced included gross misrepresentation of data and area, dishonest measurements and times, and the required special permitting due to excessive emissions exceeding normal allowable standards by a huge margin (see HiTest Silicon Smelter will produce at least 1400 TONS of Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) and Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) per year! and Comments on Hi-Test Sand PSD Modeling Protocol Submitted by Kalispel Tribe of Indians (click links).

This analysis was rejected as fair, honest or accurate by the Kalispel Tribe - and rightly so, because if you read it for yourselves, you will discover what they reported - it's bogus. They have to start over.

It is impossible to claim that the POEDC is unaware of this rejection of the air quality analysis - they've simply chosen to ignore it.

Do you get the strong feeling that this is the very characteristic that has been behind this entire project proposal? I certainly do. Every "pro" smelter proponent is choosing to ignore the facts and just plow ahead - as if we do not have a choice (we do).

It is very clear the the POEDC does not even remotely represent the residents of Pend Oreille County and are doing an absolutely terrible job at informing the public of the real facts.

They are also lying about the former locations HiTest has tried - the Usk, WA location was abandoned due to strong resistance by the Kalispel Tribe. Next, Addy, WA was abandoned due to toxic cleanup requirements (contaminated soil) that HiTest did not want to clean up (which is what is planned for Newport), and they entirely failed to even mention the outright rejection in Golden, BC of this smelter by the residents there! Even Canada does not want this monstrosity!

Those are the FACTS and it is clear that the POEDC needs to be disbanded immediately. They are biased, pro-smelter, pro-toxins, pro-pollution, pro-traffic, pro-noise, pro-environmental hazards and are driving in the wrong direction for the development and improvement of this County.

I have not seen a single, honest, fair, unbiased and informed publication YET from the POEDC. It is apparently staffed with complete idiots who are taking their marching orders and simply regurgitating the lies and deceptions about smelting operations. So far - they have refused all attempts at education and have refused to even mention the environmental and human health hazards.

The risks of silicon smelting have been well-documented here and elsewhere - get the FACTS. The smelter is a toxic, environmental and human hazard that will have lasting effects on this entire region for many decades (at least 100 years). Don't let the POEDC misinform you!