Originally posted 1/28/99 on Rlenelive.com's Website

Paul E.R. Packbier: The President of PCR Environmental, Inc., a Certified Hazardous Materials Manager (Master Level), Registered Environmental Manager, and Chemical Engineer. He has been one of Guam's most outspoken proponents of a Waste-to-Energy facility.

Politicians, environmentalists, and special interest advocates, often blurt out irrational and often sensational claims, but never around when things get to hot.

Christmas, 1998: Here I was again, suited up in Tyvek chemical protective gear, full-face respirator, and weighted down by air sampling equipment that is designed to warn me to flee when it detects conditions that are dangerous to life and health.

It is a little different this time. The heat that the fire is generating is intense and the black smoke is reducing the visibility to maybe 5 feet. The combustible gas indicator starts to sound an alarm. Apparently, I have exceeded OSHA's recommended exposure limit for carbon monoxide.

Knowing that the organic vapor cartridges in my respirator don't filter out this potential toxin, I start to back off. Back at the command post, Catherine Cruz and a cameraman have already arrived.

This was nothing new of course. For me personally, this was the third fire at the Ordot Dump that I have responded to in the last five years. Not including the Malojloj Hardfill fire, which seemed only weeks ago.

This fire was different from the previous ones because it included a large amount of old rubber tires that were sending a huge amount of black smoke into the air. Twelve families were evacuated that Christmas night.

On New Year's Day we were back at the dump to collect 12-hour samples of air with laboratory supplied samplers. Even though our field equipment indicated that there was no immediate threat to workers and surrounding residents, the laboratory tests would confirm this at very low levels.

Twelve hours is a long time to spend at the dump, and watching the mountain of trash in the midst of Guam's greenery made me reflect on the tainted history of this disaster.

Recognizing a need to address the antiquated manner in which we were disposing of our trash seventeen (!) years ago, the Government of Guam issued a License to a New York firm experienced in waste-to-energy facilities.

The concept was simple: 1) The amount of trash that we were generating was not going to go down because of a growing economy and population, and; 2) we have a limited landmass on which we can construct landfills. Utilizing a proven technology to reduce the volume of trash that we would need to bury, would also have as benefit that costs would be offset by the generation of electricity from the waste heat.

After a couple of years it appeared that the New York License holder had forgotten about Guam. A local group of entrepreneurs negotiated a buy out of the License and started negotiations with the Guam Economic Development Authority (GEDA).

After getting competitive bids from waste-to-energy plant builders and operators, the Guam Resource Recovery Partners (GRRP) entered into long drawn out negotiations with the Government. Over the course of 8 years during the Ada Administration, GEDA spent more than $1 million on consultants, lawyers, and contract specialists to negotiate a contract.

When time was running out at the end of 1994, GEDA did not want to see all this effort wasted and signed a "Term Sheet," basically agreeing on the terms of a contract.

It took the Gutierrez Administration another year before the actual Contract would be finalized and signed. Finally, an end in sight! Or was there?

The problem was that drastically reducing the amount of trash that needs to be disposed of in a landfill was not in the best interest of people that profit from operating landfills. A telltale sign was one of the first bills introduced in the 24th Guam Legislature, which called for the privatization of Guam's next engineered landfill.

This was followed by an extensive lobbying campaign by opponents of a waste-to-energy facility, including local environmental groups, and embarrassing GEDA's Board during an alleged "oversight" hearing.

As a professional and scientist, it is often appalling to hear claims of Armageddon from misinformed or special interest groups. However, the media loves to pick up on these theories of dubious accuracy because they are more sensational.

It may be irrational, but those who make the first and often sensational claim get much wider attention and are credited with more credibility than those who come later with calm facts.

Oh yes, it was a long and hot day January 1, 1999 at the Ordot Dump. One I wished I could have spent with some of the politicians, environmentalists,and special interest advocates, right there with me!

Go out and look sometime, at the pyramid of trash we are building. Leave the comfort of your air-conditioned homes and offices, and spent it at this environmental eyesore. You might finally realize that if you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem.