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Two firms hired to study environmental effects of Omya

June 23, 2006
By Bruce Edwards Herald Staff

FLORENCE — Two Massachusetts consulting firms have been chosen to undertake an independent study of the health and environmental effects of Omya's calcium carbonate processing activities in Florence.

Cambridge Environmental Inc. and Geosyntec Consultants Inc. were selected to perform a state-mandated study to address questions about Omya's operation.

CLF Ventures, an affiliate of the Conservation Law Foundation, is overseeing the study. CLF Ventures was hired by Omya Inc. last year to advise the company on environmental concerns raised by neighbors and others. Those concerns included the health and environmental impact of its marble waste or tailings which have been stored in open pits for years. Tests have found traces of chemicals in groundwater. Neighbors have also complained about odors coming from the plant, which grinds marble used in the paper, paint, chemical and pharmaceutical industries.

CLF Ventures spokeswoman Jasmine Tanguay said Thursday the study covers seven areas laid out in the law including ground water mapping, ground water sampling, laboratory testing, toxicological analysis of the tailings and air emissions, dust, and quality assurance issues. The study will also look at broad areas of possible concern including noise and truck traffic.

CLF Ventures invited several interested parties to take part in the process. The parties that make up the oversight team include the Agency of Natural Resources, Sen. Claire Ayer, D-Addison, Florence resident Lynn Silloway, the town of Pittsford, Residents Concerned about Omya, Vermonters for a Clean Environment, an Omya representative and a University of Vermont professor.

Tanguay said a set of four leading consulting firms were asked to submit proposals.

"The group used a consensus process to identify the team they most wanted to perform the study," she said. "They felt this particular team had the best technical skills as well as the ability to work with the community."

She said the selection was not based on cost.

The study is designed to ensure impartiality with the oversight team controlling the process. And while Omya is footing the bill, Tanguay said the contract is between CLF Ventures and the consulting firms. CLF will then turn around and bill Omya for the cost. She said Omya has set no price ceiling

"We hold the contract and that's our attempt at making sure there's some independence so Omya is not directly overseeing the scientists," Tanguay said

She said work on the study is already in its initial phase.

"The first step is to review existing data and then if there is data gaps that need to be remedied or additional investigations that are necessary that will happen in Phase 2, which will probably happen later this year" she said. "But they're scrutinizing all of the previously generated data to make sure the existing knowledge is based on good information and then they'll go out and ask additional questions."

The study was included by the state Legislature last year in a law relating to solid waste facility fees, taxes and certification. The law requires a study to be conducted by a certified, independent, third-party research laboratory and is to be completed and submitted to the secretary the Agency of Natural Resources by Jan. 15, 2008.

Florence resident Lynn Silloway, who sits on the oversight team and whose property abuts the Omya facility, expressed satisfaction at the way the collaborative process has evolved.

"It was an effective process in that a diverse group of people worked together in a democratic fashion to select the best firm to do the work," Silloway said in the CLF Ventures release.

Tony Colak, Omya's vice president of operations, added that the company is "actively addressing the public's concerns through this process, and we are demonstrating our commitment to operating in an environmentally and socially responsible way."

A long-time critic of Omya's operations also said the selection of the consulting team was a positive step.

"We are confident that they will produce the kind of unbiased, scientifically based data that will help answer long-standing questions about the safety of water and air and the impacts of Omya's operations on human health and the environment," said Annette Smith, executive director of Vermonters for a Clean Environment. "We will continue working with the rest of the oversight team on this process, and hope that it will lead to answers to the concerns of Omya's neighbors."

Cambridge Environmental Inc. is a leading research and consulting firm that assesses and helps minimize risks to health and the environment.

Geosyntec Consultants Inc, which will provide a review of site geology and groundwater flow at the site, is a geotechnical and hydrological consulting firm with its regional office located in Acton, Mass.

CLF Ventures is the nonprofit affiliate of the Conservation Law Foundation, an environmental advocacy organization based in Boston.

Contact Bruce Edwards at bruce.edwards@rutlandherald.com.