Anti-Demolition Demonstration Set for Wednesday at Noon

Click on image to enlarge.

Dry Wetland

Sad to report that effluent from the Water Improvement District to the Rio Bosque has stopped.  

Not only that but in spite of the water district’s finally allowing the transfer of water rights to the Bosque by private landowners, there are apparently still some hold-ups.  Charlie Wakeem chronicles his attempts to transfer his water rights and I make some comments in a blog post: When a Water Right Isn’t a Water Right. El Paso Water Improvement District General Manager Chuy Reyes visited Senator Rodriguez’s Environmental Committee and answered their questions last week.  I was in attendance.  Here’s the bottom line: The Board of the Water District should give Mr. Reyes a raise. He is discharging his fiduciary responsibility by serving his customers – those small tract owners and large farmers who pay to have their land irrigated.  Given the drought, every drop is dedicated and directed toward paying customers. Thus, the Bosque is not going to get any more water even after a turnout is constructed by the water district from the canal into the Bosque.  The Rio Bosque Wetlands Park may get water in wet years to come – but not now.  Moreover, people with water rights will discover that they won’t be successful giving their water to the Bosque.  If they aren’t going to use it, then the paying customers are first in line.  This means that the only way that the Bosque can be guaranteed a regular supply of water is for the EPWU (which now holds the Bosque in its inventory of land) to deliver the water directly from the Bustamante plant by constructing a nearly half-million dollar pipeline – chump change really.  EPWU dumps water from the plant into the District’s waterway because it is obligated to give so much water back to the District and because it cannot now deal with some of its excess. That excess (if it is treated) can go to the Bosque. The water district will lose it – but then they could have given some of that free water to the Bosque just as effluent.

There is now even some question whether the Bosque has already received the acre feet of water from EPWU that was agreed upon.  Because of this uncertainty, new PSB Chairman Richard Schoephoerster does not want to put construction of the new pipeline on the agenda.  In my opinion, the PSB may be losing sight of the reason for the water and why it assumed the park into its inventory from the City: saving the Rio Bosque and turning it into the $18 Million eco-tourist attraction that it can become not to mention its value as a research center.  What needs to happen is a selection of a Bosque Planning Committee that can define a vision for the area and set a business plan.  Environmentalist, Judy Ackerman, says:

"It is well documented that the excess of 7,000 acre feet per season of effluent from the Bustamante belongs to EPWU.  PSB currently has two choices.  You can give that water away for FREE to Hudspeth County OR you can use it to recharge our own aquifer for a long term sustainable solution for the water needs or your customers.  Keeping your water on your land has multiple additional benefits such as scientific research opportunities, a world class wetlands park on an international boarder in an economically struggling area, and many more benefits." 

Someone needs to begin asking why EPWU and Water District policies seem to favor Hudspeth farmers with their full reservoirs. 

One more thought. Farmers around here raise some pretty water intensive crops: cotton and pecans come to mind.  Both crops are far more profitable than other crops that require less water.  So for the gain of immediate profit and personal enrichment, some farmers in our area will impoverish future generations of water.  Here’s the thought: perhaps water districts by law should have to go to a tiered system of billing just as the EPWU does with you and me.  If I use a little bit of water, I buy it at a pretty good rate.  If I leap into the next tier of water use, then my rate more than doubles.  Water conservation would be encouraged. Remember the Iroquois maxim:  “In our every deliberation, we must consider the impact of our decisions on the next seven generations.”  This beats the heck out of that slogan that says that “he who dies with the most toys wins.”

I have said just about all that I can say about the ASARCO stacks.  You can read my final (probably, maybe penultimate) blog post for now. I have spoken with environmental engineers who tell me that the $50 Million for clean-up was a fraction of what was really needed.  One of them told me that there is no way that even a sprinkler can keep dust from spreading when the concrete stacks are brought down and hit the ground at a high impact speed.  What plans are there for mitigating UTEP, Kern Place, Anapra, Juarez, etc. after the impact lifts dust into the air?  Bottom line from engineers: heavy metals have leeched into the ground and will make their way to the river. The material used to encapsulate contaminated materials in the Parker Brothers Arroyo will give way eventually - perhaps as early as 20 years.  Expert environmental engineers advise that we must be vigilant about monitoring for generations to come. Some places on the Asarco site (not all and not the majority of the area) must never be built upon.

Please sign the Complete Streets Petition.  A complete street “will accommodate all road users, regardless of age, ability, or mode of transportation.  Complete streets might include sidewalks, bike lanes, cycle tracks, wide paved shoulders, special bus lanes, comfortable and accessible transit stops, frequent crossing opportunities, median islands, accessible pedestrian signals, or curb extensions.” Get information and sign the petition.  Scroll down the page; there are links to much more information.  Bike Texas has complete streets as part of their legislative agenda which also includes safe passing and a ban on texting while driving.

And while we are on the subject of Bike Texas, be sure to read an article by our own Beth Nobles, Executive Director of Texas Mountain Trail. She writes about a way to earn dollars for a favorite charity through a new iPhone or Android app called Charity Miles. The program is for walkers, runners and bikers. Beth is also the oomph behind Peak Fitness Challenge along with Don Baumgardt of GeoBetty.  Keeping El Paso naturally means keeping our Trans-Pecos/Southwestern New Mexico region naturally and fit as well. (And charitable.)

For great hikes and events just check out El Paso Hiking Group, GeoBetty, Guadalupe Mountains National Park Meetup Group,  Las Cruces & El Paso Adventurists, Peak Fitness Challenge,  High Desert Hikers and Las Cruces Hiking Meetup. 

If you want a recreational and educational excursion in the El Paso/Las Cruces area, sign up for one of the Back by Noon events sponsored by the Southwest Environmental Center.  See a Back by Noon poster.

Congratulations to El Paso Zoo Education Curator, Rick LoBello, this year's recipient of the annual El Paso Trans Pecos Audubon Society Conservation Award.

By the way, join the Auduboners on a field trip this Saturday, Feb. 23, to the Holloman Lakes and Dog Canyon.  You'll drive north on US 54 about 1-1/2 hours to Alamogordo, then US 70 to the Holloman Lakes.  This area in an Important bird area.  Then picnic and bird at Oliver Lee State Park.  There is a fee of $5 per vehicle.  After lunch the group plans to take a short hike up Dog Canyon.  Meet at Lowe's Parking Lot, 4531 Transmountain Road behind Taco Bell at 7:00 a.m.  Bring lunch, binoculars, water and a scope if you have one.  Beginners and nonmembers are welcome.  Contact Mark Perkins at 637-3521 for more information.

Check out the Permaculture Workshop this Saturday at the Memorial Park Garden Center.

Not just a coffee table book – Cacti of Texas by El Pasoans, Gertrude and Ad Konings, should be in the library of every Chihuahuan Desert recreationalist.

Finally and sadly we note the passing of Kathy Goodell, the wife of Dr. Phil Goodell.  Read her obituary.  You will recall that the Goodells recently gave $1 Million to UTEP’s College of Science for a center of entrepreneurial geosciences.

 

Don't Blow Your Stack, Part 3

Roberto Puga, ASARCO Trustee, will hold a public meeting on February 26, 2013 from 6 to 7 p.m. in the Main Auditorium of the El Paso Downtown Library, 501 N. Oregon Street. (Map and directions) Visit the Trustee's web site for more information.

On Monday, City Council voted 5 to 3 to suspend attorney-client privilege and release the findings of a ruling about the Trustee's authority to donate the stack to the City of El Paso or a non-profit. 

The principle quesiton was: "Does the Trustee have the authority to convey at no cost, i.e., donate, the stack to another owner, e.g., the City or a non-profit organization formed for the purpose of preserving the stack?"

The answer: Yes, but.  "The Trust does not appear to prohibit donation of the stack, if the donation will advance the objectives of the Trust. However, the proposed donation would be evaluated in light of other competing interests of the Trust, and requires approval of TCEQ and EPA."

Translation: TCEQ will never approve doing anything with the stack but demolishing it. Therefore, in early April, Puga will carry out the destruction of the stack barring any unforeseen events.

Ruling on ASARCO Trustee's Ability to Donate Land to City under the Trust by jimhtolbert434

Save the Stacks issued this memo of Puga misinformation:

"From the outset Mr. Puga was willing to consider leaving the stacks standing--we now know that his intention all along was to demolish, and he never gave us a second thought.

If we proved they were stable and we could provide an owner with means to guarantee any liability, then he would preserve them--we proved they were stable, and the city offered to accept ownership, yet he backed out of his promise.

He claimed from the outset that he had $52M to clean up the El Paso site--that figure included clean-up of the Amarillo site, leaving the funds available for El Paso much less.

Cost to preserve and maintain the stacks over 50 years will exceed $14 million--most of this is a guess at the insurance costs for "liability"; the rest are guesses at the repair, preservation and maintenance.  Our engineering report shows the actual costs are estimated at $3.9 million, including $950,000 in hazards remediation that Puga must spend regardless.

His contention that the stacks are unstable is based on absolutely no engineering analysis; the actual engineering analysis based on physical inspection show the main stack structurally sound and meets all required standards.  It has stood the test of time of almost 50 years with no structural flaws.  Minor repairs to the scaffolding, upper rim and painting are the only issues found by the engineers.

"Demolition and burial of the stacks is the best environmental solution given their hazardous condition."  Actually, demolition and burial will likely create more problems environmentally than simply leaving them where they are.   The burial pit itself is part of the Parker Brothers arroyo, a major geological part of the site where Mother Nature has determined that the Franklin Mountain water runoff has and will flow for centuries.  The proposed "encapsulation" with a membrane lining and "monolayer" cap will likely erode with time (anywhere from 10  to 50 years) depending on the actual physical conditions of the materials, amount of overburden, the amount of ground water flow, etc.  No independent third party has analyzed the technical risk/viability of the proposed encapsulation.  Any leakage will have a direct passage to the Rio Grande.  It's not a matter of if, just when.  Environmentally, it would be better to keep the stacks above ground where the inner linings could be easily sealed and monitored, indefinitely.

He claims the cost of demolition is a million bucks--our engineering team thinks it is much higher than that.

"He has no authority to preserve or spend money to maintain the stacks." Legal analysis of the trust agreement under which he acts gives him broad authority to do pretty much anything he wants to with the stacks and/or the property, including spending some of the money he has for their preservation and maintenance.  He has already said he would spend funds for "cultural' and "historical" preservation of the plant offices and the power house.

"He has no authority to simply deed the stacks or related property to El Paso or any other entity."  Legal analysis again says he has wide latitude in how he disposes of the property, including giving it away to the city or other entity.

"He must realize the greatest profit from sale of the property, thereby limiting how he disposes of the property."  The answer is the same as above on legal authority; he can 'sell, transfer, or otherwise dispose of all or part of such properties, if possible' and and may 'consider criteria other than sales price' in disposal of the property.  Profit does not enter into the equation.

"The city must pay him $10 million for the property associated with the stacks, as a 'fair assessed value' of the land." This contention was literally pulled out of thin air.  There is no analysis of the 'fair assessed value' of this land, in part because of the ongoing liability and related costs.  Actual analysis of the property values taking into account the liability and other issues, actually show the property as a net, negative value."

"The presence of the stacks reduces the value of the property." Again there is no analysis to back up this statement.  The stacks in fact, properly preserved and maintained will like be an attraction to anyone looking to build appropriate land use value to this part of the property.  Projects in Pittsburgh, Baltimore and Monterrey, Mexico are examples of how communities have transformed similar industrial sites into economic and cultural centers for those communities.

Mr. Puga has claimed the east side (by UTEP) will be livable--the TCEQ told the UT Administration that there is no chance that the east side will be remediated sufficiently for housing.

He misrepresented the one inquiry he was able to provide information about – the email that showed an interested buyer wanted to do military training -- a questionable use for many reasons. While some of those reasons are subject of a different debate, for our purposes 1) there’s almost no taxable value associated with that use, so that raises further questions about his projects and 2) with regard to the stacks, their objection was first and foremost that the presence of the stacks implied public access, with the issue of liability a secondary concern but not a deal-killer."

In addition Mr. Puga has not allowed independent verification of the contaminants on the site. Thus there is no confirmation of his assertion that more toxic materials will not be "encapsulated".

Nevertheless, many environmentally-concerned and conscientious citizens maintain that the safest solution is to bring the stacks down and that it is high time to do so since Mr. Puga gave efforts to save the stacks time to come up with funding. In a letter to Senator Rodriguez dated January 27, 2013 (pre-dating the decision by Council to release the ruling) environmental activist, Peggy McNiel,  wrote:

"I was astounded and dismayed that you are supporting taxpayer funds being allocated to preserve the Asarco smokestacks.

This idea has already been presented to our city council and voted down.  Taxpayers in the city of El Paso do not support funding the preservation of the Asarco smokestacks.  Please do not take this outside the purview of the taxpaying voters who will have to pay for this if you succeed.

What is surprising is that you are not fighting for additional funds to further clean-up the site--including demolition of the stacks--to make it more conducive to all types of development not just commercial---a worthy endeavor for an environmentally conscious individual.

Some facts you may not be aware of:

1)Remediation of the site has always included demolition of the smokestacks because of their danger to the public. To quote from the TCEQ's engineer who authored the remediation plan. "The lack of routine maintenance will accelerate deterioration of the buildings and structures.  The deterioration of the structures will pose a hazard to any unauthorized persons and, as is the case with the smokestacks and the bridge over I-10, will pose a direct hazard to the public."

This was written in 2009.  It is 4 years later.  Do you really want to champion funding of a "direct hazard to the public".?

2) The Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club regards the smokestacks as "toxic waste" in their public comments to the Assistant Attorney General, Environmental and Natural Resources Division, U.S. Department of Justice, Washington D.C. 

Their public comments were written by one of their PHDs.

3)  The Asarco stacks in both Tacoma, Wash. and Omaha, Nebraska were both demolished as part of their remediation plans for their sites.  I talked to the on site manager for Citizens for a healthy bay, Ms. Leslie Rose, in Tacoma, Wash. regarding their stack demolition.  She practically jumped out of the phone to say, "Controlled demolition is safer than leaving the stacks up and not properly maintaining them."  She asks why would you want to leave the stacks as a liability for future generations.  The Tacoma stacks were demolished according to their EPA directed remediation plan.  She went on to say that if the stacks remain, someone is always responsible for costly maintenance.  An uncontrolled, unplanned failure of the stacks could be catastrophic and end up killing people.  Maybe, not now, but at some point, the stacks will have to be demolished. 

The Asarco trustee has hired independent experts who put the cost to stabilize the 826 ft stack at $6 million up front and $100,000 to $150,000 per year ad infinitum.  Later Mr. Puga said further up front wind stabilization would be required at an additional cost of at least $4 million.  This is to adequately preserve the stacks.

The Save the Stacks group immediately rejected these costs of safety even before they had conducted a study.  At the City Council meeting, their firm estimated the costs at $4 million over 50 years compared to the trustee's study that the cost would be $14 million plus the wind retrofitting of $4 million plus over 50 years.  Puga has rejected their proposal as not adequate.  Puga is the man I trust backed by the TCEQ and the EPA not some locals without the proper training and experience to judge which study is valid.  The Save the Stacks hired firm admitted in the council meeting that they did not consider the threat of wind to toppling the stacks.  Yet the Save the Stacks group continues to say it will only require $4 million.

4) Ms. Rose of Tacoma also offered that if the stacks had remained, no one would buy the property for development.  This is the same objection reported by Puga in his initial attempt to find interested buyers.

El Paso needs taxpaying entities.  We don't need a blighted site.

5)  There is nothing remarkable about these stacks other than the extent of their pollution and cost of preservation.  There are 31 taller stacks in the U.S.  The tallest one is 1217 ft. in Homer, Pa. Of the 31, 21 stacks are 1000 ft. or taller.  The Asarco stacks were not designed by Trost.  They were built in 1966 in a standard manufacturing process. 

6)  In a poll conducted by an independent research firm for the El Paso, Times, 80% of the polled were against stack preservation if the taxpayer would be required to fund it.  The Save the Stacks group keeps referring to a poll where 70% are for stack preservation. They have never referenced the research firm who conducted the poll, the sample size and the reliability factor.

7)  Mr. Puga has given the public 2 years and extended deadlines twice to provide any group every opportunity to come up with the funding to safely preserve the stacks.  The current group has not been able to come up with their own funding. So they embarked upon a scheme to offload the liability and cost to adequately and safely preserve the stacks onto the taxpayer.  This was voted down in the El Paso City Council by a majority.  Now this group is going to you Senator to extract funds from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Dept. for preservation of polluted stacks.  At a time when our state parks are underfunded, why would anyone wish to cut additional funds from our mountains, beaches and parks to fund these polluted stacks?  Help me.

I urge you to allow the original remediation plan to go forward and support the trustee, Mr. Puga, the TCEQ and the EPA to clean up the polluted site and demolish the polluted, dangerous smokestacks in the interests of the environment and the health and safety of the citizenry.

These are my own opinions most of which are shared by a group of us who are against stacks preservation. We are now about 60 and counting. All of us do not want our taxes--local, state or federal allocated to preserving the polluted smokestacks.

If you wish to meet with me and discuss this further, I would be happy to go over the extensive documents and references further.

Thank you for your service,

Peggy McNiel"

Funding is the bottom line.  City Council won't provide any funds for structural "fixes", maintenance nor insurance.  It's not just TCEQ. Other large entities and powerful forces are involved. I continue to be skeptical about the safety of bringing down the stacks and then encapsulating them in the Parker Brothers Arroyo - an arroyo lined with pretty friable rock. Nevertheless, unless something unforeseeable happens in the next six weeks, it appears that I will take Peggy up on her offer to sip Brandy Alexanders and watch the demolition of these historic monuments.  Once gone, they will always be gone.  Jackson Polk of El Paso Gold has already prepared to document the final demise.

Asarco Trustee Puga to Speak at UTEP

THE CENTENNIAL MUSEUM, ENVIRONMENTAL ADVOCATES AND EL PASO GROUP OF THE SIERRA CLUB PRESENT:

"Former ASARCO Smelter Site - Remediation Challenges 

and Project End Vision"

Roberto Puga, P.G., Site Custodial Trustee Project Navigator, Ltd.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 30, 2013
6:30 p.m. Meet and greet; 7:00 p.m. Presentation

Centennial Museum, UTEP Campus,
500 W. University Ave., El Paso (Map)

Campus gates open at 5:30 pm.

All are welcome.

For more information call:
Laurence 309-5419 or Liz 915-342-7630

Don't Blow Your Stack, Part 1

Where do things stand now regarding the Asarco stacks or stack? Quick review: Robert Ardovino wrote an excellent editorial published here on November 26, 2012 prior to City Council issuing its opinion. One of my favorite  quotes from the editorial was from the trustee, Roberto Puga, himself. He said: "The stacks are, I think, an important cultural icon in El Paso." Keep that quote in mind as you read further.

Mr. Ardovino's argument to save the stack(s) was based on a very trustworthy engineering report that the stacks are "strong, straight and solid".

On November 27, 2012, City Council voted to save the stacks as long as they did not have to spend any money. It has been contended since then that Puga has the authority to give the stacks and land to the City rather than holding the City hostage for millions of dollars if it wants to save the stacks.

So here is what has happened post 11/27/12 bringing you up to now:  

Not long after the City Council vote, prominent El Paso leaders met in Mayor Cook's office and placed a call to Mr. Puga and his attorneys.  Present along with Save the Stack leaders Robert Ardovino and Jeffrey Wright and journalist, Sito Negron, were Mayor John Cook, Rep. Steve Ortega, U.S. Rep.-elect Beto O'Rourke and State Senator Jose Rodriguez. They urged Mr. Puga to donate the land to the City and contended that Puga has the discretion to do so. Puga contended that he must sell everything and he continued to claim that no one will buy the land with the stacks standing.

Senator Rodriguez has asked for an opinion from Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott whether Puga has the discretion to donate the land.  Keep in mind that the Senator is very environmentally friendly. His Environmental Advisory Committee is wall to wall environmentalists/conservationists.  Dr. Richard Teschner is the chairman. (Disclaimer: I recently was awarded a certificate for serving on this Committee.)

Puga's company, Project Navigator Ltd, benefits more when Puga gets more money. To turn the site over to the City now would curtail how much more Project Navigator makes and how much more Roberto Puga himself makes. As one Save the Stack person told me: "There was no chance in hell that Puga was ever going to keep the stacks up." 

It is rumored that one possible land buyer would play war games on the site - real war games not elaborate paint ball. Imagine the consequences of a volley falling on UTEP or . . . Mexico!  The stacks no longer belch, they are strong, straight and solid so why, Ardovino wonders, risk bringing them down during El Paso's windiest season using an untested $650,000 misting system?

Preservatonists for the most part argue that the stacks (or stack - most concede now that it may be only possible to save the larger of the two) are historic landmarks and monuments and treated properly would make valuable attractions. It is pretty much common sense that, such a prominent landmark, could be commercially beneficial in spite of what Mr. Puga proclaims.

On the other hand, environmentalists, seem to be split into two camps: those who believe that it is best to tear them down and, if really, truly possible, contain the contaminants permanently. The risk of an environmental catastrophe just doesn't make sense. The other camp says that the risk to the environment is much greater if the stacks are brought down. Among those who want to keep these strong, straight and solid structures standing are those who also see the positive in their becoming landmarks. However, some who want to keep them standing, do so because the contamination would be too great to bring them down and, in fact, the contamination of the land now is too great to contemplate ever remediating and developing the land.

In my next post, I'll discuss the arguments for and against keeping them standing.

For the Sake of the Environment - Save the Stacks

Video courtesy of Capstone Productions

By now all of you have probably heard that City Council wants to preserve the stacks but not use any tax money or City indebtedness to do so. Read the Chris Roberts report. 

A few thoughts:

Tuesday revealed that Puga is not a straight-shooter. He claims that there are buyers for the land if there are no stacks. Of course, some investors may say that they are interested but that doesn't mean a contract. It's all speculation at this time.  In point of fact it will take several years to sell the land and that is plenty of time to work out financing which saves the stacks or do whatever. 

Puga claimed that the entire land had to be sold together. As he was questioned on Tuesday, that claim was modified. The point of the matter is that he has discretion to dispose of the property however he as Trustee sees fit.

I keep hearing that the TCEQ really wants to bring the stacks down. Why? Again, I smell a cover-up - the need for a perfect crime.

Many of my readers were adamant that the stacks be taken down either because they are an eyesore or from a motivation of getting rid of the contaminants. Although I share their motivation - all of us who love the environment are so motivated - I fear that bringing the stacks down won't save us and future generations from nasty contaminants, it will actually make it more likely that those contaminants will compromise the ground water and eventually make their way into the Americas Canal and the Rio Grande. 

There are some environmentalists (and I'm talking about trained biologists and geologists) who don't even want anyone walking over this land ever again. They won't agree with my suggestion that the stacks will be good for marketing potential commercial property and creating tourism. There's nasty stuff in those stacks. It has already been proven and admitted that chemicals used in warfare and radioactive wastes were burned there. HKN and Save the Stacks have demonstrated that the stacks are strong, straight and solid. Keep the poisons locked away rather than bringing them to the ground where, in time, they will contaminate our water supply.

Again the motive behind my reasoning is a love for the environment and the safety of humans and other living things. Unlike similar stacks that have been brought down around the country, the construction of the ASARCO stacks are totally different. Demolish and a malevolent jinn is out of the bottle. Our duty as stewards of the environment is to keep the beast locked up.

What is going to happen. The Byrd motion which passed when the Mayor joined 4 Council members to express the City's desire to keep the stacks will have some weight. What Puga needs to understand is that there are citizens who can find solutions and it will be good to work together. Now that we are talking about this issue in earnest, he may discover that many will realize that it will be much better environmentally to keep the strong, straight and solid stacks.

For the sake of our lives and health and the well-being of our environment I'm not going to leave this issue alone.

Save the Stacks!

There are several items of special interest on tomorrow’s City Council agenda. Let’s take them one by one.

Item 20D on the agenda could simply be called the Save the Stacks resolution. There are back-up documents including the resolution, a response from the Trustee, Robert Puga, a map, and a “review” of the HKN study which disputes the HKN findings that the stacks are “strong, straight and solid.” However, the HKN document itself is not provided with back-ups.  You can read the HKN report and executive summary on elpasonaturally.  I doubt seriously whether City Council members will read it by tomorrow as it is not part of the agenda back-up materials unless, of course, they read elpasonaturally.

Both the El Paso Inc. and the El Paso Times have done stories about the resolution and the City’s consideration of purchasing the stacks in order to save them. Those stories can be found here and here.  The obstacle seems to be Trustee Robert Puga’s insistence that the stacks be torn down come hell or high water. When citizens first were asked about the stacks, a majority voiced a desire to save them. Then it was announced that saving them would mean a $14Million price tag plus ongoing maintenance, liability, yada, yada, yada. The thrust of the HKN report is that saving the stacks will not mean a $14Million fix but only a $4Million fix. $10Million is the amount that Mr. Puga insists the City pay for the entire site since he hopes to prevent the City from buying just the stacks and the area around the stacks for a monument. It is this $10Million price tag that Puga now threatens the City Council with in an effort to carry out the plan to demolish the chimneys.  Some of the stacks supporters on the Council are willing to save the stacks but not buy the entire land. Frankly, I don’t know why City Attorneys can’t compel Puga to sell just the area with the stacks if he is going to continue to change the rules of the game.

The stacks are safe. They are historically significant. They are and can be objects of art. And they can be much more.

Imagine a commercial area with shops and restaurants. Call it “The Stacks”. Beckoning El Pasoans and eager tourists are two very tall chimneys artistically repainted. These chimneys become beacons of economic opportunity and development for the City of El Paso. They attract not just shoppers but millions of dollars of tax revenue for the City. What better marketing can you have then attractively decorated chimneys? Puga is wrong. Any developer or investor with any amount of imagination can see the value of keeping those stacks.  Historic smokestacks in Baltimore, San Antonio and Cleveland “have been converted into attractions that have generated revenue for their owners,” according to Robert Ardovino of Save the Stacks.

What happens if Puga and company drop the stacks? Two things: First, even though the stacks would be collapsed into a ditches created for them and dropped while huge water sprayers attempt to keep down most (but not all) of the dust, there is still the possibility of contamination now contained within the strong, solid and straight walls of the chimneys. Second, as elpasonaturally previously surmised, the “evidence” of more insidious contamination will be destroyed. Some future law suit which would benefit all not just the victims will be impossible, because the evidence of insidious contamination will have been destroyed – the crime scene compromised – the evidence now locked away in the chimneys forever gone.

Bottom line – Save the Stacks.  They are monuments now and can never be used again industrially – never.  Ask your City Council member to save the stacks and to read the HKN reports:

Ann Morgan Lilly: district1@elpasotexas.gov
Susie Byrd: district2@elpasotexas.gov
Emma Acosta: district3@elpasotexas.gov
Carl Robinson: district4@elpasotexas.gov
Dr. Michael Noe: district5@elpasotexas.gov
Eddie Holguin Jr.: district6@elpasotexas.gov
Steve Ortega: district7@elpasotexas.gov
Cortney Niland: district8@elpasotexas.gov
Mayor John Cook: mayor@elpasotexas.gov

Item 18 asks Council to approve the same resolution already passed by the PSB to make the Rio Bosque Wetlands Park part of the PSB’s holdings. The plan means more water for the Bosque and millions of dollars of eco-tourist dollars for El Paso. Read the Chris Robert’s El Paso Times story.  Also read Water Prospects Brighten in this month’s Rio Bosque news.

An issue that probably won’t go away any time soon is considered in item 20E. The issue in short is this: Although the City owns the land (and it is part of the PSB inventory and part of the NE Master Plan), the mineral rights beneath a square mile of the land are owned by the General Land Office of the State of Texas. They have agreed to lease that land to Jobe to quarry. Jobe currently operates a quarry adjacent to and north of this land. The Chris Roberts story in the Times provides good summary and insight. See the Council’s back-up material on this agenda item. There is a significant archaeological site on the land which raises the concern that the Texas Historical Commission may still object. Jobe will have to remediate the land that has extensive archaeological materials – something which may take time and great expense. The lease impacts the NE Master Plan. Although asked how much revenue the City may lose, Ed Archuleta, so far has not responded. Another keen observer calculates that the 900 acres of land lost at $35Thousand an acre will be a loss of $31.5Million in  income. If $300Thousand can be recouped each year from royalties, it will take 100 years to make up the difference. Jobe is currently doing a survey to determine how much and what part of the land will be quarried.

Items 14A and 14B are simply an update on the NW Master Plan/petition process.  “We’re finalizing the survey, Low Impact Development, and Dover Kohl regulating plan,” Carlos Gallinar told me.  “The PSB is still finalizing the deal with Texas Parks and Wildlife but still needs an official survey,” he said.  Gallinar will ask Council for one more postponement and will get its final report to council in early 2013.

Finally, an estimated 200 people packed the Mecca Lounge at Ardovino’s Desert Crossing yesterday to celebrate and pay tribute to the life of Kevin Von Finger. See some pictures. Be sure you read the best online tribute to Kevin written by Kevin Bixby of the Southwest Environmental Center.

Strong, Straight and Solid - the Engineering Reports

An engineering study by HKN of El Paso has concluded in the words of Robert Ardovino that the ASARCO stacks are "strong, straight and solid." As historic icons, architectural wonders and potential canvasses for future El Paso Southwest art, the stacks could become beacons of economic opportunity and development in El Paso.

One thing for sure: they can never be used again to burn insidious or any other kind of waste. They are monuments now and not industrial machines.

Here are the HKN reports not included in the back-up material for City Council members as they consider tomorrow a resolution to save the stacks

Structural Analysis of ASARCO Stacks HKN ASARCO Stack Report Engineering Report Executive Summary about ASARCO Smoke Stacks

Strong, Straight and Solid - So Save the Stacks!

People often ask how I became a proponent of stack preservation.

My history with these stacks started at a young age, with orange skies on the school playground and the taste of sulfur in my mouth.  Many of my friends from this time are no longer here to share their unfortunate stories of how ASARCO affected them.  Inexplicable illness and mortality runs common through the lives of both former smelter workers and the people it affected.  For this reason, I joined a group that helped close ASARCO down – a historic day.

The stack is not just part of my history, but El Paso’s history. The stack represents thousands of families who bettered their lives through hard work, realizing the American dream here on our border. The smelter’s contributions led to the growth and development of our community, including support for the establishment of the Texas State School of Mines and Metallurgy, later Texas Western College, and now UTEP.

"The stacks are, I think, an important cultural icon in El Paso" - Robert Puga, ASARCO Site Custodial Trustee

El Pasoans recognize the importance of this history.  In June, 2010, an El Paso Times poll put 58% in favor of smokestack preservation.  Trustee Robert Puga stated that the turn-of-the-century Powerhouse would be saved during remediation of the site. Mr. Puga also said, “The stacks are, I think, an important cultural icon in El Paso.” 

"The stack is strong, straight and solid."

Then Mr. Puga wrongly asserted that stack preservation would cost $14 million.  Public attitudes changed on this information - released without an actual stack inspection. Save The Stacks formed, commissioning a $50,000+ engineering analysis of the stack, confirming the stack is strong, straight and solid.  Moreover, the cost of stack maintenance over the next 50 years is now estimated at $3 million – $11 million less than asserted.  Most importantly, the citizens of El Paso – through local funding and local efforts - have met all the requirements Mr. Puga had dictated for stack preservation. 

We should look at our history, actual facts, and public opinion, and weigh all this against an outside interest – namely, the Trust led by Robert Puga – which has no background in El Paso, no interest in preserving our history, and no interest in saving our landmarks.  Even the historic Powerhouse is now slated for demolition. Why commit historic landmarks for demolition?  The Bottom Line.  The Trust thinks it will make more money by selling land free of buildings.  This is not local taxpayer money; it is money associated with ASARCO’s bankruptcy. 

"In other communities . . . historic smokestacks have been converted into attractions that generate revenue for their owners."

In other communities – such as San Antonio, Baltimore, and Cleveland - historic smokestacks have been converted into attractions that generate revenue for their owners. In El Paso, the decisions of outsiders cannot dictate our future.

In 2011, strong city leaders approved a comprehensive plan for a more vibrant El Paso - an El Paso with a vision that is Strong, Straight, and Solid. Recent elections reaffirmed its relevance.  Plan El Paso calls for “restoration and strategic repair of historic structures, which can serve as valuable tourism opportunities. Use these buildings and include new ones to create a rich cultural center for residents and visitors. Museums could potentially honor the History of Asarco and those who worked there, and the industrial heritage of The United States and Mexico.”

We have presented a concept of how this landmark is destined to be recognized as a Historic Monument, memorializing not only the former smelter workers but all the citizens of the region it has affected. 

The tallest monument in the United States is the St. Louis arch, at 630 feet.  The second is the San Jacinto Monument, at 570 feet.  Strong, Straight, and Solid, our monument stands 826 feet Tall!

"Let us keep our history, and not give up that right to one person who has no stake in our community." 

On Tuesday, please support City Council by asking them to stand up for our heritage. Let us keep our history, and not give up that right to one person who has no stake in our community.  We must stand strong, straight and solid in support of what is Our History, and demand that this Stack – our monument - remain.

by Robert Ardovino, leader of many environmental causes in El Paso and Sunland Park, and owner of Ardovino's Desert Crossing with his sister, Marina.

Save the Stacks

Click on image to enlarge.

Here's a message from Robert Ardovino who is leading the charge to save the Asarco stacks:

Dear Colleagues,

The time has come to directly challenge the $14M number tossed out very early on in this fight for Historic Preservation. Eight months have gone by and Save the Stacks has put together a Board of Directors, formed a 501-c3 and has been working hard behind the scenes in order to keep this future monument standing.   

StS has contracted with a national chimney inspecting firm, Industrial Access to prove that the stacks are structurally sound and will stand. Early indication by three separate Firms on the ground under the stacks has left us very optimistic about the  integrity of the stacks.   At this stage we need to raise funds to pay for the $80k Inspection and the Engineering report.

To dat we have commitment for just over half of that amount.  

Time is running out, we NEED your help this week. Mr. Puga has set a demo deadline of November 2012.

please make checks payable to:

BNSL (Bi-National Sustainability Lab)

2906 Silver Ave.

El Paso, Tx 79930

STS in the memo line

Plan El Paso Presentation Scheduled for Tomorrow Evening

County Commissioner Veronica Escobar participates in a hands-on session

The Plan El Paso team will give a Work-in-Progress presentation tomorrow evening, Wednesday, June 30, at the El Paso Main Public Library Auditorium, 501 N. Oregon. The Dover Kohl assembly of consultants will present all of the draft concepts, plans, renderings and preliminary regulating plans (zoning maps) for the ASARCO and transit sites.

Consultant Megan McLaughlin tells me:

"I can assure you that there will be a lot of very valuable information and its's really important that we get a good turn out so that we can get feedback from the attendees. We want to make sure we are on the right track before we return home to refine the plans."

Last week a number of El Pasoans gathered at the Memorial Park Senior Center to participate in a hands-on design session around transit-oriented development. They looked at three corridors - Five Points, Oregon and Remcon Circle.

Jim Erickson tackles some design issues with his group

County Commissioner Veronica Escobar participated in the session. Afterwards she said:

"It was a wonderful experience to sit with folks from the neighborhood to dream and plan for the future of Five Points. There's so much potential, and the ideas were so great, that I hope the City and the private sector can help make it happen."

Making it happen is my concern. I had the opportunity to visit with 3 members of the team this past Sunday while we hiked together in the Franklin Mountains State Park. I shared my primary concern: You can do all these great designs that conserve natural space, contribute to walkability, etc., but if a developer comes along and wants to do things the old way, what can be done especially in the State of Texas that has such strong private property laws?

The answer in a nutshell is that the designs will serve not only as examples of how to do something better, but they will be a vision that can long guide us. Dover Kohl City Planner, Pam Stacy, pointed out that El Paso's dreams for urban park development began with the vision of the 1925 City Plan for El Paso. The team that Dover Kohl has put together includes economists, city planners, people who know issues regarding zoning and much more.

Frankly, if just a portion of the dreams that are now taking shape are realized, the City will be so much the better.

Texas Wildlife Urban Biologist for El Paso, Lois Balin, has been sharing a similar dream. Here is her presentation on conservation development:

Balin Conservation Development Design

Go Ahead - Make My Day

Click on image to enlarge

The Planning Department of El Paso and the Plan El Paso team of Dover, Kohl & Partners invited members of the Open Space Advisory Board to a meeting at the Open Design Studio at 2400 N. Oregon yesterday. I went with some skepticism based on my knowledge that not only is ASARCO property contaminated but so is all of the surrounding land - so much so that some believe that children in Anapra and Sunland Park suffer hyperactive disorders due to the effects of lead still in their environment. (Two of just a hand full of children that I met the other day were on Adderall.) I have my doubts as to how well the ASARCO toxins can be permanently contained and kept from our drinking water.

I went with skepticism. I left excited. What is Dover Kohl all about? All those good concepts that we keep talking about: sustainability, liveable communities, walkable neighborhoods, preservation of open space, green design, placemaking etc., etc. Where have these guys and gals been? The City of El Paso has chosen a first-tier consultant.

Dover Kohl is the lead consultant for Plan El Paso. However they have "assembled a team of national and local experts in sustainable urban design and planning to create the ASARCO/TOD Redevelopment Plans and Form-Based Codes for the City of El Paso."

Town Planner, Megan McLaughlin, walked us through a presentation of some of their design concepts surrounding the ASARCO area. As she did so, she and a couple of her other team members elicited comments from the Open Space members present.

Before I left, I asked a couple of other people in the environmental community (the "usual suspects" I call this group) what they thought about working on designs when there is still so much contamination and very little forthcoming information about that contamination. They said that it is a matter of "both/and" - learn what we can about the toxicity of the site and see what more can be done about it . . . but envision and design at the same time. With Dover Kohl on the job, I agree and I'm overjoyed.

Before You Go to a Charrette

From a City of El Paso press release an additional ASARCO Hands-On Design Session (Charrette) has been scheduled for tomorrow from 9 until Noon at Mesita Elementary. Director of Planning Matthew McElroy said, "In an effort to accommodate our citizens' eagerness to participate in the future of their community, we are adding a second hands-on session for ASARCO."

I have a suggestion before you go. Take a ride along the Rio Grande. Just off the Highway 180 into Anapra, NM along Highway 273/McNutt Road you will see the Carousel Convenience Store, a familiar old building and landmark. Travel south down the dirt road behind the store and stay to your left. You will pass where an old refinery once stood. There is virtually no growth on that land. Note the relationship of that dead land to the Rio Grande. See the test wells along the riverside. Look at the ditching to the river. Of course, as you travel down that road and go across an old wooden bridge to return to Paisano/Highway 180, you will be overshadowed by ASARCO and its mighty smokestack. Out of that stack once spewed cadmium, lead and arsenic . . . and clandestinely, during the 90s, residues from the illegal burning of toxic wastes from the military. All of those heavy metals and residues aren't just on ASARCO property, they are in the soil of the hills that run along the Rio Grande and get washed into the river along with the run-off from the contaminated soil from the old refinery.

And downstream? First there is the American Dam and then the EPWU pumping station that begins to send treated water uphill - first to Sunset Heights and then to a station near my neighborhood at Paul Moreno Elementary and then higher. Up and up so it can go down and down into our homes as the water we use for drinking, watering our gardens and bathing in. I don't for a moment believe that none of those toxic contaminants from ASARCO or other industries just remain in the soil. Capping the grounds at ASARCO property in preparation for a dream development does nothing to the land beyond the ASARCO and, in the opinion of many, the runoff that will occur below that cap flowing into the Rio Grande past the American dam into the pump station at Canal Road and up and up so it can be consumed by you and me.

So, before you go to the charrette and imagine all the cool ways that the ASARCO land can be used, perhaps a little tour first wouldn't hurt.

Just a thought.

Help Design El Paso

Click pic to enlarge

Puga Addresses Packed, Passionate Breakfast Meeting

Mr. Roberto Puga

At her public breakfast this morning, Representative Ann Morgan Lilly hosted Roberto Puga, the ASARCO Site Custodial Trustee. The meeting was marked by controversy and passion on all sides and what I am about to post is only a snapshot.

I do hope that readers will comment below. I certainly would like to get the views of those who have been involved with this issue much longer than I have. I wasn't even aware that the Roman Catholic Archdiocese owns the cemetery at ASARCO. One of my big concerns (and probably the concern of only a few others) is to preserve that sacred site.

Mr. Puga was very knowledgeable and very articulate. He understands his fiduciary duty to clean up the site with the money the bankruptcy court awarded for the clean-up. (Some at the meeting implied that the City had set the clean-up cost. I understand that the City was at the table during the bankruptcy proceedings but had no input. Instead the City paid around $100,000 in legal fees to keep ASARCO from re-opening again.) He is also keenly aware of his duty to sell the site.

The differences in opinion today centered around how well the clean-up will be or can be given the funds available. The contention of many is that the site requires far more remediation than scheduled before any demolition of structures may occur. Since it is now established fact that ASARCO illegally burned demilitarized hazardous wastes mainly from the Rocky Mountain Arsenal (a fact established by the work of Heather McMurray), the question arises as to how much of the residue from that waste will remain and will get into the ground water. Those, who contend that the wastes are indeed substantial and have already caused harm to humans and the environment, do not want to see the main smelter smoke stack torn down. The fear is that demolishing the chimney will further spread the toxic residues already present.

Those who want the clean-up to begin as soon as possible want to tear the smoke stack down as soon as possible and get on with the process of remedy so that the land can be utilized for other purposes. The area can be occupied by commercial interests but not by residences, schools, hospitals or daycare centers. The $52million dollars that Mr. Puga has to work with can only contain the damage - it can never fully clean-up the site of all of the hazardous wastes.

I have often heard the contention that the smoke stack should be torn down so that it can never be employed again for any industrial purpose. However, in answering a question about this concern, Mr. Puga said that it could never be used again and, in fact, would have to be torn down in order for any industry to take advantage of the site.

Those who want to move the process along more quickly were encouraged by one attendee to write the EPA and the TCEQ. A sign-up sheet was passed around by someone wanting the process to move faster.

However fast it moves, Mr. Puga says that the time line is around 5 years.

There were those who accused Puga of not remediating enough and those who said that he was not moving quickly enough. The bottom line is that he says he has made no decision on the chimney yet. Throughout the process he answered questions calmly, amiably and without ever becoming flustered or rude. He kept his calm. I for one am glad that he is being deliberate.

I also don't understand why the stack can't be tested unless, as some contend, it must not be and it must be torn down quickly to hide any evidence of more insidious contamination that might keep commercial interests from going ahead faster. (I am always leery when I see developers and reps from Mr. Jobe's office present at these things.)

I'm also very concerned that toxic run-off can't be contained and that contamination of ground and river water is inevitable and indeed has already gone on for a long time. Has anyone tested the cotton and pecans in the lower valley for some nasty, toxic compounds? How's the honey bees make from those cotton flowers?

$52million dollars can only buy so much. The clean-up leaves much to be desired for sure. But can anything more be done?

To make an understatement, having ASARCO in El Paso was unsustainable from the get-go. Once poisons from the military were burned there, El Pasoans then and for a long time to come will be in harms way. There was one man present who said that he is in pain all of the time from having worked at ASARCO. Did the bankruptcy court address the medical debts he and others have most certainly incurred?

After the meeting, three of us began to explore the arroyo on the other side of I-10 from the ASARCO plant - but land owned by ASARCO nevertheless. A number of El Paso storm water culverts flow into this arroyo and there is running water or stagnant water in several places. If indeed pollution from the smoke stacks settled in this area, then the chemicals in that pollution has already run down the Rio Grande.

For more information, visit Recasting the Smelter and the epgtlo blog.