Residents express ethanol concerns

IEPA listens to comments on Galva proposal at hearing

Saturday, March 31, 2007

By Lisa Hammer

Copley News Service

GALVA - Comments at an Illinois Environmental Protection Agency air quality permit hearing for the proposed Galva ethanol plant Wednesday were mostly positive, but some Galva residents stated concerns about not only air quality but property values and other issues.

Some questions were beyond the scope of the EPA engineers to answer.

One of the two state permit engineers, Bob Smith, said the agency this summer will try to answer some of the questions.

At one point in the evening Smith said the plant is required, as a condition of the permit, to perform stack testing to ensure limits imposed in the permit are met. A project summary handout said the proposed permit limits not only annual emissions levels, but also hourly emissions, annual ethanol production and annual grain receipts.

Lead EPA permit engineer Minesh Patel said the 100 million-gallon plant is not considered a major new source of emissions. He also said the plant would be fueled by natural gas and he described air quality control from filters controlling particulate matter in grain handling to re-use of laden water so as to not discharge it as wastewater.

The state agency will accept written comments postmarked by midnight April 27 before making its decision about an air emissions permit.

During Wednesday's hearing at Black Hawk East College, farmers, investors, Big River Resources officials and representatives from companies that do business with Big River - developers of the plant - all spoke positively.

Galesburg businessman and investor Robert Bondi said he was extremely impressed with the people involved and the opportunity for the region, and compared the aroma created by ethanol plants to being around a bakery.

Gateway Co-op general manager Rich Ruhl called the ethanol plant a strong asset to the local agriculture community served by Gateway.

Tina Hutchinson of Galva said the plant would be her neighbor and her concerns were runoff, noise, lights, traffic and odor. A nurse, she said she works with people with breathing problems. She also worried plant emissions would kill the koi fish in her pond.

"I've lived there 20 years but I'm ready to sell and it's because of Big River," she said. "I used to be a cake-baker and (bakery smells) might sound good to you, but they don't to me."

Mike Rumbold, a member of Big River's board of directors and co-owner of Rumbold and Kuhn grain elevator in Stark County, said corn yields have risen from 120 bushels per acre 20 years ago to 155 or 160 now, and the ethanol plant will bring value to the community as another market for corn. He noted the local shareholder's money will keep money turning over in the local community, also creating jobs.

David Erickson of Altona, who farms in Knox and Henry counties, noted he originally sat on the Prairie Ethanol Board of Directors that preceded Big River in developing the project. He said with the significant number of investors in the project, "local investment has a way of doubling its investment in the community."

"It's not a company that's going to come and invest and take it to some other location," he said.

Erickson said early on in discussions between the two ethanol boards Big River was "clearly a business that you wanted to be involved with" because they operated "not only efficiently but in the best interest of the local community.

"They're truly good neighbors," he said.

Farmer Rob Elliott said a 10-cent increase per bushel could easily translate into another $17,000 for the average grower, and stressed how money turns over in a community.

A Quad Cities doctor and ethanol investor addressed health-related concerns.

"Over the years being around the (West Burlington) plant and there for meetings monthly, looking over safety reports and just observing the (employees), they're healthy. They do well. They aren't sick," said Dr. John Dooley, adding Big River has a "compulsion" to ensure safety at the highest level.

Elin Stephan, who lives on the east side of Galva, near the plant site, said her concerns included noise and property values. She said she felt the evening's speakers stood to make money with the plant.

She said the plant will not produce tax revenue for Galva School District (due to incentives).

"If they were out in the country further that would be fine," she said. "I don't like it built in my neighborhood."

An employee of consultant ICM said his firm works on about one-fourth of all ethanol plants in the country today. Bill Roddy noted the Galva plant will qualify as a minor source of air contaminants, not a major source, and cited various ways the company minimizes adverse impact.

Roddy said there are fermentation scrubbers and thermal oxidizers to control odor and bag houses for various stages of production. He said any water in the process is cleaned or vapored off. Noise, he said, is less than 80 decibels. Outdoor lighting is "shoebox" style, pointed down and not outward.

Rodney Weinzierl of the Illinois Corn Growers answered a concern about the proliferation of ethanol plants. He noted another plant has been proposed at Princeton. Kewanee also announced plans for a plant on its west side March 28.

"You could now probably add another 20 plants and the state of Illinois probably could grow plenty of corn for all," he said.