Mill Waste Pipeline on a Snag

The paper mill waste pipeline planned for a Perry paper mill got another delay and possibly fatal decision in federal court January 16. Buckeye Technologies' proposed fifteen mile pipeline that would send mill waste directly into the Gulf of Mexico wound up in federal court and was taken out of the hands of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

Judge Emmentt Sullivan made the U.S. EPA responsible for oversight of the pipeline plan in March 2006. Buckeye and the Florida EPA objected to Sullivan's ruling. Clarification of the ruling is expected by the end of January according to an article in the Gainesville Sun.

Linda Young, Director of the Clean Water Network of Florida told Cedar Key News that, "It was decided nine months ago, now it's final." When asked if mill waste will continue to be dumped in the Fenholloway River she said that Buckeye will need an EPA permit, adding,"We can get justice in a federal court." Young's comment stems from earlier support for the pipeline by the Florida EPA and a subsequent law suit in federal court.

The Sun article quoted a Buckeye spokesperson who claimed that only a pipeline will allow the Fenholloway River to be restored to "fishable and swimable standards." Young's position is that the river must be restored, but the pipeline is not the way to do it.