EPA gets earful about Midlothian cement plants

The Environmental Protection Agency held the first of a scheduled set of public hearings on its proposed new cement kiln air pollution rules here in Dallas-Fort Worth, and got plenty of comment, especially from southside residents who live closer to Midlothian’s wet-process cement kilns.

At the same time, representatives from national and Texas-level cement-makers groups said concerned residents were undercutting President Obama!

“Simply put, the prospects of implementing the rule as proposed directs capital away from cement production in the United States, constrains supply, and will work at cross-purposes to the president's explicit stimulus plan,” Andy O’Hare, vice president for regulatory affairs of the Portland Cement Association, said.

He and others claimed US cement makers simply couldn’t meet the new rules and would have to move all their business to China.

Right.

If you DID move, because cement is so heavy, you’d move to Mexico, not China, so we know you’re lying right there.

As far as costs, let’s try this instead:

The EPA said complying with the rule in 2013 would cost cement industry between $222 million and $684 million per year. At the same time, the agency said, it would save between $4.4 billion and $11 billion a year in health costs and other related expenses, including the avoidance of an estimated 620 to 1,900 premature, pollution-related deaths a year.

Also, I found it interesting that nobody from TXI, or any other individual cement plant in Midlo, bothered to speak. The chickens hid behind trade-group skirts, I guess.

Also, in addition to cost-saving efforts in general, makes you wonder if this is part of why TXI has cut back on its suburban newspaper educational support advertising. They recognize PR is not going to hold back this wave, perhaps