Baraboo, WI -- An area environmental group is adding allies to a national coalition opposing the Army's plan to burn potentially hazardous materials at the Badger Army Ammunition Plant. Citizens for Safe Water Around Badger gathered 67 people and organizations to petition the Environmental Protection Agency last week to deny the Army an application to burn structures contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, at a level higher than 50 parts per million, the federal limit set by the EPA. The Army is waiting for a decision from the EPA to possibly exempt them from this federal law. Badger Installation Director Joan Kenney said the Army discovered small amounts of PCBs last year in yellow paint used on pipes in several buildings at the plant.

The plant is located on 7,354 acres of land about 7 miles south of Baraboo. It was constructed in 1942 to create propellants for ammunition for World War II, and operated intermittently until 1975 when plant operations were terminated.

CSWAB Executive Director Laura Olah said the Army is not taking into consideration the full environmental and health effects of the burning.

"The EPA set the 50 (parts per million) limit for good reason," said Olah.

Coalition member Laura Hunter, campaign director with California's Environmental Health Coalition, said there are better means to solve contamination problems than open burning.

"Open burning is not a solution, it is merely a transfer of the problem," Hunter said. "Here in San Diego we worked with the Navy to avoid the burning of PCB wastes and sought alternative technologies, and we encourage the Army to do the same at Badger."

"Non-thermal technologies have been successfully implemented at military bases across the country," Olah said. "There are viable solutions that will set a different precedent, one that ensures a safe and healthy future for our children and our environment."

Dr. Bruce Barrett, with Madison Physicians for Social Responsibility, said concentrations of PCBs in the environment are already too high, further endangering at-risk groups.

"Children, pregnant women and their fetuses are especially vulnerable," Barrett said. "Birth defects and developmental delays could result."

Safety an issue

Badger Army Ammunition Plant program analyst Mike Sitton said the Army believes open burning is the most safe, cost-effective option for removing certain buildings deemed too dangerous for conventional demolition.

Sitton said a major concern is the amount of potentially explosive materials that have seeped into materials throughout the plant, and the dangers posed to demolition workers. Some buildings are soaked through with material used to make propellants, and entire buildings are considered a high explosive hazard, causing a problem for demolition workers.

"We're just trying to get the job done without hurting anybody," Sitton said.

EPA environmental protection specialist Tony Martig said the EPA has been working with the Army since the summer on the PCB situation.

According to the EPA, polychlorinated biphenyls were used in hundreds of industrial and commercial applications. More than 1.5 billion pounds of PCBs were manufactured in the U.S. before manufacture was stopped in 1977.

PCBs have been demonstrated to cause a variety of adverse health effects, and can cause cancer in animals, according to the EPA. PCBs affect the immune, reproductive and endocrine systems, according to the EPA.

Copyright 2004 Baraboo News Republic