Mercury storage is heated issue

Tempers are flaring in Tooele County over mercury from old thermometers that could be stored at the Utah Industrial Depot even as a deadline for public comment draws near.

"It reinforces the pattern in Tooele County of keep bringing more deadly stuff," said Chip Ward, an environmental activist who lives in Grantsville. "It's one more door opener."

At issue is the federal government's stockpile of 4,890 tons of mercury, the liquid metal found in old thermometers. Mercury can be deadly when it vaporizes in the environment. It is also a hazardous substance when it is not contained.

The Defense National Stockpile Center (DNSC), a Defense Department agency based in Virginia, is seeking to consolidate into one location all the mercury now stored at sites in Indiana, New Jersey, Ohio and Tennessee. Utah is on its short list.

Although it was proposed last year, it has quietly skirted local opposition and slipped under the radar of environmental watchdogs. And the public is seemingly ambivalent.

Now with only 10 days left to comment on the proposal, few know anything about it.

"My concern is the fact that there has not been enough public notification that is needed before a decision can be reached. And the deadline for public comments is July 18," said Harry Shinton, chairman of the Tooele County Local Emergency Planning Committee and hazardous material trainer for the Tooele County Sheriff's Office.

Ready or not, the time is running out for Tooele County to mount much of an opposition.

Federal authorities do not expect a final decision before the end of the year. "We're still months away," said John Reinders, spokesman for DNSC.

Sometime next year, federal officials will decide on one of three options for storage of the mercury: sell off the mercury, leave the mercury where it is, or consolidate it in a national repository. Consolidation is the preferred option outlined in a draft environmental impact statement.

"It makes more sense to have a consolidated location in terms of management over the long term," Reinders said.

Mark D. Smith, asset manager for the Utah Industrial Depot, was the local businessman who offered a solution to the government's problem by offering up space in his industrial park.

"It's something that needs to be stored somewhere," Smith said. "It's a commodity. It's not a hazardous waste.