Chatham mayor unfazed by chemical trespass setback

FOLKS, JOE RODGERS (A VERY GOOD PERSON and MEMBER of the ORDINANCE COMMITTEE), IS QUOTED AS SAYING: "I don't know if an ordinance is needed at this time. It drives council to take a position without having all of the information." WITH ALL DUE RESPECT, WHAT IS MR. ROGERS WAITING FOR? VUI OFFERS PRIVATE SEMINARS. SCC OFFERS PUBLIC SEMINARS. THERE IS A WEALTH OF INFORMATION ON THE WEB. A "STUDY" WILL TELL US HOW TO PERFORM A GRAND EXPERIMENT ON THE PEOPLE OF PITTSYLVANIA COUNTY AND, INDEED, SHOULD THIS TRAVESTY HAPPEN, ON THE ENTIRE STATE OF VIRGINIA! REMEMBER, AN EXPERIMENT WILL PROVE TRUE, OR FALSE. IF THIS EXPERIMENT PROVES FALSE, IT WILL BE AT THE EXPENSE OF MILLIONS OF PEOPLE FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS. MR. ROGERS IS AN ENGINEER. AS A TOWN COUNCIL MEMBER, WE DID NOT ELECT HIM TO BE AN ENGINEER. WE ELECTED HIM, AND THE OTHER COUNCIL MEMBERS, TO PROTECT US AND DO OUR WILL, NOT THEIRS.

I HOPE OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS FINALLY "STUDY" THE ONLY THING THAT MATTERS: WHAT DO THE MAJORITY OF THE PEOPLE WANT? NOT, WHAT DO I WANT!

I realize that I am shouting, but I want our elected officials to hear me! Have they asked (I'm talking about ALL of the elected officials in Pittsylvania County, town councils and Board of Supervisors) the people what they want? I don't think so...

Gregg

By TIM DAVIS/Star-Tribune EditorWednesday, September 3, 2008 10:36 AM EDT

Chatham Mayor George Haley said Monday he plans to move forward with efforts to protect town residents against uranium mining despite a recent setback for a so-called "chemical trespass" ordinance in Chase City.Chase City, which is about 60 miles east of Chatham, was considering an ordinance aimed at a proposed uranium mining and milling operation in Pittsylvania County.

Its ordinance also would have targeted Osage Bioenergy's planned ethanol plant in Mecklenburg County.The ordinance, similar to one passed by Halifax earlier this year, would have stated that Chase City residents "possess a fundamental and inalienable right to the integrity of their bodies, and to be free from unwanted invasions of their bodies by manufactured chemicals and toxins."Chase City Mayor Eddie Bratton abandoned the ordinance last week, however, after a review by lawyer Gregory J. Haley.Haley, who is not related to Chatham Mayor George Haley, is an attorney with the Roanoke law firm of Gentry, Locke, Rakes & Moore and specializes in municipal law.

In a four-page memorandum to the town, Haley advised Bratten not to move forward with the ordinance, saying he understood the town's concerns about water and air pollution, but cautioned against trying to overstep the county's and state's legal system.Haley said courts would likely decline to enforce most of the provisions in the proposed ordinance, and pointed out towns have little, if any, ability to regulate land use or activities beyond their boundaries.Bratten, who took office July 1, said he was trying to protect Chase City's residents."I wanted us to have some sort of comeback for the Town of Chase City," the mayor told the South Hill Enterprise. "No one else is taking care of us. There is no way it will pass now. Many on the town council are pro to leaving things alone.

"Halifax became the first locality in Virginia to adopt a Corporate Mining and Chemical and Radioactive Bodily Trespass ordinance last February.Halifax Councilman Jack Dunavant called the vote "historic.""The people have finally agreed to protect their health and the environment from corporate assault," said Dunavant, who also is chairman of Southside Concerned Citizens."It's time the constitution was evoked to give the power to the people to protect their own destiny and end this era of corporate greed and pollution," he added.Southside Concerned Citizens, which is opposed to uranium mining, is organizing a petition drive to convince other towns, counties, and cities to adopt chemical trespass laws.

The ordinance is designed to hold corporations and governing officials permitting those corporations liable for chemical trespass.Shireen Parsons, a community organizer for the nonprofit Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund in Christiansburg, said chemical trespass ordinances have been enacted in Pennsylvania to stop a variety of corporate actions, including the spreading of sewage sludge.Ben Price, a project director with the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund, said the action "empowers the community" and "is a first shot across the bow to let them know the people have the right to govern.

"Last month, Chatham Mayor George Haley asked the town's Ordinance Committee and fellow council members to explore the possibility of a chemical trespass ordinance aimed at uranium.Haley also asked Town Manager Mike Jones and Town Attorney Larry Gott to participate in the study."I think we would be remiss not to learn more about chemical trespass ordinances that have been enacted in other parts of Virginia," said Haley.Some Chatham Town Council members aren't sure if the town needs a chemical trespass ordinance."I don't know if an ordinance is needed at this time," said Councilman Joe Rogers, a member of the Ordinance Committee. "It drives council to take a position without having all of the information."Rogers, a retired engineer, favors more research, including a state study on uranium mining."I looked at the Halifax decision as a political statement," he said. "I'm not prepared to take that position until I know more about the issue."Councilman Jim McDole, who chairs the Ordinance Committee, said he's in the process of gathering sample chemical trespass ordinances and other information for council to review."I think we need to be cautious," said McDole. "I don't see any point in developing an ordinance just to have an ordinance. However, if it protects the health and safety of residents, it's worth looking at."

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