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THE RIVERFRONT TIMES November 22-28, 1995 Pages 13-14 CHEMICAL DEPENDENCY Monsanto takes part in an Carson's seminal 1962 exposd on the dangers environmental program that of pollution, by com- f, , belies its own, habits missioning ics own . book, A Desolate Year, , which presented the Monsanto Co. gave away free refrigera- ' horrors of living in a tor magnets and plenty of promises last world without pcsti- Thursday night at the Missouri Hiscori- cidcs.. cal Society. " ' , . Last week, the , The magnets were emblazoned with chemical company pro- thc company's slogan: "We pledge to be mulgatcd its revised a part of the solution." The promises public-relations posi- werc printed on recycled paper and tion at the Historical mouthed by a chemical-company Society's library at 224 spokesman. "You have to start with pol- S. Skinkcr. The Histor- lution prevention," Monsanto's Keith icai Society is the host Miller told the audience. "It is unacccpt- of a series of monthly able to continue to pollute our environ- forums titled "Sustain ment. At Monsanto, we have been focus- ing the City," which ing on pollution prevention for years." . are scheduled to run The reason, of course, that Monsan- . through May. All of to has belatedly decided to focus atten- the programs arc spon sion on environmental concerns is sored by the University because it has historically been among of Missouri at St. the worst polluters in the St. Louis area, Louis, Washington if not the world. Prior efforts to improve University and the The Rev. Buck Jones and Kelfh Miller its corporate image were far less accom- American Institute of modating to environmentalists. In the Architects. The latest' past, one company motto heralded the fact that "without chemistry life itself would be impossible." Earlier yet, Monsanto countered Silent Spring, Rachel discussion was dubbed "Environmental Cleanup: Common Problems, Diverging Solutions." Panelists included Miller, the chief of environmental safety and an civil-rights leader, environmental-justice advocate and the head of Project HOPE. At the forum, Miller parroted Mon- . health at Monsan' to's W.G. Krurnm- rich plant in Saugct, 111., and the Rev. Buck Jones, a veter santo's claim of having reduced its worldwide toxic-air emissions by 90 percent. He specifically cited an 88 percent decline in toxic-air emissions at the Krummrich plant between 1988 and 1992. But despite meeting that five-year goal, Monsanto, by its own estimates, still pumped 465,000 pounds of pollutants into the air in 1992. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated that as recently as 1991 the Krummrich plant dumped more than 23.2 million pounds continued on page 14 DSW 138035 STLCOPCB4037992 continued/2, The Riverfront Times November 22-28, 1995 Page 13-14 ' of pollutants into the air and water. It j rated the facility as the worst polluter in Illinois that year. . Miller contends that Monsanto's environmental record has continued to improve in both air and water emis sions. His optimism, however, is not ' shared completely by Jones, who has been active in East St. Louis environ mental issues for. many years. East St. Louis is in the backyard of many chemical companies. Qut of all those companies and industries, Mon santo is the only one that is making an effort to involve people in the process to a degree and invest in the community. At this juncture, I'm riot sure I can sec a consensus when it comes to polluters,'' says Jones. "I'm riot.convinced diat busi ness is ready to show compassion, to care and to allow consumers to sit at the table where decisions are made." . The activist has doubts about the current deregulatory bent of the Repub lican-led Congress as well. "It is a source of tension for me, when I view things.... that are happening in Washington, (including) efforts to turn the clock back on the Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act," says Jones. "From my perspective,' when I look at the `Contract with Amer- . ica,' polluters are being given, more authority to pollute." . . In Jones' opinion, however, defend- . ing environmental regulations alone will not solve the problem. He believes there are certain human values that can't be enforced by law. "They concern inner attitudes, one's conscience," he says. "I'm not. convinced that those who pol lute are going to comply with (those). ; unenforceable obligations. _ . ' v - "It has been said wherever America's - troubled cities are headed, East St. Louis' . will get there first," says Jones. East St. Louis is an environmental nightmare. It has over 22 abandoned toxic-waste sites.. "Wc have had enough. We won't-take it anymore. We will not surrender to the forces of death and destruction." . For Jones, the buck stops in East St. Louis. -- C.D. Stelzer DSW 138036 STLCOPCB4037993