Since the spring, hundreds of Valley residents have written, demonstrated, and delivered speeches to DEQ officials to air their concerns about Northrop Grumman’s Waynesboro plant.
The company, the world’s fourth largest defense manufacturer, is seeking a permit that would allow it to release up to 24.9 tons of hazardous air pollutants a year as it builds aerospace and defense machinery.
Tuessday night’s DEQ meeting marked the end of that community input at a gathering that was, at times, somber, emotional, and pleading.
“A high school friend recently said to me, ‘Oh, my God, Holly, you’ve got to stop them,’” said Holly Frost, who moved to Waynesboro in 1987 and lives about 1.5 miles from the Northrop Grumman plant. She grew up near an eight square mile toxic plume in Bethpage, New York, created by Grumman that contaminated that area’s groundwater.
“They didn’t just do it on Long Island; they did it in California,” Frost said. “Now they’re coming here and saying that they’re going to self-monitor? I don’t think so.”
Residents implored DEQ officials to hold Northrop Grumman accountable. Many, including vice mayor Lorie Jean Akanbi, say it’s imperative that an outside company is hired to track the plant’s emissions, something DEQ rejects.
Jim Kaste thinks they should reconsider. He’s an environmental scientist at William & Mary who studies environmental pollutants and their impact on people and ecosystems.
Kaste says inhaling toluene, xylenes, and MIBK is dangerous, especially for babies and pregnant women, and notes Northrop Grumman’s uphill location from Coyner Springs’ aquifer, a municipal water source, could make a spill “potentially catastrophic.”
“You want to err on the side of caution here, and monitoring is doable,” Kaste said. “You can get real time data and then, that can help people sleep, or it could also identify a problem. We’ve got the money to build the plant, to run the plant, to sell the products. Why not put a little bit into monitoring?”
The Valley Environmental Justice Alliance is already conducting water tests at four sites in Coyner Springs Park, which abuts the 315,000 square foot plant. It’ll have its first results in two weeks.
DEQ will make its final decision about Northrop Grumman’s operating permit by October 22.
