July 2023

Nearly everyone has heard the adage “the best time to plant a tree was 50 years ago, the next best time to plant a tree is today”! While I agree with the spirit of the quote, I suggest at least waiting until we have a little rain before you start planting too many trees.

Last week, members of the Environmental Protection Agency hosted a public meeting to discuss the results of their air monitoring efforts to determine ethylene oxide levels in Verona. It was refreshing to learn that the EPA officials on hand had completed their air monitoring efforts and had data available to share with community members who are concerned that exposure to the gas emitted from BCP’s operations in town could put them at a higher risk of several types of cancer.

I live just shy of 4 miles (as Google Maps calculates) from the BCP Ingredients, Inc. plant, lessasthecroworethylene oxide (EtO) particle flies. My family daily plays and gardens in the backyard of our home. Naturally, I was interested to attend the public meeting at Verona High School on the air monitoring studies the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) performed in the Verona community over the last year or so. For those who didn’t attend, the news may appear to have boiled down to the fact that EtO was detected, and the EPA will continue air monitoring. However, reading between the lines of what was said (and at times, importantly, not said) my impressions were less than reassuring:

DEAR ABBY: There is a man, “Gus,” I am completely, madly in love with. The issue is, he likes to drink – a lot.