2A ❚ WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2019 ❚ APPEAL TRIBUNE
Incinerator
Continued from Page 1A
mental Protection Agency.
“The DEQ permit should reduce al-
lowable particulate emissions, not al-
low an increase,” the groups wrote to
DEQ.
Increased greenhouse gas
emissions
They say emissions of dioxins and
furans should be sampled more than
annually or biannually, as is currently
required. Dioxins accumulate in the
food chain and can cause cancer and
damage organs.
The petitioners want DEQ to mea-
sure actual concentrations of toxics in
surrounding air, water and soil.
But Regan said “the plant has a stel-
lar environmental record. It’s baffling
why they’re so opposed to this facility.”
Accidental fires at incinerators
The proposed permit doubles Co-
vanta Marion’s greenhouse gas emis-
sions allowance, from 107,100 to
214,000 tons per year..
Part of that is an accounting change:
New EPA rules now require the incine-
rator to report emissions from burning
biogenic materials, like wood waste.
Previously it only reported emissions
from anthropogenic, or man-made,
materials, like plastic, though it burned
both.
The new combined cap is 25% more
than Covanta historically has emitted.
“Major emitters of greenhouse gases
like Covanta Marion must have de-
creasing amounts of permittable car-
bon dioxide equivalent emissions in or-
der to align with the state of Oregon’s
goals of statewide carbon reduction,”
states the petition, signed by 125 health
professionals and public health advo-
cates.
Darling said DEQ typically sets
emission limits at levels that a polluter
could only reach if it operated at full
steam, 24 hours a day, seven days a
week. It’s unlikely that Covanta would
hit those ceilings, he said.
Covanta officials maintain that in-
cineration emits less greenhouse gases
than landfills.
“If the goal is to address climate
change, you have a resource in your
backyard doing that,” said Regan, the
Covanta spokesman.
Environmental testing
In their letter, the groups say Covan-
ta’s stack emissions are inadequately
monitored.
A December 2016 fire at a Covanta
incinerator in Dickerson, Maryland
took 11 days to fully extinguish. A Febru-
ary 2017 fire at a Covanta incinerator in
Lorton, Virginia burned for days.
Some opponents of the proposed
permit say that history should prompt
DEQ to require Covanta Marion to
prove it has adequate fire suppression
capacity, and to have a fire emergency
plan in place.
But DEQ doesn’t have authority to
impose those requirements, Darling
said.
Regan said the company has learned
from those incidents, and as well-pre-
pared as possible.
Opposing groups have requested a
public hearing on the issues they’ve
raised. DEQ officials said they are nego-
tiating whether that will happen as part
of the permit renewal process or later,
perhaps as part of the Cleaner Air Ore-
gon review.
The other organizations objecting to
the proposed permit are: Woodburn-
based PCUN, which advocates for
farmworkers; Portland-based OPAL
Environmental Justice Oregon, which
works on environmental justice issues;
the climate groups 350 Salem and 350
PDX; Portland-based Neighbors for
Clean Air and Eastside Portland Air Co-
alition; Eugene based Beyond Toxics;
and Washington, D.C.-based Global Al-
liance for Incineration Alternatives.
Contact
the
reporter
at
tloew@statesmanjournal.com,
503-
399-6779 or follow at Twitter.com/Tra-
cy_Loew
“This plant deals with societal issues. We have to dispose
of household waste. We have to deal with medical waste.
This plant does it responsibly.”
James Regan
Covanta spokesman
www.edwardjones.com
Member SIPC
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Computer science jobs pay off
Catherine Hay
Guest columnist
The information age has delivered
self-driving cars, purchases with the
swipe of a phone, friends video chatting
across the globe, and other amazing
technological advancements. However,
many students in the digital era aren’t
getting the computer science skills they
need for career opportunities and essen-
tial life lessons.
Computer Science Education Week
(December 9-15) offers a wonderful op-
portunity for parents, students, and
schools to discuss the importance of
computer courses in Oregon. Not all 21st-
Century students want to become a soft-
ware developer, but we should encour-
age them to learn about the technology
that impacts their daily lives.
Why is computer science so impor-
tant?
Oregon’s tech industry provides one
of the fastest growing and highest pay-
ing career paths. Unfortunately, there’s a
growing gap in the number of high-tech
job openings compared to the number of
skilled workers. The Governor’s STEM
(Science Technology, Engineering, and
Mathematics) Education Plan projected
the gap at around 40,000 jobs in STEM-
related fields, starting next year.
Employment researchers estimate
computing occupations comprise nearly
60% of all new STEM positions. Annual
salaries run up to $117,000 for a comput-
er information system manager in 2018
in Oregon.
Promoting computer science in
schools not only addresses the state’s
future workforce needs, but students
benefit in other ways, including a re-
sume boost when applying for college
admissions or internships.
The founder of Code.org, Hadi Parto-
vi, said in a recent interview, “We should
teach computer science because it’s a
foundational skill and prepares them
(students) for life. In the 21st century, ev-
ery industry, every field of science, every
career is increasingly digitized, and stu-
dents should know how the technology
works.”
What do schools offer now?
Oregon is one of five states without a
statewide plan to support students
learning computer science. Only 37% of
high schools around the state had at
least one computer science class.
As the focus on STEM and Career and
Technical Education (CTE) programs
has increased, so has computer science
education. At Oregon Connections
Academy, the online ASCEND program
blazed a career pathway for students
with classes like web and game design,
computer programming, and soon cy-
bersecurity. Students can also gain the
industry certification most recognized
Falls
Continued from Page 1A
Rodrigue said.
“We can't replicate everything at
South Falls, like the lodge and gift shop,
but I think it can be a smaller version of
that and I would say that the new view-
point location for North Falls is ex-
tremely impressive,” he said. “It’s on
the opposite side of the canyon from
where people are used to seeing it and
has a really cool, high vantage point.”
From the new recreation site, a trail
would connect either upstream or
downstream from North Falls to the
Trail of 10 Falls.
“We have a couple of alternatives
that we’re looking at right now,” Ro-
drigue said.
for tech support before they graduate,
preparing them for internships their
senior year.
Another example is Stayton High
School’s new Career Pathways STEM
option which includes courses in Tech/
Helpdesk, C++ programming, and a 20-
hour practicum.
Why are certain kids hesitant about
computer science?
Some people believe Computer Sci-
ence is only computer programming for
“geeks” who sit in front of a screen for
hours. Students learn problem-solving,
analytical, and communication skills,
along with confidence and other aspects
that are important to any job today.
There is much to enjoy in computer
science, whether it’s a build-your-own-
computer project or a graphic design
portfolio. For example, a 10-year-old
Oregon Connections Academy student
just assisted her parents fine-tuning a
virtual reality app that allows other kids
to learn the fundamentals of coding in a
way that’s fun and easy to understand.
She is having a blast with coding!
How crucial is coding? A Google edu-
cation leader recently said, “Computer
science is building the machines, devel-
oping the set of instructions that tell the
machines what to do, and how all of this
applies to solving the world problems.”
While computer science covers many
areas, coding helps instruct the ma-
chines. The Hour of Code (hourof-
code.com/us) is a worldwide effort is
held during Computer Science in Educa-
tion Week, but families can do it year-
round. The Hour of Code is designed to
show kids that computer science is
problem-solving that can be fun and
anyone can learn the basics.
What else can interest students in
computer science?
There are many resources for families
including libraries, and robotics teams.
Here are a few suggestions for inexpen-
sive digital platforms: Code.org –(stu-
dio.code.org/courses) CS First –
(csfirst.withgoogle.com) CS Unplugged
–(csunplugged.org) MakeCode –(micro-
soft.com/en-us/makecode)
Scratch
–(scratch.mit.edu)
I hope families consider these ideas
during Computer Science in Education
week or over winter break. Parents can
use their own personal programing lan-
guage to cultivate a child’s creative inter-
ests. Sparking a student’s curiosity in
computer science is the first step on a
potentially rewarding career ladder and
other awesome benefits in a technology-
based world.
Catherine Hay is a Oregon Connec-
tions Academy Master Teacher, ASCEND
Computer Sciences Career and Techni-
cal Education program from Scappoose.
Enrollment is ongoing for the 2019-2020
school year. For information please visit:
www.OregonConnectionsAcademy.com
or call (800) 382–6010.
This 2022 redevelopment is expect-
ed to be the first phase in a larger pro-
ject on Silver Falls’ north side. A master
plan for the park also calls for the cre-
ation of a new visitor’s center and ex-
pansion of the nature play area, but
those would be years into the future,
Rodrigue said.
For now, they’re hoping to have the
redeveloped recreation site finished for
2022.
“We’re excited to share this new ex-
perience with visitor’s the park,” he
said.
Zach Urness has been an outdoors re-
porter, photographer and videographer
in Oregon for 11 years.Urness is the au-
thor of “Best Hikes with Kids: Oregon”
and “Hiking Southern Oregon.” He can
be reached at zurness@Statesman-
Journal.com or (503) 399-6801. Find
him on Twitter at @ZachsORoutdoors.