Related articles:

D-M trash plan concerns council

Other articles by Tim Ellis:

Surfing on the Wi-Fi wave Biz licenses, permit fees going up Sahuarita's wish: more spots to shop Sahuarita's wish: more shopping Senior homes could face legal action Making Sahuarita homes affordable Sahuarita's crime-fighting windfall Sahuarita councilman seeks to launch affordable-housing programCarroll: State, feds tie locals' hands on water Town wants role in water efforts

Construction
West-Press
Printing Health Care
Sierra Tucson
Eating Disorders Program Coordinator Finance and Accounting
Charles E. Gillman Company
Accounting Specialist Administrative & Professional
Jorgensen Brooks Group
Counselor Health Care
Dependable Health Services
Physical Therapists Health Care
CENTRAL ARIZONA COLLEGE
DIRECTOR OF HEALTH INFORMATION MANAGEMENT Sales and Marketing
Everready Glass
Sales Reps

Residents of Tucson's East Side are wary of a proposal by Davis-Monthan Air Force Base officials to build a trash-fired power plant at the eastern edge of the base.

D-M officials say the proposed power plant would cut the base's electricity bill, reduce the amount of trash that goes to area landfills and provide a backup source of electricity for the base during blackouts.

East Side residents worry about the health effects of exposure to the smoke and ash that would be created by burning trash — the fuel that would be used to generate electricity.

"It would be environmentally unsafe and it could be dangerous to the neighborhoods around the base," said Michael Lyman, president of the Groves-Lincoln Park Neighborhood Association.

Lyman and others also worry about the amount of trash that would be brought into the area on the base where the power plant would be located — base officials for now favor a spot near East Irvington and South Harrison roads, near the eastern perimeter of the installation.

Some residents, like Ron Walcott, aren't necessarily opposed to the proposal.

Walcott, president of the Stella-Mann Neighborhood Association, believes that the proposal should be studied more before anyone decides to oppose it.

Shirley Scott, who represents the area on the Tucson City Council, said she too wants to hear more about the proposal. She hasn't been able to get much information yet from base officials, she said.

But Scott said she thinks it's a bad idea to run more trucks — many more trucks, probably — on already-congested streets along residential areas.

"I am not enthusiastic about the placement of this," she said last week. "It's very close to a highly residential area and it doesn't fit with the surroundings. There are schools, churches … it's just not an industrialized area."

Scott arranged a Monday night town hall meeting on the issue at the Clements Recreation Center. About 110 people turned out to hear base officials explain the proposal and to ask questions or voice concerns.

On Tuesday, the City Council approved a resolution introduced by Scott opposing construction of the "waste-to-energy" power plant at Irvington and Harrison.

Mike Toriello, D-M's deputy base civil engineer, said there are a lot of details that the base can't provide because it's relatively early in the process of evaluating the proposal.

It's been under consideration for about six months now, he said, but it's not a done deal. Base officials won't make a decision on when or whether to build the facility for another six months, Toriello said.

Concerns of residents and city officials "would be part of our considerations," he said. "We want to work with the community."

Base officials want to build the plant to cut its $6 million annual electricity bill, and to provide a secure backup source of electricity for the base, Toriello said.

A 2005 law requires all government agencies to study ways to generate electricity using alternative sources of energy, such as burning trash, he said.

That would reduce the amount of trash that goes into area landfills and would boost recycling, because trash brought onto the base would be sorted for recyclable materials, he added.

Lyman said that as an environmentalist — he established the Atturbury Bird and Animal Sanctuary in Lincoln Park — he understands the benefits of reducing the amount of trash that goes into landfills.

But he said the pollution the power plant would generate would nullify the environmental benefits.

If base officials really wanted an environmentally friendly source of electricity, they'd consider solar power "or some other renewable source," Lyman said.

Toriello on Friday could not say whether solar power or other forms of renewable energy sources have been considered.

The power plant would meet all local, state and federal environmental standards, he said.

Toriello said base officials will hold meetings to inform the public about the proposal and provide a chance to submit comments.

If base officials decide to proceed, the plant would be built within the next three to five years, he said.

Base officials would like to build it on the base for security purposes — inside the perimeter fence, but near the edge of the base to keep the trucks loaded with trash from getting too far into the base, Toriello said.

The plant probably would burn 50,000 to 70,000 tons of trash annually to generate 8 to 10 megawatts — enough to keep the base's essential functions, such as the airfield and control tower, operating, he said.

Because the base produces only about 5,000 tons of trash annually, most of the trash would have to be trucked in, Toriello said.

The plant would be "considerably smaller" than the 422-megawatt Tucson Electric Power generating station at East Irvington and South Alvernon Way, he said.