Carthage News (insurance, unemployed, bankruptcy)

[firebll31]

Big news for our small town: The RES plant which has been blamed for a terrible stench the last few years has declared bankruptcy and is closed down. The plant used leftover turkey parts from the local Butterball plant and turned it into a burnable fuel oil. While I am all for alternative fuel sources, and am sorry for the loss of jobs, the odor emanating from the plant made life near it miserable. The company spent a lot of money, first to try to prove it was not the source of the smell and then on filtration systems to get rid of it. The odor was reduced, but still very noticeable far too often. The company is seeking more investors to get back in business. But with a history of lawsuits and EPA visits, that seems unlikely. Job fairs are being held to help the displaced workers. I guess we will find out once and for all if the plant was responsible for the stench. It's a shame that such a good idea had such a bad outcome. Perhaps if it was located far enough from a populated area that the odor wouldn't matter the plant would still be in business. It was located in town for two reasons: proximity to the turkey plant meant no transport costs and the city wanted tax revenues.

[mrsgenealogy]

Well, I'm sure glad to hear that the stench may go away, firebll31. It should help property values go up, too.

I'm really sorry to hear that it's happening at such a difficult time in the economy, though. I feel for those newly unemployed.

[linicx]

I remember when I could smell the stuff as far away as the new Walmart the nights they were processing. They tried ti blame it on Schriber for months. But I never snelled it before they fired up the first night. It is a sorry blow to the economy.

[firebll31]

I do hate to see the loss of jobs. Unfortunately, it's not the only place laying off workers. Hospitals, manufacturing, sales, everything is cutting back. Higher insurance premiums and no raise or even pay cuts are common. Can't wait till the economy turns around.