Lumber Mill Pollution (noise & smoke) (Newport, Brookings: home, purchasing, quality of life)

[furyu]

I live near a privately owned lumber mill in Brookings. It operates 24/7. Many of our evenings/nights are spoiled by loud booms, bangs and shrill grinding sounds. Recently the mill has been burning sludge or whatever it is and the smoke pours over our home. Three nights ago it was so bad it set off the smoke alarm in our bedroom (we had the fan going to drown out the mill noise and evidently the fan sucked in the smoke). Our bedroom smelled of smoke for hours thereafter.

This area is otherwise absolutely gorgeous but the mill pretty much owns this town. I've talked to all the powers-that-be, the mayor, the chief of police, the city council, and no one can, or is willing to, do anything about this company.

I've been told I can contact the DEQ but in the same breath was told that that department is so unfunded it's unlikely I'll get anywhere with them.

My neighbors and I have tried for years to get the lumber mill owners/agents to 'come to the table' and talk about the problems but they refuse to return our telephone calls or emails.

Any ideas?

I wish this town cared enough about itself and its future to do something about the quality of life here. We have a great mayor but there's just so much she alone can do. The attitude around is here is pro-mill because they employ 200-300 people, but if this town did what Bandon, Newport and other coastal towns have done to attract visitors, they'd employ a lot more than that. The potential for this town is enormous but no one seems interested in cleaning things up and moving into the 21st century.

[Jimbo54]

I was wondering how close you are to the mill?

We are purchasing a home a couple of miles south and I was wondering if the wind is normally westerly.

Thanks

[jjpop]

Keep calling DEQ and get your neighbors to as well. Eventually they will do something about it if the mill is, in fact, in violation of clean air laws.

[John Shaft]

You could spend years pestering DEQ. If I were you, I'd just call in Chuck Norris. Problem solved in one day.