Editorial

LET PERMIT PROCESS OWRK AT CEMENT-PLANT SITE

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Missouri Gov. Bob Holden has asked the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to broaden its study of the impact a new $600 million cement plant to be built by Swiss-based Holnam Inc. would have on the Mississippi River at Ste. Genevieve.

His request came after similar urgings from the Sierra Club and Missouri Coalition for the Environment. Members are concerned because Holnam has applied for permits to discharge pollution and build a harbor for barges.

Nobody wants to ruin our fresh air or pollute the Mississippi River any more than it already is. But why drag out the process of opening the plant, which will bring new jobs and tax money into Ste. Genevieve County and increase prosperity in the area?

Holden should have let the process work.

To get its permits, the plant will have to agree to acceptable standards of pollution. If the company fails to follow the rules, heap on hefty fines. If things don't change, shut the plant down.