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RECIPE FOR DISASTER: ONE SMALL TOWN'S CRY FOR HELP
by Shantal Der Boghosian
http://www.armenianweekly.com/2012/09/10/recipe-for-disaster-one-small-towns-cry-for-help/
September 10, 2012
It wasn't too long ago that I traveled through South America and Costa
Rica to witness hundreds of people striking against the government
to fight for basic rights--clean air and clean water. It was those
experiences that encouraged me to pursue a degree in environmental
engineering, with a goal to work with developing countries to help
them access the two basic things we take for granted in the United
States. Never did I think I would come across a small town in the
United States fighting for the same rights, and not being heard.
(L-R) David Bouie, Natalie Kottke, and Barbara Bouie Crossett,
Ark., is a small American working-class town that few people have
heard of, but one with a big environmental problem. People in this
community have cancer; their neighbors live on respirators, and are
breathing air allegedly being polluted by a large company called
Georgia-Pacific. Georgia-Pacific produces household paper items like
Brawny paper towels, Quilted Northern toiler paper, and Dixie paper
cup products. It is also the only plant in the community and employs
most of the town it is polluting.
I heard about this town thanks to Erica Sardarian, co-director
and producer of a documentary on Crossett. Erica is working on the
documentary with her brother, Edgar Sardarian, producer and editor,
and with Natalie Kottke, director and producer. Their goal is to bring
awareness to what's happening in Crossett and help the town get the
representation it deserves to improve their daily lives. According
to Kottke, Crossett's story must be told because most of the town's
residents can't speak for themselves for fear of losing their jobs.
The town relies on their pastor, David Bouie, and his wife to provide
them with a voice.
In an interview with Kottke, Bouie told her that "people in 11 out
of 15 homes on my small street have died of cancer." Wilma Subra,
an award-winning chemist testing the air and water quality in the
community, told the residents, "This facility produces a huge number
of chemicals into the air, land, and water. They would like you to
believe that all of it remains on site." In reality, the company
seems to be dumping most of its waste directly into the air and water.
Crossett is not the only town that needs to worry about the
discharge--both water and air migrate across the land, eventually
ending up in our own environment, thus becoming our issue as well.
Anthony Samsel is a scientist writing a preliminary report about
Crossett that details the progress and test results in relation to
public health. According to him, "Between the paper mill, formaldehyde
plant, plastic resin manufacturing, and other chemical operations,
the potential for chemical exposure and risks to public health are
substantial. Just looking at the paper mill operation alone sent up
red flags. Our field tests show that the residents of Crossett are
being chemically assaulted with hydrogen sulfide."
Hydrogen sulfide is an extremely toxic and irritating gas that
has a strong odor of rotten eggs. Formaldehyde is highly toxic
with a characteristic pungent and irritating odor. The EPA has
not investigated the environmental conditions in Crossett, nor has
Arkansas's environmental protection office done any testing to protect
residents from the pollutants being discharged into the air and water.
Bouie reached out to for help in a 2011 article in the Huffington Post,
directing his pleas to Charles and David Koch, billionaire brothers and
owners of Georgia-Pacific. "I pray that I might be able to convince
you to clean up this mess and relocate us like Georgia-Pacific did
for other communities like ours. We cannot relocate on our own."
Kottke and the Sardarians are working hard to produce the documentary
telling Crossett's story, and their goal is to raise enough awareness
to provoke action from the EPA and Georgia-Pacific to relocate the
residents and clean up their town. They have set up a donation fund on
Indiegogo (www.indiegogo.com/crossettdocumentary) for those willing
to help the cause. If you aren't able to donate, you will still be
a great help by spreading awareness and sharing this story.
It makes me feel proud to see Armenians doing good for complete
strangers. Sardarian has said that these people have become her family
and she will do whatever it takes to give them a better life. By
helping one town's environmental woes, she is inevitably helping
us all!
You can read more about the Koch Brothers at
www.kochbrothersexposed.com, and learn facts such as this one: Koch
Industries has an annual production capacity of 2.2 billion pounds
of the carcinogen formaldehyde. The company has worked to keep it
from being classified as a carcinogen even though David Koch is a
prostate cancer survivor.
***
Dirt Cake Recipe
2 egg yolks 2 cups milk ½ cup sugar ¼ cup cocoa powder 3 tablespoon
cornstarch 1 package Oreo cookies One small, clean flower pot Fresh
flowers and gummy worms for decoration
Mix the sugar, chocolate, cornstarch and milk in a saucepan and bring
to boil, whisking constantly (Note: Custard will not thicken unless
milk has boiled.)
-Whisk egg yolks in a bowl until frothy, and mix ¼ cup of the milk
mixture from the saucepan to temper the egg mixture. Pour egg mixture
into the saucepan and continue whisking.
-After 3-5 minutes, remove pan from heat, and continue whisking
until mixture thickens completely. Allow pudding to cool to room
temperature before cooling completely in the refrigerator.
-Finely chop the Oreo cookies in a food processor. Layer in flower
pot, starting with cookies and then pudding mixture, repeating layers
and ending with the Oreo "dirt" layer. Garnish with fresh flowers
and gummy worms.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
by Shantal Der Boghosian
http://www.armenianweekly.com/2012/09/10/recipe-for-disaster-one-small-towns-cry-for-help/
September 10, 2012
It wasn't too long ago that I traveled through South America and Costa
Rica to witness hundreds of people striking against the government
to fight for basic rights--clean air and clean water. It was those
experiences that encouraged me to pursue a degree in environmental
engineering, with a goal to work with developing countries to help
them access the two basic things we take for granted in the United
States. Never did I think I would come across a small town in the
United States fighting for the same rights, and not being heard.
(L-R) David Bouie, Natalie Kottke, and Barbara Bouie Crossett,
Ark., is a small American working-class town that few people have
heard of, but one with a big environmental problem. People in this
community have cancer; their neighbors live on respirators, and are
breathing air allegedly being polluted by a large company called
Georgia-Pacific. Georgia-Pacific produces household paper items like
Brawny paper towels, Quilted Northern toiler paper, and Dixie paper
cup products. It is also the only plant in the community and employs
most of the town it is polluting.
I heard about this town thanks to Erica Sardarian, co-director
and producer of a documentary on Crossett. Erica is working on the
documentary with her brother, Edgar Sardarian, producer and editor,
and with Natalie Kottke, director and producer. Their goal is to bring
awareness to what's happening in Crossett and help the town get the
representation it deserves to improve their daily lives. According
to Kottke, Crossett's story must be told because most of the town's
residents can't speak for themselves for fear of losing their jobs.
The town relies on their pastor, David Bouie, and his wife to provide
them with a voice.
In an interview with Kottke, Bouie told her that "people in 11 out
of 15 homes on my small street have died of cancer." Wilma Subra,
an award-winning chemist testing the air and water quality in the
community, told the residents, "This facility produces a huge number
of chemicals into the air, land, and water. They would like you to
believe that all of it remains on site." In reality, the company
seems to be dumping most of its waste directly into the air and water.
Crossett is not the only town that needs to worry about the
discharge--both water and air migrate across the land, eventually
ending up in our own environment, thus becoming our issue as well.
Anthony Samsel is a scientist writing a preliminary report about
Crossett that details the progress and test results in relation to
public health. According to him, "Between the paper mill, formaldehyde
plant, plastic resin manufacturing, and other chemical operations,
the potential for chemical exposure and risks to public health are
substantial. Just looking at the paper mill operation alone sent up
red flags. Our field tests show that the residents of Crossett are
being chemically assaulted with hydrogen sulfide."
Hydrogen sulfide is an extremely toxic and irritating gas that
has a strong odor of rotten eggs. Formaldehyde is highly toxic
with a characteristic pungent and irritating odor. The EPA has
not investigated the environmental conditions in Crossett, nor has
Arkansas's environmental protection office done any testing to protect
residents from the pollutants being discharged into the air and water.
Bouie reached out to for help in a 2011 article in the Huffington Post,
directing his pleas to Charles and David Koch, billionaire brothers and
owners of Georgia-Pacific. "I pray that I might be able to convince
you to clean up this mess and relocate us like Georgia-Pacific did
for other communities like ours. We cannot relocate on our own."
Kottke and the Sardarians are working hard to produce the documentary
telling Crossett's story, and their goal is to raise enough awareness
to provoke action from the EPA and Georgia-Pacific to relocate the
residents and clean up their town. They have set up a donation fund on
Indiegogo (www.indiegogo.com/crossettdocumentary) for those willing
to help the cause. If you aren't able to donate, you will still be
a great help by spreading awareness and sharing this story.
It makes me feel proud to see Armenians doing good for complete
strangers. Sardarian has said that these people have become her family
and she will do whatever it takes to give them a better life. By
helping one town's environmental woes, she is inevitably helping
us all!
You can read more about the Koch Brothers at
www.kochbrothersexposed.com, and learn facts such as this one: Koch
Industries has an annual production capacity of 2.2 billion pounds
of the carcinogen formaldehyde. The company has worked to keep it
from being classified as a carcinogen even though David Koch is a
prostate cancer survivor.
***
Dirt Cake Recipe
2 egg yolks 2 cups milk ½ cup sugar ¼ cup cocoa powder 3 tablespoon
cornstarch 1 package Oreo cookies One small, clean flower pot Fresh
flowers and gummy worms for decoration
Mix the sugar, chocolate, cornstarch and milk in a saucepan and bring
to boil, whisking constantly (Note: Custard will not thicken unless
milk has boiled.)
-Whisk egg yolks in a bowl until frothy, and mix ¼ cup of the milk
mixture from the saucepan to temper the egg mixture. Pour egg mixture
into the saucepan and continue whisking.
-After 3-5 minutes, remove pan from heat, and continue whisking
until mixture thickens completely. Allow pudding to cool to room
temperature before cooling completely in the refrigerator.
-Finely chop the Oreo cookies in a food processor. Layer in flower
pot, starting with cookies and then pudding mixture, repeating layers
and ending with the Oreo "dirt" layer. Garnish with fresh flowers
and gummy worms.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress