FIRM GETS OK TO BURN TIRES RUBBER CAN BE PART OF FUEL FOR CEMENT KILNS.

Byline: Jim Skeen Staff Writer

ROSAMOND - Kern County air regulators approved a permit for National Cement Co. to burn used tires as a fuel supplement at its manufacturing plant in the far western Antelope Valley.

At a Wednesday afternoon hearing in Rosamond, the Kern County Air Pollution Control District board voted 3-0 to allow tires to make up as much as 25 percent of the fuel for the kiln at the plant north of Highway 138 and east of Interstate 5.

Board members agreed with company officials that the use of tires is environmentally sound, rejecting arguments by opponents concerned that the operation will increase production of a suspected carcinogen.

``My feeling is that the tires are being put to an environmentally friendly use,'' said board member Raymond Watson.

The use of the tires is being opposed by Desert Citizens Against Pollution, an Antelope Valley environmental group, and the Tri-County Watchdogs, a citizens group representing communities where Los Angeles, Kern and Ventura counties meet.

While acknowledging that burning tires as a fuel will likely decrease nitrogen oxides, a component of smog, opponents argue that it will result in an increase in emissions of dioxin, a suspected cancer-causing agent.

``They are substituting one dirty fuel for another,'' said Caroline Farrell, an attorney representing the two groups.

The groups also noted that the company has paid more than $1.4 million in fines from regulators, primarily over issues related to air emissions, since the late 1980s. The largest fine, more than $838,000, was levied by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency alleging excess emissions of certain contaminants during a four-year period.

``It's quite an impressive list of violations,'' said Jane Williams, a board member of Desert Citizens Against Pollution. ``We would expect them to behave the same way with tires.''

National Cement's president, Don Unmacht, said the company has never willfully violated air standards.

Unmacht said the violations were the result of a complicated set of factors involving plant upgrades and differing interpretations of regulations. Unmacht said the company has invested more than $200 million in upgrades, including more than $30 million in air emissions equipment since acquiring the plant in the late 1980s.

``We've spent millions and million on that plant,'' Unmacht said. ``We are producing more cement with less emissions.''

The U.S. EPA said the company has made changes that have reduced nitrogen oxide emissions by 225,000 pounds, sulfur dioxides by 18,000 pounds, and carbon monoxide by 2.6 million pounds annually.

Burning used tires has benefits for a cement manufacturer, said Michael Blumenthal, senior technical director for the Rubber Manufacturers Association. The tires put out more heat per pound than coal; they cost less than coal; they emit less nitrogen oxides, a key component of smog; and they help kilns run more efficiently.

The public also benefits by having fewer tires heading toward landfills, Blumenthal said.

The Rubber Manufacturers Association estimates that there are more than 53 million tires burned annually in cement kilns in the United States. There are 43 companies across the country using tires as a fuel supplement.

On a national level, the burning of tires in cement kilns has drawn objections from environmental groups such as the Sierra Club and Earthjustice. The groups argue that not only is tire burning adding to concerns about dioxin production but the U.S. EPA has not done enough to regulate emissions from cement kilns in general.

On Oct. 28, Sierra Club and Earthjustice filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking to have the EPA issue regulations to reduce air pollution from cement kilns.

The lawsuit seeks to force the EPA to comply with a December 2000 federal Court of Appeals ruling directing the agency to issue regulations under the Clean Air Act to limit air pollutants from cement kilns.

Jim Skeen, [phone]

james.skeen(at)dailynews.com