Tittabawassee River Watch Editorial          Back to editorial page  

Time to talk

Editor, The News:

It is obvious that for river commerce to continue the Saginaw River needs to be dredged. ("Lost rudders jeopardize Saginaw River traffic," April 12)

The roadblock is lawsuits that have been filed to block the construction of a waste disposal site that will jeopardize Zilwaukee and Frankenlust Township. I believe these suits are justified.

I also believe that the Saginaw River needs dredging along with the Tittabawassee River, which is the source of contamination in the Saginaw River. This entire dilemma has been brought about by a handful of politicians and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, who are unwilling to discuss any alternative locations or methods for the disposal of the river dredging waste. The waste is contaminated with dioxin and other toxins.

With all this in mind, whatever happened to diplomacy, as President Bush keeps mentioning? We can supposedly discuss things of a lethal nature with foreign countries to come to an equitable solution, but these politicians would rather play dictators than discuss any solution that would be beneficial to all parties and communities involved. This would be a good time to have some open-minded discussions.

Move the waste site to a location that will not harm anyone and operate it in a manner that will protect all from the toxins placed inside of it.

John Taylor

Thomas Township

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