Information item reposted from the CASKA Yahoo Group:
The following Facebook site gives you an opportunity to submit comments that will be presented to the EPA on this issue: U.S. Steel in Gary, IN, is pursuing a permit from the EPA to dump higher concentrations of ammonia, metals, organic compounds and suspended solids in our beloved Lake Michigan during the winter months.
http://www.facebook .com/home. php?#/group. php?gid=16998539 5417
The U.S. EPA plans to drop its objections to the wastewater permit, which is required under the Clean Water Act's National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System, or NPDES.
U.S. Steel Gary Works discharges water used in its operations into both the Grand Calumet River and Lake Michigan. It is the largest fully integrated steel mill in North America. The EPA is withholding final judgment on the permit until the Indiana Department of Environmental Management's (IDEM's) 45-day comment period, including a Nov. 18 public hearing, is completed and all comments considered.
The Nov. 18 hearing will take place at: Indiana University Northwest, Savannah Center Auditorium, 3400 Broadway Ave. Gary, IN Prior to the hearing, EPA staff will be available to answer questions from media from 2 until 2:45 p.m. Then there will be two identical sessions from 3 to 5 p.m. and 6 to 8:30 p.m. EPA Regional Administrator Mary A. Gade will preside over the hearing. She will be joined by a panel of EPA senior managers. The purpose of the hearing is to listen to comments about EPA's objections to the draft permit. Comments will also be accepted on aspects of the draft permit not addressed by the objections.
Written and oral comments will be accepted following a brief presentation by EPA. More information about the permit and public hearings are available at http://www.epa. gov/region5/ sites/ussteel.