January 20, 2006

The Department of Environmental Quality and The Dow Chemical Company will be holding the second quarterly Midland/Saginaw/Bay City Tri-Cities Dioxin Community Meeting on Thursday, February 9, at the Horizons Conference Center, 6200 State Street, Saginaw. The meeting is open to the public and will run from 6:30 to 9:00 pomp, with staff from the DEQ and Dow available one-half hour before and after the meeting for individual discussion with the public.

Discussion of Dow’s December 29, 2005, work plans to conduct Remedial Investigations of contamination in Midland area soils and the Tittabawassee River and floodplain will be the main topic of the meeting. Submittal of these work plans was required by Dow’s June 2003 hazardous waste management facility operating license and the January 2005 Framework for an Agreement between the DEQ and Dow. The meeting agenda, work plans, and information on where copies of the work plans can be reviewed locally are available at http://www.michigan.gov/deqdioxin by clicking on the “DEQ/Dow Community Involvement” and “Dow Off-site Corrective Action” Quick Links.

Residents are encouraged to ask questions and provide their comments on Dow’s work plans at the meeting. Alternatively, comments may be submitted by mail to Cheryl Howe, Waste and Hazardous Materials Division, DEQ, P.O. Box 30241, Lansing, MI 48909-7741, or by e mail at howec@michigan.gov. The DEQ plans to complete review of the work plans by mid March, and public comments will be accepted until March 15.

Additional 2006 quarterly community meetings are scheduled to be held on May 10, August 9, and November 8.

Editor’s note: DEQ news releases are available on the department’s Internet home page at www.michigan.gov/deq.

“Protecting Michigan’s Environment, Ensuring Michigan’s Future”

Revised January 20, 2006 by Pat Watson