Rethink mills

Rethink mills

Editor, The Commercial:

This is an open letter to the citizens of Pine Bluff. I understand that you are trying to bring the old Pine Bluff back. This is my perspective from an outsider. I used to go to Pine Bluff to Lowe’s, restaurants and even doctors.

I recently had a doctor’s appointment in Pine Bluff. I had been seeing this doctor for many years and considered him one of the best. As I left his office in west Pine Bluff, the foul smell of one of your paper mills was in the air. I made a decision at that point to not come back to Pine Bluff until that problem is eliminated.

You as citizens of Pine Bluff have been taken advantage of by the mills for too long. These type of factories come into an area and post jobs and better pay. As I hear some say it smells like money. Look at some of the other areas that have these mills; look at what has happened to them.

These mills not only pollute the environment around them, but they affect all aspects of the community. Look at your schools that are having to consolidate to stay open. Your town is decaying around you. They use huge amounts of your great underground water.

I live about 20 air miles from Pine Bluff. I always worry when the wind comes from the southwest, that’s when we start to get the odor. Whatever they are doing out there happens after midnight. No one wants to live in that kind of environment. You have the Arkansas River passing by the eastern edge of your city; it would have many possibilities of tourism and commercial use, but the paper mill dumps into the river below the lock and dam.

They would rather use your drinking water than the river that passes by their plant. I remember the old Pine Bluff where people were on your main street, restaurants, movie theaters and many other positive aspects of your city.

I would leave you with these thoughts. First, think of the children and what affect these fumes are having on them. Then I would ask how’s the health of the previous and retiring employees?

Mike Crum

Humphrey