"I'm Calling it a Stink - Not an Odor - Because That's What it Is"

Carthage Mayor Jim Woestman was quoted in The Joplin Globe, Thursday, July 26, 2007 as saying "I'm calling it a stink - not an odor - because that's what it is." "Renewable Environmental Solutions has become our problem." Mayor Woestman was in Jefferson City, making a presentation before the Missouri Air Conservation Commission, regarding Renewable Environemntal Solutions LLC (RES). He is making a case for a revising the state's odor dilution standard to 2-to-1 when it is used to measure odors in populated areas. Presently, the dilution standard is 7-to-1. The paper indicates that both The Sierra Club and Jay Nixon, Missouri's Attorney gGneral, both favor this stricter dilution standard.

In Friday, July 27, 2007 The Joplin Globe, reported that Leanne Triplett-Mosby, Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MDNR)-Divison of Environmental Quality, said that MDNR has decided to pay for an independent odor study in Carthage. She said that proposals from potential contractors are to be submitted by Aug. 10. “We want to do this as a pilot project, and control it, because we want to test the technology for our potential use.” Previously, Brian Appel-Prsident of RES had offered to pay for the study. When describing the stink from RES, Mayor Jim Woestman is quoted as saying, "a stink bad enough to make you lose your appetite."

The Carthage Press, Friday, July 27, 2007, reported that three of the seven Commissioners on Missouri's Air Conservation Commission have had exposure to RES's plant. In fact, Mayor Jim Woestman is quoted as saying that several of the Commissioners had "commented on how their clothes stunk" after touring the plant. Woestman is lobbying for a 2-to-1 dilution ratio , or a strict policy in odor violations.

Lawsuit: Sundy vs. RES, Case No. 07-5069-CV-SW-WAK

The Carthage Press, Sunday, July 22, 2007 reports on Cynthia K. Sundy's lawsuit against Renewable Environmental Solutions LLC (RES). The case was originally filed in the Circuit Court of Jasper County, MO at Carthage, then moved to the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri-Southwestern Division. The Carthage Press article also includes links to the multiple petitions and filings (see below). The lawsuit asks for Class Action Status, and references the class as those Carthage residents living in an area described as Java Street and Northwoods Street on the north, the Carthage City limits on the east, US Highway 71 on the west and Macon Street on the south.

Circuit Court Docket Sheet, including Summons in Civil case, and Class Action Complaint, filed June 5, 2007
Declaration of Brian S. Appel
Notice of Removal of Civil Action