The community group asking for a fresh review of the environmental effects of the massive Micron factory project got to make their arguments to a judge Tuesday. The group People for a Better Micron believe Onondaga County and the state rushed its legally-required environmental review of the project to ensure Micron didn’t take the project to another state.
Lawyer for the group William Demarest told the judge that the county gave the public only 47 days – two days more than legally required – to review the Environmental Impact Statement, which was more than 2,000 pages long. The document noted that the microchip fabrication plant, when operating, will emit a large volume of greenhouse gases. It noted that some kind of cancer-causing chemicals may also get into the water and ground. It promises up to 9,000 jobs when all four chip fabrication plants are complete.
“They weren’t really interested in this process, with receiving public comment. That was not the goal of the EIS process. This was an effort to get through the process,” Demarest said, “so they can issue the permits and this can be built. They didn’t want to hear from the public.”
Demarest asked State Supreme Court Judge Thomas Marcelle to order a supplemental environmental review.
Lawyers for the county, the state Department of Environmental Conservation and Micron argued that the environmental review was done by the book. Yvonne Hennessey, a lawyer for Onondaga County, said that the county met or exceeded the standard required.
“Calling this more than two year environmental review rushed is like calling a marathon a sprint because they don’t like where we ended up,” Hennessey said.
They also argued that People for a Better Micron waited too long to file its suit, that the project has passed a reasonable point of no return.
There’s no timeline for Judge Marcelle to issue an opinion.
