Letters to the editor
Share with others:
Ideas for reusing the arena aren't realistic
I have been following with interest the public discussion about the future of the Civic Arena.
I agree that the building is a very interesting engineering marvel and has been a part of the city's skyline for 50 years. However, it was designed as a public auditorium and it is no longer needed for that purpose.
Over the past year, I have read, sometimes with amusement, suggestions for reusing the building. Come on, let's get real! It is not surprising to me that no realistic reuse suggestions have come forward considering that it is a very large dome-shaped building with no windows.
The suggestions for it to be publicly owned and maintained as a park or public marketplace would require many public dollars both now and into the future. We don't have the money, and the city does not need such a facility at that location. The Strip District is a short distance away and the idea of an expensive park, covered by a dome, seems illogical and downright goofy. What the city does need at that location is development, including housing, which will create jobs and opportunities and the potential for future growth.
It is good that the public has carefully examined this issue, but I believe that it is now time to make a decision and get to the business of moving the city forward. After all, none of us is getting any younger!
SOPHIE MASLOFF
Squirrel Hill
The writer is a former mayor of Pittsburgh.
Water reversal
The Aug. 12 story "Take Me to the River" mistakenly appears to sound the "all clear" on industrial pollution concerns for Pittsburgh rivers. There is a clear and present danger from Marcellus Shale drilling activities.
Two concerns: The massive water withdrawals from our watersheds, and the drilling contaminants being dumped into our rivers. Warnings have been issued from several local water authorities on high trihalomethane levels that spiked after drilling began. Treatment of drilling wastewater is minimal -- nothing to remove salts, frac chemicals and carcinogens. Fish populations are beginning to reflect our reversal on water improvements made in the late 1900s.
We need a moratorium on Marcellus drilling until regulations and protections are in place.
ROBERT DONNAN
Peters
Hunters' worries
I write with immense concern regarding the unregulated and extremely dangerous practices of "open pond frac water storage" in Pennsylvania. For those not familiar with this term, it refers to wastewater impoundments for millions of gallons of polluted frac water overflow caused by the fracking process of Marcellus gas wells.
These frac water ponds are unfenced and unguarded. Deer and other wildlife drink from these contaminated impoundments. Keep in mind, these Marcellus impoundments can hold more than 3 million gallons of water highly polluted with a variety of highly toxic contaminants including anything from biocides (engineered to kill microorganisms) and benzene (which has been confirmed as a human carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Environmental Protection Agency) to high levels of chemical salt, petroleum remnants and even lead.
First Published August 26, 2010 12:00 am
