The Final Word by Jim Thompson


The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is going to have ramifications for any industry that touches the environment. I recently read a comparison between the Three Mile Island incident that occurred in Pennsylvania 30 years ago and the spill. This article said the spill is causing more damage but will have less overall ramifications than the Three Mile Island incident did. I would not be so hasty in my conclusions. I don't think 60 days after the Three Mile Island incident we had any clue it would effectively put a 30 year moratorium on new nuclear generation stations. We are too close to the beginning of the spill to make any judgments on it, either. I think we can safely say the pulp and paper industry will be affected, whether that is good (more emphasis on biofuels) or bad (more environmental regulations) remains to be seen.