City council members in Inola have delayed consideration of the creation of a new city committee to review industrial development in the city.
It’s an idea born out of the $4 billion proposed aluminum smelter at the Port of Inola, a project that has drawn opposition from those who contend the project would be environmentally harmful to the region.
Critics and others proposed the creation of a new committee called ICARE and it would help provide written reports to the city about community concerns and recommendations about any industrial development. ICARE is Inola Community Accountability Review and Engagement Committee. It is the brainchild of the Stop the Inola Smelter Group and would allow opponents of the smelter to present their ideas to the city council. But the Oklahoma Primary Aluminum project is at the heart of the plan.
For months, those who live in Inola have voiced their opposition against the massive proposed aluminum plant inspiring them to create the ICARE committee, reported KTUL TV News in Tulsa.
“We feel like this development is all happening so fast, it’s happened. But it’s been going on for years, and nobody knew about it until last year,” said Inola community member Beth Richards.
The mayor of Inola is Darlene Shear who advocated waiting so council members would have time to review and consider the committee.
“I want to table this until the next meeting,” Shear said. “I’d like to think about this and go over the resolution to make sure we have everything we want for this committee.”
Still, residents think it’s time Inola had such an industrial review committee.
“This is a good step forward for the town and for the folks that have a voice, and I really hope that we’re making [an] impact and [protecting] our community as we go forward,” said a community member during public comment. “This isn’t just singularity for the aluminum smelter, this is for the industrial park so that we establish the baseline and as we go forward…If we don’t step in and do something, no one will.”
The Stop the Inola Smelter Group is moving ahead with its opposition to the smelter. It plans a meeting on Friday at 6 p.m. at Inola High School to help residents learn how to voice their concerns about the proposed development.
Its website features the belief, ““Our children and grandchildren deserve better than this. Will our legacy be an enormous foreign-owned industrial smelter consuming more power than most Oklahoma cities, emitting hazardous pollutants into our air, water, and soil — all in the name of economic development? Or will we protect the land, health, and future of Green Country for generations to come?”
