WASHINGTON – Maine Reps. Tom Allen and John Baldacci have introduced the Mercury Storage and Safe Disposal Act of 2001. The bill would provide for the safe storage of 160,000 pounds of mercury remaining from the 260,000 pounds left behind when the HoltraChem plant in Orrington closed.

“Our legislation will allow the Department of Defense to store the mercury until the Environmental Protection Agency has completed a study to identify the best long-term means for its disposition,” Allen and Baldacci wrote in a press release. “DOD has both the facilities and expertise to assure that the mercury is removed safely from its current location and managed properly until a permanent solution is set in place.”