EDITOR:

For the past month and a half, we as a community have heard about the unsafe conditions of working at the Billerud Paper Mill. The cases of people contracting blastomycosis and the long-term effects this will have on these people’s families are saddening. We understand that there has been a recent study into the matter of what may be causing this issue but as a community, I feel we seek much more transparency from our biggest provider of jobs in Delta County.

The lack of transparency can be scary to not only the families of mill workers but everyone in Escanaba. A shutdown/major issue with the workforce could cause a lot of stress in the community that is not needed at this time. Knowing how much time it took for the company to address an issue that was facing their own workers, how much can we as a community believe they have our health and safety in mind?

Leonard J. Menary

Rapid River