for nothing. The NalgeneO Hand-Operated Vacuum Pump puts controllable vacu u m i n t h e p a l m o f y o u r hand. Weighing less than l/2 pound, it attains a vacuum u p t o 25 in. Hg with a few easy squeezes of the handleand can hold it for 24 hours! You monitor the exact vacuum o n the gauge, calibrated in both centimeters and inches. Pumping rate is 15cc (one cubic inch) per stroke. Will also generate 7 psi positive pressure through tubing connected to the exhaust port. A n integral
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Environmental Science & Technology
search and technical programs. None of these men fits your description of "nontechnical bureaucrats and political appointees." Incidentally, I was interested to find in the same issue of your magazine containing the critical editorial, two articles by EPA technical personnel describing the technical basis for decisions in air standards. I hope this will help reassure your readers that EPA scientists and engineers are an extremely important part of the Agency's decision-making process. William D. Ruckelshaus
Administrator Environmental Protection Agency Washington, D.C. Hard road for incinerators Dear Sir: The thrust of the article in the November 1972 issue (page 992) appears to judge the performance of obsolete incinerators built since 1920, many of which have little or no air pollution control devices, lack resource recovery features and modern combustion systems, plus an assumption that acceptable landfill sites are available to all communities. We submit that one cannot judge the performance of modern incinerators by citing the number of obsolete incinerators which have been closed down or are operating inefficiently, any more than one can judge the performance of modern industry by referencing obsolete plants or systems. The author failed to recognize that modern incinerators can be good neighbors as experienced in the major cities of Europe where environmentally acceptable incinerators are operating in residential areas and reclaiming a substantial amount of energy from the incineration process. Contrary to the statement that the City of Chicago is ". . . having trouble finding a market for steam. . .," please be advised that the City has been selling steam produced by burning refuse at the Southwest Incinerator for the last eight years and has had no difficulty in finding customers for the steam at the new Northwest Incinerator. Many industries look with favor toward purchasing a guaranteed supply of steam from a source which meets current air quality standards, rather than attempting to solve the equipment and personnel costs associated with manufacturing steam. The City of Chicago has never held to the position that incineration is the only solution to the solid waste disposal problem and in the past has actively sought new and improved alternatives, and will continue to do so in the future. Milton Pikarsky Department of Public Works Chicago, Ill. 60602
