Staff photo by Brian Freskos Opponents collect Stop Titan items after a meeting prepared them for the draft air permit hearings scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 2

Opponents of Titan Cement, LLC have begun to mobilize demonstrators to attend two public hearings at 2 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 20 conducted by the North Carolina Division of Air Quality at the North Campus of Cape Fear Community College to voice opposition for the issuance of the company’s draft air permit.

Friends of the Lower Cape Fear and members of the University of North Carolina Wilmington’s Environmental Concerns Organization (UNCW ECO) gathered on Tuesday, Oct. 13, in Dobo Hall to guide opposition supporters through the proper and most effective way to comment during the public hearings. Opposition leaders used the meeting to emphasize the gains that have been made in stopping Titan, a subsidiary of Carolina Cement Company, from building a plant in Castle Hayne.

Stop Titan yard signs, posters and bumper stickers were handed out to attendees, as was a bulleted guide to commenting at the public hearing and a list of suggested talking points, which includes the potential detriment to the health of citizens, the environment and the local economy.

Key players within the Stop Titan movement urged the attendees to be respectful of the hearing process and the Titan supporters, many of which will likely be present next Tuesday. They also stressed the need for huge numbers of concerned citizens to attend the hearings, saying that even if people don’t comment publicly, the volume of demonstrators will speak loudly.

A special demonstration is planned for 6 p.m. during which Titan opponents are asked to congregate outside the hearings dressed in red shirts, wearing facemasks and holding signs with anti-Titan slogans.

"This is our opportunity to take part in what should have been a democratic process," said Dain Nielsen of Wilmington, one of the opposition supporters present at the meeting.

Opposition leaders are also planning to conduct a phone tree Thursday Oct. 15 during which they will invite members of the public who have expressed Titan opposition to come to the hearing. They are also planning other awareness activities.

The hearings on Tuesday will be held in the BB&T Auditorium in the McKeithan Center at 4500 Blue Clay Rd. from 2-5 p.m. and from 6:30-9 p.m.

Those who cannot attend or prefer not to comment publicly may submit comments to the Division of Air Quality by Nov. 20. Comments should be directed to the attention of Don van de Vaart, Air Permits Section, NC Division of Air Quality, 1641 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC, 27699.