The United Steelworkers (USW), Appleton Coated LLC, NewPage Corporation, and Sappi Fine Paper North America are applauding the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) for its preliminary determination and unanimous vote to proceed with a full investigation of coated paper products from China and Indonesia.

According to a statement released on Friday, the USW and the companies filed unfair trade cases on Sept. 23 with the U.S. Department of Commerce and the ITC alleging that certain coated paper from China and Indonesia had been dumped and subsidized resulting in injury to the domestic paper industry and its employees. The paper products covered by the petitions include coated paper used in high-quality writing, printing, and other graphic applications using sheet-fed presses with a GE brightness rating of 80 or higher up and weighing to 340 grams per square meter.

The ITC vote on Friday follows the Oct. 13 decision by the Commerce Department to open an investigation on the filings.

The petitions filed by the USW and the companies estimate that total imports of covered coated paper increased by nearly 40 percent during the first six months of 2009 compared to the year-ago period. During the same period, the statement said, shipments of paper covered by the domestic manufacturers’ petitions are estimated to have declined by approximately 38 percent. “China and Indonesia together almost doubled their share of the U.S. market over the same period and now are believed to account for nearly 30 percent of the U.S. market.”

USW International President Leo Gerard cited as evidence of injury a coated paper mill closed in Michigan earlier this year, on top of previous job losses at idled or closed plants and paper machines in Maine, Wisconsin, and other states. “We cannot stand up and let imports unfairly take away our good jobs and shut down factors,” he said. “Trade laws between nations must be enforced with government fact finding and the power to defend jobs and industries with strong tariff penalties for import violations.”

The USW represents 850,000 active workers employed in metals, mining, pulp, paper, timber, rubber, chemicals, glass, auto supply, energy producing industries, and the service and professional sectors.

Porter resident Anne E. (Kinney) Gerasch passed away on Friday, Nov. 6, 2009 at her home. She was 81.

Born on Oct. 12, 1928 in Middletown, N.Y., she was the daughter of Lambert and Helen (Drummond) Kinney, who preceded her in death. She was married for 55 years to Gerald L. “Jerry” Gerasch, who survives in Porter.

Also surviving is her son, Lawrence G. Gerasch (wife Sharon) of Vulcan, Mich.; daughters Bonnie H. Gross (husband Louis Sr.) of LaPorte and Jerilyn A. Pritchard (Kenneth) of Valparaiso; and grandchildren Daniel Pritchard, Adam Pritchard, Louis Gross Jr., Stephan Gross, Neal Gerasch, Adrienne Gerasch and Aaron Gerasch.

In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by grandson Nathan Pritchard.

Anne was an area resident since 1963, moving here from Illinois. She was Vice President/Treasurer for Culligan of Valparaiso and was the co-owner with her husband. She was also a homemaker and mother. Anne was a member of St. Patrick Catholic Church in Chesterton, converting to Catholicism after getting married to Jerry. She was a member of the Royal Neighbors of America Goldenrod Camp #5469 and Oracle for many years. She was also a member of the NSDAR, Mary Ball Chapter. Anne loved the holidays as the whole family would be together.

She was an avid reader and enjoyed traveling, and has traveled to most of the United States and parts of Europe.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 10 at 10 a.m. at St. Patrick Catholic Church, 638 N. Calumet Road, Chesterton, with Father James Meade officiating. Entombment will follow at Graceland Cemetery, Valparaiso. Visitation will be held on Monday, Nov. 9 from 3 to 7 p.m. at the Edmonds & Evans Funeral Home, 517 Broadway, Chesterton, with a wake service held at 6:15 p.m. Memorials may be made to INPACT, 12300 Marshall St., Crown Point, Ind., 46307, for handicapped youth and adults. www.EE-FH.com

Captain Erik Peterson, a 1996 Chesterton High School graduate, was promoted to Major at Fort Sill in Lawton, Oklahoma on Oct. 29.

Maj. Peterson is currently serving as an instructor for the Basic Officer Leadership Course. He is with the 1st Armored Cavalry Division, United States Army and has been deployed twice to Iraq.

He is a graduate of Indiana University – Bloomington in 2000. He is married to Kelly (Ton) Peterson, formerly of Porter, and has two daughters, Madelyn and Abigail. He is the son of Vonnie Peterson of Chesterton and son-in-law of Bob and Kathy Ton of Porter.

A fire early this morning on the patio of an apartment at 509 Manor Drive has left a Chesterton resident without a place to live, the Chesterton Fire Department said.

Engineer Brent Valpatic told the Chesterton Tribune today that firefighters were dispatched to the apartment complex at 3:52 a.m. On their arrival, Valpatic said, heavy smoke was observed at the scene and the complex was evacuated.

The fire was traced to the patio of Apartment 3-D, Valpatic said, where a can containing cigarette butts apparently ignited and spread into an adjoining wall. Only 10 gallons of water were used to extinguish the blaze but some overhaul was necessary—the wall was opened and some siding on the outside removed—to ensure that the fire had not spread.

The CFD estimated damage to the structure at $8,000 and that to contents at $1,000. Although the apartment itself was left unhabitable, Valpatic said, all other residents of the complex were permitted to return to their homes.

No one was injured in the fire, Valpatic said, but a woman was hurt slightly after falling down some stairs while exiting the building. She was treated at the scene by Porter EMS personnel and released.

The Porter Fire Department also responded to the scene with an engine.

A Chesterton resident was arrested Thursday on charges of neglect of a dependent, possession of a controlled substance, maintaining a common nuisance, possession of paraphernalia, and taking a child into a common nuisance, Porter Police said.

According to police, at 5:51 p.m. Jonathan J. Hamilton, 26, of 216 S. Seventh St., with two children in his vehicle, was stopped by the PPD station at 50 Francis St. after an officer saw him weave and hit a curb. When instructed to exit the vehicle, police said, Hamilton reached over into the passenger’s seat and began pushing his hand under his coat. In a subsequent check of the passenger’s seat for “potential hazards or weapons,” police said, an officer found a glass smoking device with burnt residue in it as well as some clear plastic baggies containing a white powdery substances and several capped syringes.

A complete search of the vehicle produced a total of 28 empty baggies containing a residual white powdery substance; 11 baggies containing 4.9 grams of a white powdery substance which field-tested positive for the presence of heroin; and six syringes, police said.

Police added that one of the capped syringes was located in the compartment area where Hamilton’s two child passengers were seated.

The two children were released to the care of a relative, police said.

Hamilton was transported to Porter County Jail.

Neglect of a dependent, possession of a controlled substance, and maintaining a common nuisance are all Class D felonies, punishable by a term of six months to three years; possession of paraphernalia and taking a child into a common nuisance are Class A misdemeanors, punishable by up to year in jail.

A woman was killed Sunday when the van in which she was riding rolled over on the Indiana Toll Road in LaPorte County, the Indiana State Police said.

The victim was identified as Lindora CornrjoCaldron, 45, whose place of residence was not immediately known.

The driver of the 1994 Toyota Priva van, Elias Ornan Serpas Juarez, 24, of Alelphi, Md., was sited for unsafe lane movement and a child restraint violation, police said.

According to police, at 2:06 a.m. Serpas Juarez was eastbound on the Toll Road when he left the roadway at the 48.3 mile marker, rolled over several times, and came to rest in the median, upright and facing westbound.

Serpas Juarez—who advised investigators that they were traveling from Sacramento, Calif., to Maryland—sustained minor injuries. CornrjoCaldron was transported to St. Anthony Memorial Health Center in Michigan City, where she died.

Also injured in the crash were Sylvia Murcea, 38, residence unknown, who sustained severe hand injuries and cuts on the head and chest; and Rudy Alexander Oreliana Vega, 35, of Maryland, who sustained a severe head laceration and a severe foot injury. Both were transported to LaPorte Hospital and then transferred to South Bend Memorial Hospital, police said.

In addition, two children were injured in the crash. Their names and injuries were being withheld pending notification and further investigation.

A Jackson Township resident was arrested Saturday on a charge of resisting arrest and the man’s two sons on a charge of intimidation, the Porter County Sheriff’s Police said.

According to police, at 11:11 p.m. an officer was dispatched to the residence of Gregory Dille, 50, at 240 E. U.S. Highway 6, in response to a complaint about the “excessive noise” of a go-cart race on a track at Dille’s property. On his arrival, police said, the officer made contact with Gregory Dille, who wanted to know which county ordinance he might be violating. The officer advised that there is no county noise ordinance but that a state statute for disorderly conduct may apply to a homeowner who is making excessive noise.

Gregory Dille then said “that it’s his property to do as he wants” with and noted that “this is what’s (problematic) about this county and the government,” at which point two younger male subjects—later identified as Danny Dille, 25, and Clarence Dille, 24, both of 240 E. U.S. 6—yelled something to the same effect about the government, the officer stated in his report.

As the officer was trying to calm Gregory Dille, the officer stated, Danny Dille “stepped towards me and in a loud threatening manner told me ‘You better get in your car and get the (heck) out of here now.’

“I noticed that as Danny was making this statement his arms had stiffened up and his fists were clenched.”

The officer then informed Danny Dille that he was under arrest on a charge of intimidation and placed him in handcuffs, police said.

“As this was going on, I could hear Gregory and Clarence both yelling at me about arresting Danny,” the officer stated. “I then looked over and heard Clarence state that he was going to beat me with my billy club.”

The officer placed Clarence Dille under arrest as well on a charge of intimidation and added a charge of resisting law enforcement when Clarence Dille refused to put a hand behind his back to be cuffed.

As his son was being placed under arrest, Gregory Dille stepped “so close to me that I had to push him away from me,” the officer stated. Gregory Dille then advised the officer that he was going to call a high-ranking officer of the PCSP “because they were good friends.”

Finally, the officer stated, when Gregory Dille himself refused to be handcuffed and instead started walking toward a second officer at the scene, ignoring the instruction to stop or be Tasered, he was Tasered in the arm.

Police said that Gregory Dille was charged with two counts of resisting law enforcement; Danny Dille with one count of intimidation; and Clarence Dille with one count of intimidation and one of resisting law enforcement.

All three were transported to Porter County Jail.

The Chesterton Fire Department responded to two brush fires over the weekend, the first caused by an illegal leaf burn, the second by a camp fire by some kids playing in a field.

At 2:20 p.m. on Saturday, Engineer Brent Valpatic told the Chesterton Tribune today, firefighters were dispatched to a farm on the south side of C.R. 1050N east of 11th Street in response to a report of a brush fire. Valpatic said that around a quarter of an acre of land was affected and that the fire spread after a farmer conducting an illegal open burn of multiple leaf piles lost control of the fires in the stiff wind.

Firefighters used 750 gallons of water, provided by an engine and brush truck, to extinguish the blaze, which actually jumped C.R. 1050N to the north before being doused. Valpatic said that firefighters had control of the scene by 2:45 p.m. The farmer was issued a warning, he added.

Then, at 2:28 on Sunday, another quarter of an acre in the area of Sandpiper Drive and Michael Drive was set on fire when some kids playing paintball thought it would be a good idea to start a camp fire.

Firefighters used 375 gallons of water provided by an engine to extinguish the blaze and the CFD cleared the scene at 3:34 p.m., Valpatic said.

Porter County taxpayers can expect their 2009 property tax bills in the mail, some as early as Thursday this week.

County Auditor Jim Kopp announced last week the office will be printing the remaining bills over the next few days. He said he expects all the bills to be mailed by Friday, Nov. 13, which was the date the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance planned with county officials in October. The original date for the bills to be sent this year was May 11.

Porter County Treasurer James R. Murphy slotted Dec. 4 as the due date for tax payments. Murphy said he and the Porter County Council had not officially set up payment plans for those who cannot make full payments by the Dec. 4 deadline. Murphy encourages any taxpayer having trouble making the payment to call the Porter County Treasurer’s office to avoid late fees.

Taxpayers can mail in their checks to the treasurer’s office or pay by credit card on the county’s Web page. The payments will be processed through a recent agreement with First Source Bank that will make the funds available faster for taxing units. Murphy hopes to have all tax payments processed by the end of this year.

Indiana is one of five counties still waiting for its 2009 tax bills to be processed. The other remaining counties are LaPorte, Brown, Clinton and White.

Kopp said his office is prepared to get the tax bills out on schedule next year, or at least close to it. He said the delays this year are due in part to data conversion problems caused by synchronizing several computer systems. Kopp predicted the magnitude of error for next year will be less than 1 percent of what it was this year. The auditor’s office found nearly 7,000 discrepancies in the 2008 data, he said.

Kopp commended his staff for putting in hours of effort to fix the errors. He suspects they haven’t found all of them but said he is confident in the work. The auditor’s office was still working over the weekend making corrections.

“You try to minimize the problem. Basically that’s all you can do,” said Kopp.

The assessor’s office has completed their 2010 tax roll and it is ready to be checked by the auditor’s office well ahead of last year. Kopp said the process is expected to go much more quickly. His office has established deadlines with firm intentions to meet those dates.

The Indiana DLGF is working with the entire state to get the 2010 tax bills out on time and already states they are four months ahead of last year’s taxing cycle on average. The DLGF is calling 2010, “The Year of No Excuses.” The first installment of the 2010 tax bills is due May 10.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — After another summer of blue-green algae woes on many Indiana lakes, three state agencies have been asked to develop a statewide monitoring system to track levels of the plantlike bacteria.

Blue-green algae doesn’t just give surface waters an unappealing, greenish cast — it can also release toxins that can sicken people, causing diarrhea, vomiting or nausea. And it has killed dozens of dogs across the nation over the years.

Armed with new data on the state’s algae problem, the state Legislature’s Environmental Quality Service Council voted 9-0 last month to direct the state’s environmental, health and natural resources departments to devise a strategy for monitoring algae levels.

Council member Rep. David Wolkins said the panel decided it was time for the state to begin focusing on the algae issue after years of complaints about fouled lakes.

“Nobody seemed to be in control so we asked those three agencies to get together and do something,” said Wolkins, R-Winona Lake.

He said he was surprised to learn that one of the lakes filled with the algae is Palestine Lake, a 400-acre lake in northern Indiana’s Kosciusko County that he had always thought was a swamp.

“I’ve been down there and it’s absolutely the ugliest looking lake,” he said. “People don’t want to even go in it or put their boats in it. It just looks like a big swamp.”

The council’s vote came after the state issued warnings in September about central Indiana’s Eagle Creek, Geist and Morse reservoirs, which have been plagued by elevated algae levels. Those warnings urged people to avoid coming into contact with algae and not to ingest the water.

The Indiana Department of Environmental Management, which will spearhead the state’s monitoring effort, hasn’t had much time since the council vote to put together its plans, said Bruno Pigott, assistant commissioner for IDEM’s Office of Water Quality.

He hopes the agency has an approach in place by next spring, but funding remains in question in light of state spending cutbacks to offset a continuing multimillion dollar decline in state revenues.

IDEM spokeswoman Amy Hartsock said the agency estimates that an algae monitoring system would cost millions of dollars to operate.

Lenore Tedesco, director of IUPUI’s Center for Earth and Environmental Sciences, has studied Eagle Creek, Geist and Morse reservoirs for years, tracking their high algae levels and passing her data on to the state.

This year, she sampled 15 Indiana lakes and found elevated algae levels in 14.

Tedesco said her data, along with a 2007 study by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that found one of the toxins associated with the algae present in 36 of 56 Indiana lakes clearly shows that it’s a statewide problem.

Tedesco, who testified before the legislative council about her research, said blue-green algae is fueled by a wide variety of nutrients, including discharges from sewage treatment plants and runoff from farm fields, livestock farms and lawns treated with fertilizers.

James Howell, who heads the state health department’s public health and preparedness division, said he had not heard of any human cases of algae-related illnesses in the state, although the state has not required reporting of such cases.

Tedesco said about 25 states have adopted state algae standards because of either dog deaths and human illnesses. Other states have imposed bans on fertilizers that contain phosphorous, she said.

“There’s a whole bunch of states that are ahead of us because they’ve reacted to it and they’ve been vigilant about that,” she said. “In Indiana, we just don’t have much information about what’s out there.”

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On the Net:

IDEM blue-green algae site: http://www.in.gov/idem/algae/

IUPUI Center for Earth and Environmental Sciences: http://www.cees.iupui.edu/

The speech side of the Chesterton High School Speech and Debate Team opened its season at a novice tournament, hosted by Plymouth High School. Thirteen schools and nearly 300 contestants competed in what, for many of them, was their first tournament of the new season. CHS novices did well with eleven of their eighteen entries placing in the top ten in their respective events. There were no team awards at this invitational.

Sophomore Austin Martinson led the team with a second place finish in humorous interpretation. Teammates Michaela Raffin (10) in declamation, and Tori Hunter (10) and Katie Murfitt (10) in memorized duo placed third in their events. Other top five winners included Alex Opat (10), fourth in prose; Gracie Parker (10), fourth in drama; and Andrew Hogan (9), fifth in broadcasting.

Others taking top 10 ribbons included Spencer Gordon (9) with a sixth in extemporaneous speaking, and the scripted duo teams of freshmen Alex Bucko and Maria Burelli 7th place, and Aliyah Caraballo and Maddie Mottinger 10th place. In addition, Kyle Groves took ninth in drama and Samantha Read (9) placed ninth in poetry.

Coach Bob Kelly accompanied the team, but the tournament was run and judged by varsity team members. Working in the office for CHS were seniors Hayley Miller and Matt Keeley, with help from juniors Jessica Cleary and Kara Fasone. Judges included Fasone and Cleary, along with juniors Britta Ringas, Eli Muller, Robert Conrick, Colleen O’Keefe, Julia Ingram, and Leah Djumovich. Sophomore judges included Jake Pullins, Nicole Nowak, Max Carstens, Randi Hickman, and Toni Kuziela. Senior Jake Goldberg helped run broadcasting.

“This was a great learning experience for all of our kids, and we’re off to a good start. There is a great deal of talent in this new group, and our varsity kids are doing a nice job of bringing them along,” said coach Bob Kelly.

The Chesterton High School Class of 1960 is planning its 50-year reunion.

The event will be at the Sand Creek Country Club on August 7, 2010. For more information, contact George Maney at george.maney1@verizon.net.